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Eyes Free Sports explores sports and recreation activities for blind and visually impaired individuals.
Episodes
Saturday Jan 06, 2024
Saturday Jan 06, 2024
In Episode 105 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, Scott Hudson of Fort Worth, TX joins the conversation. The longtime beep baseball player and runner spoke about:
- His early years and childhood
- His visual impairment
- His education and career in vocational rehabilitation
- How he got into beep baseball and his successful career
- What it meant to him to be inducted into the NBBA Hall of Fame
- His career as a runner and notable achievements in races
- His preference when it comes to a running tether
- Other sports for the blind he has tried
Learn more about the National Beep Baseball Association (NBBA) at http://nbba.org/. .
Check out United in Stride, an organization that connects blind runners with sighted guides, https://www.unitedinstride.com/.
Saturday Dec 23, 2023
Saturday Dec 23, 2023
In Episode 104 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we chat with Ed Plumacher, a longtime blind athlete and adaptive technology professional who was instrumental in bringing the sport of blind baseball to the United States and helping start the U.S. Blind Baseball Association (USBBA). During the conversation, Plumacher discussed:
- His early years and visual impairment
- His college years and various professional roles, including some unique work in sports media
- How he got into playing sports for the blind, including beep baseball and skiing
- How he was introduced to blind baseball and how the game works
- How blind baseball differs from beep baseball
- The history of blind baseball and the current landscape of the sport in the U.S., along with his goals to help grow the game around the country
- His work in adaptive technology
- What it was like visiting several MLB ballparks to explore how accessible they are for blind and visually impaired fans
- How people can learn more about blind baseball
Check out the U.S. Blind Baseball Association website (currently linked to its Facebook page) at http://usbba.us.
Contact Ed Plumacher by email at edplumacher@usbba.us.
Saturday Dec 09, 2023
Saturday Dec 09, 2023
In Episode 103 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we meet Wendy Fagan, the founder and executive director of the nonprofit Envision Blind Sports based in the Pittsburgh, PA area. During the interview, Fagan talked about:
- Her personal background
- How she got connected with the disability community, specifically blind and visually impaired individuals
- What inspired her to start VIP Sports, now known as Envision Blind Sports
- The numerous blind sports programs her nonprofit offers for both children and adults
- How blind sports have positively impacted many of the kids she has gotten to know over the years
- Her work as a coach for the U.S. women’s national goalball team in the 1990s
- Her career as a college professor teaching adaptive sports and fitness classes
- Advice for anyone interested in starting a nonprofit for blind sports
- How to learn more about and contact Envision Blind Sports
Learn more about Envision Blind Sports at http://envisionblindsports.org. Email Wendy and her team at envisionblindsports@gmail.com.
Saturday Nov 25, 2023
Saturday Nov 25, 2023
In Episode 102 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, our guest is Brett Devloo, a.k.a. The Blind Kid (TBK) from Canada. During the conversation, Devloo discussed:
- Where he was born and grew up
- Sports he played as a kid and why he fell in love with skateboarding
- How he suddenly lost a good amount of his eyesight
- The meaning behind his nickname, The Blind Kid
- How he got back into skateboarding after going blind and some simple adaptations he uses as a visually impaired skateboarder
- His music career as a hip-hop artist and singer of other genres
- How he got to work with one of Stevie Wonder’s producers
- An international award he received for his work providing free technology to blind kids
- How you can reach him and follow him on social media
Learn more about Brett Devloo, a.k.a. The Blind Kid, at https://www.theblindkidtbk.com/ . Find him on social media by searching for “The Blind Kid.”
Saturday Nov 11, 2023
Saturday Nov 11, 2023
In Episode 101 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we visit with Drew Blake, president and co-founder of the nonprofit Guiding Eyes Outdoors, Inc. based in North Carolina. During the interview, Blake talked about:
- His personal and professional backgrounds
- What inspired him to help launch Guiding Eyes Outdoors
- An overview of adaptive outdoor activities the nonprofit offers to blind and visually impaired participants
- An overview of his team and volunteers
- The types of adaptive events the nonprofit holds and how they are accessible to blind and visually impaired participants
- An overview of the Accessible Aiming Project he and his team are working on with Georgia Tech
- Stories of how participants have benefited from being involved in these programs
- His future goals with the organization
- How people can learn more about the nonprofit and get involved
Learn more about Guiding Eyes Outdoors at https://www.guidingeyesoutdoors.org/. Follow the nonprofit on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/guidingeyesoutdoors, Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/guidingeyesoutdoors/, and TikTok at https://www.tiktok.com/@guidingeyesoutdoors.
Saturday Oct 28, 2023
Saturday Oct 28, 2023
In Episode 100 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, host Greg Lindberg celebrates this milestone episode by having the interviewing tables turned on him. Michael Stone, a blind endurance athlete, skier, biathlete, and author who appeared on Episodes 62 and 63 of the podcast, takes the reigns as guest host. During the conversation, Lindberg discussed:
- His visual impairment
- His childhood, education, and professional career
- How he got into playing adaptive sports, specifically beep baseball
- What inspired him to launch the Eyes Free Sports podcast in 2019
- A recent athletic injury he sustained and how it has impacted him
- His musical interests
- His biggest supporters as a podcaster
Saturday Oct 14, 2023
Saturday Oct 14, 2023
In Episode 99 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, our guest is Melchion Wee-Ellis. The beep baseball player and adaptive athlete from Long Island, NY spoke about:
- Where he was born, grew up, and his unique family heritage
- His education and sports he played as a youngster
- His visual impairment and how his vision has changed over time
- His adjustment to sight loss
- How he got into adaptive sports for the blind, specifically beep baseball
- His beep baseball career playing for the Long Island Bombers and Atlanta Chaos of the National Beep Baseball Association (NBBA)
- How he got into running with the Long Island chapter of Achilles International
- The numerous sports injuries he has sustained and how he has overcome them
- His guide dog from Guiding Eyes for the Blind
Contact Melchion at melchion.wee.ellis@gmail.com.
Saturday Sep 30, 2023
Saturday Sep 30, 2023
In Episode 98 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we chat about audio darts with two guests - Sam Jasmine of Plymouth, MN and Rich Koppenjan of St. Augustine, FL. The two discussed
- Where they are from and their eye conditions
- The history of audio darts in the United States
- How they got into playing audio darts
- How audio darts works and the audio dartboard Sam and her team developed
- Leagues and tournaments for audio darts around the country
- Other sports for the blind they have competed in
To learn more about audio darts for the blind or to purchase an audio dartboard, contact Sam Jasmine at audiodartmaster@samjasmine.com or by phone at 763-383-0077.
Saturday Sep 16, 2023
Saturday Sep 16, 2023
In Episode 97 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, we feature a conversation with Allan Wylie, a 17-year-old sportscaster who happens to be blind. You’ll also hear some clips of what Wylie sounds like in the booth. During the interview, Wylie spoke about his early years and education, how he became interested in sports and sports broadcasting, announcers he has looked up to, how he got to call high school sports and Minor League Baseball games, and his goals in sports broadcasting.
Saturday Sep 02, 2023
Saturday Sep 02, 2023
In Episode 96 of the Eyes Free Sports podcast, Donna Brown, a four-time Paralympian who competed in multiple Paralympic sports, joins the conversation. Brown spoke about:
- Where she was born and grew up
- Her visual impairment which her two siblings also have
- Her experience attending a school for the blind and how this led her to adaptive sports for the blind
- Competing in the Paralympic Games in the 1970s, ‘80s, and ‘90s
- Other athletic events she has competed in since her Paralympic days
- Her teaching career and biggest takeaways from being an educator
- Her involvement in the American Council of the Blind (ACB) and other organizations in the community