Supporting Lara Sturgiss
The team here at Vooba were delighted to meet the inspiring Lara Sturgiss when she popped by to visit us at the office. Lara is a young sporting professional who participates in Sailability at Frensham Ponds. We are grateful that she has been able to find the time to step away from her busy training schedule to come and visit us.
Why Sailability?
For many who take part in accessible sports, they find they still carry out their activity indoors and for a lot of sports, wheelchair users will still require that they use their chair to complete the activities. This is where sailability offers something special. Not only will participants move away from their usual surroundings and equipment, into a specially designed accessibility sailing boat; but they will also be breathing in the fresh air and experiencing some very new surroundings. With wildlife all around, it’s a fantastic way to get away from it all and feel free from some of the hurdles which everyday life brings.
It is also a great way of exercising, without realising how much exertion the sport really requires as you’re having so much fun whilst doing it. Lara would highly recommend anybody who requires additional accessibility to look into joining in with sailability, a sport she has been enjoying for many years now.
Where Does Lara Sail?
Lara predominantly trains at Frensham Ponds Sailing Club, who provide fantastic facilities and strive to make sailing available for everybody. With Sailability lessons taking place twice weekly on both Thursday and Saturday mornings, it’s the perfect opportunity for anybody with a disability or other long term illness to experience sailing in an accessible way.
How did we meet?
We first came across Lara through a mutual friend who volunteers at the Sailing Club. We were inspired by Lara’s story and how successful she is becoming in her sport and upon discovering that there was an opportunity here to help Lara by purchasing her the new pair of gloves she required for her big upcoming competition, we were more than happy to help. In fact, we are delighted to be supporting her and will be cheering her on at future events.
The Big Event - National Championships In Portugal
Exciting news! Lara has been selected to compete at the European Championships in October, representing both Frensham Ponds and Team GB. This is an absolutely fantastic opportunity, which she is absolutely ecstatic about. We asked Lara how she is feeling and she is determined to win - we will be cheering her on every step of the way.
The event will take place on the week of the 7th October and we are keen to follow Lara’s progress and see how she gets on.
How can you support Sailability?
If you would be interested in getting out in the open and assisting with these classes, Frensham Ponds are always looking for new volunteers. Without them, it would not be possible for these classes to go ahead. It is an incredibly rewarding role, which requires just a few hours of your time a week but will build friendships which will last a lifetime.
Take a look here for more details on how you could help.
