When Rachel Talley lifted her first set of weights competitively in eighth grade, she knew she was hooked.
Now a senior attending class at Hudson Bay High School in Vancouver, Talley spends much of her time training for her second national championship in October, where she'll go pound-for-pound with some of the best powerlifters in her weight class.
Like many other overachieving athletes, Talley is confident, success-driven and well-spoken. She's also a visually-impaired 17 year old who was born totally blind.
With limited vision in both eyes, Talley is one of many local visually-impaired teenagers participating in programs run by the Northwest Association of Blind Athletes, a nonprofit group based in Vancouver.
Co-founded in 2007 by Vancouver resident Billy Henry, who also serves as NWABA's program director, the group seeks to provide opportunities in sports and physical activity for blind and visually impaired athletes. "Sports for anyone helps build confidence," said Henry, who is also visually impaired. "But for blind people, it takes it takes on a whole new meaning."
NWABA members, ranging from age 13 to adulthood, participate in other sports like judo, swimming and wrestling, as well as a variant of the schoolyard classic Dodgeball, called "Goalball" – a game played blindfolded to ensure fair competition between all vision classes.
Make no mistake: these athletes aren't always out there to play nice and stay trim. Like Talley, many are serious competitors looking to outperform not only their visually-impaired comrades, but their sighted counterparts as well.
Talley is set to compete at the upcoming 2009 World Association of Benchers and Dead Lifters Championship in Reno, Nev. in October. "I'm really excited for the opportunity to lift with people that are really going to challenge me," she said. "There isn't a lot of competition here in my weight class."
Like many other teenagers enrolled at NWABA, Talley lives on the Washington State School for the Blind campus in Vancouver. The 123-year-old landmark institution serves as a logical starting point for NWABA's mission, which Henry hopes to spread to every school in the state – and beyond. "There are a lot of sports out there that blind people can compete in or can be adapted to allow blind people to compete," Talley said.
For example, a guide runner can be used in track events to allow visually-impaired athletes to compete. In swimming, a tap of a cane with a tennis ball on one end is commonly used to signal a turn or the end of the race for blind athletes.
But it's in powerlifting – a sport requiring little to no adaptation for blind athletes – which NWABA seems to put much of its emphasis. With no practice space of their own, Henry transformed his garage into a weightlifting area for his athletes to train. "I've done sports all my life – but when I first heard of powerlifting, I really wanted to try it," Talley said. "With NWABA, I just got to the next level."
NWABA's powerlifting team travels across the U.S. to various regional and national competitions. This year will be their third appearance at the six-day WABDL championships, with teams from 50 states and 11 countries convening on the Peppermill Reno Hotel Casino next month.
"The guys that run this group are pretty incredible – not only in their commitment and drive, but in their level of competitive achievement," said NWABA Board Member David Lawson, of Henry and NWABA president Nick Wilks.
Though much of NWABA's focus is on competitive sports, Henry acknowledges that simply keeping blind and visually-impaired youngsters physically active is another much more elusive goal. "A lot of visually-impaired people are obese because they don't have access to physical activities," Henry said. "We are trying to change that."
