activities week
“It took years of nagging for me to do it and I only
wish I’d done it sooner. I had so much fun and it has
prompted me to do much more”
have the use of their legs could use hand
controls.” Jon Bevan, 60, a retired member
of the Royal Artillery, was a self-confessed
sceptic before attending Activities Week,
but enjoyed the event thoroughly, and the
go-karting in particular. “The brake is on
the left hand side, and I’ve got no left leg,
but someone said: ‘brakes are for losers’,”
he laughs. “It was a fantastic afternoon.”
The next day, the group really tested their
mettle with climbing, abseiling and the
zip-wire. “I was pretty iffy about being able
to do it, but I managed,” says Jon. “I hadn’t
abseiled in 30 years, and thought ‘There’s
no way I can do that with one leg’. But
I really surprised myself.”
Next came fly-fishing, “which is always
incredibly popular,” according to Dave,
while on Sunday the group visited a multiactivity centre for quad-biking, archery,
shooting and tank driving. Monday saw
the chance to fly a glider, and on Tuesday
the group visited a hi-tech wind tunnel
that simulates the experience of sky-diving.
“There was a lot of trepidation before
doing it,” says Jon. “I didn’t really think I
wanted to do it but when I did, it was great.
I had to reverse my leg to stop it flapping
about in the wind tunnel, though – the
looks I got were priceless!”
sharE memories, makE friends
The group also enjoyed trips into Blackpool
during their down time, took in a show,
ate fish ‘n’ chips, and even watched a drag
cabaret act. “We watched Funny Girl on the
Saturday night, which was brilliant,” says
Jon. “And I loved going on the promenade
in our convoy of mobility scooters and
wheelchairs, we all had such a laugh.”
At the end of the week, the progress that
all the Members had made was obvious.
“It’s really gratifying to see the change,”
says Dave, “not just over the week itself,
but to hear weeks later about the changes
our Members have made in their lives as
a direct result of coming on Activities Week.
That’s the thing I’m most interested in.
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