43 blind and low-vision skiers are registered for January event, with 31 sighted guides signed up so far

CANMORE — Ski for Light Canada is looking for more sighted volunteer guides as it prepares to bring dozens of blind and low-vision cross-country skiers to Canmore’s frozen trails this winter.

As of Tuesday (Oct. 6), 43 blind and low-vision skiers and 31 sighted guides were registered for the non-profit organization’s January event at the Canmore Nordic Centre, with capacity for up to 55 of each.

Recruiting new guides is an ongoing part of keeping the volunteer-based program going as people’s circumstances change and longtime guides get older.

“We need sustainability of this program, and that’s why we have to really gain the enthusiasm of younger adults,” said Ruth Kohut, a Ski for Light Canada guide and lead organizer of the Stomp & Glide fundraiser.

But becoming a guide doesn’t require being an expert on cross-country skis.

“You don’t have to be a really good cross-country skier to be a guide,” Kohut said. “You have to be able to enjoy a beautiful relationship that is built with trust.”

At the heart of Ski for Light is a one-skier, one-guide model, pairing blind and low-vision adults with trained sighted volunteers on the trails.

Peter Quaiattini, president of Ski for Light Canada, is blind and registered to ski at the January event. He said classic cross-country skiing offers him a level of independence he doesn’t experience in the same way while downhill skiing.

Once his skis are in the tracks, Quaiattini says he can largely move along the trail independently, with his guide helping when the tracks end or conditions change.

“It’s a very, very liberating experience to be able to move through the trails over the snow. At my own speed, at my own pace,” he said.

“The guides, they just really facilitate that in a very safe and freeing kind of way. It’s a great, great experience.”

Kohut says the guide’s role is about creating the right conditions for that independence.

“Our job as guides is to create a partnership,” she said. “We create a partnership that makes cross-country skiing accessible and supports this sense of joy and freedom and independence.”

Guides are trained to communicate what’s happening on the trail, including approaching hills and turns, where tracks end and when a skier may need to stop.

But Kohut said the relationship also goes beyond navigating the snow.

“It’s also about social inclusion,” she said.

Ski for Light is entering its 49th year, with its 2025 event marking the first time it was held at the Canmore Nordic Centre.

The organization will return to Canmore for the 2027 Ski for Light Canada Signature Event from Jan. 24-30 at the Canmore Nordic Centre.

“We like Canmore because the nordic centre is beautifully set up for all levels of skiers, and we have all levels of skiers,” said Kohut.

Participants range from people stepping onto cross-country skis for the first time to experienced skiers capable of taking on longer distances.

For the upcoming event, Quaiattini said nordic centre staff are working with Ski for Light to develop a tactile map of the facility, using raised identifiers to allow blind and low-vision participants to better understand its layout.

“We’re really, really excited about that,” he said.

Quaiattini says support extends throughout the Bow Valley, with several local board members and volunteer guides.

“The volunteer community in Canmore is extraordinarily supportive of us,” he said.

Ahead of the January event, Ski for Light is looking to raise money through its Stomp & Glide fundraiser at The Blues Can in Calgary on Oct. 15 and has set a target of $40,000.

Registration fees cover approximately 40 to 50 per cent of the cost of running the week-long event, Quaiattini said, leaving the organization to raise the remaining 50 to 60 per cent.

Ski for Light also offers financial assistance to participants who cannot afford the registration fee.

“We don’t want someone’s financial situation to be an obstacle to participation,” said Quaiattini.