Stan Clawson: Cutting across a more level field

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Stan Clawson: Cutting across a more level field
By Bethany Broadwell
iCan News Service, staff writer
June 13, 2002

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Name: Stan Clawson

Birth date and age: Clawson is 26. He was born March 20, 1976.

Hometown: Clawson was raised and currently lives in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Family: Clawson is single. Most of his family lives in Utah. Clawson explained how fortunate he was to have a really strong support team to help him face the challenges that resulted from his Aug. 20, 1996, rock climbing accident in Salt Lake City's Little Cottonwood Canyon: "My parents and grandparents were constantly supporting and giving me encouragement, particularly during my physical therapy, recovery and eventual recreational endeavors. My friends were also a major source of support and motivation, especially those with similar disabilities."

Disability: Clawson has a T-9, complete spinal cord injury. He has no feeling from three inches above his belly button down to his toes. Overall, he described his mobility as fairly good, considering he has a long upper body and only two functioning abdominal muscles.

Employment: Clawson is currently working as a video producer and director for Pipe Dream Productions, a small company he helped put together more than a year ago. He said that he would like to go to film school. "I want to get to the point where I can use my expertise to tell stories and educate people about disabilities," Clawson explained. "Right now, I'm working on putting together some educational videos, targeted at people with disabilities."

Hobbies: Aside from participating in adaptive sports like mono-skiing, handcycling and water-skiing, Clawson also enjoys river rafting, drawing and watching a ton of movies.

Favorite quote: Clawson chose a quote from the bass-playing Muppet, Floyd Pepper: "Ain't nothin' to it but to do it!"

Greatest accomplishment in life: He teased, "At 26, managing to stay unmarried in the state of Utah."

Role models: His grandfather, "Kink," is someone Clawson admires because he still manages to get the most out of life, despite age and health. Paralympic skier Muffy Davis is another role model Clawson described as "an absolute doll, who continues to demonstrate confidence and enthusiasm in all of her endeavors." Finally, Clawson included Lawrence Turead, Mr. T., who played Sgt. BA Baracus on the "A-Team" television show, because, according to him, he is simply too cool.

Drawing on his interests
Just 10 months after his rock climbing accident, during his five-week recovery at LDS Hospital, Clawson heard about a water-skiing program offered by National Ability Center. "It sounded like a great opportunity and I was eager to get behind a boat once again," he explained. "Water-skiing is in my blood. It's what I do. It's what I've always done and it's always been one of my favorite sporting activities." Ever since he was a child, he enjoyed being on the water with his family and friends. The first time he remembers water-skiing was when he was 3 or 4 years old, and he went with his grandfather, "Kink," to Flaming Gorge, in Wyoming and Utah. Clawson used a "saucer" type disc at that time. In considering why the sport is still important to him today, he added, "Sure, it's an adrenaline rush, but now more than ever, it's a great way to feel like I'm doing what I've always done, regardless of the hand I've been dealt."

Learning new techniques
In June 1997, Clawson was 21 when he hit the water for the first time since his spinal cord injury. He and his grandfather drove to Utah Lake and met the National Ability Center's program volunteers and instructors. After a brief physical evaluation, Clawson transferred in and out of some equipment to determine what modifications would be needed in order for him to ski comfortably and successfully. Several of the volunteers helped him adjust to the overall feel of the ski, by giving him some self-balancing exercises in the shallow lake water. Then, after getting a general introduction to the equipment, Clawson said, "I hopped on a boat and headed out for my first attempt at sit-skiing."

Clawson, right now, is strictly a recreational skier. However, two years ago he had the opportunity to ski on a competition lake, just south of Sun Valley, Idaho. While he has only been back to that lake once since then, he said, "I think competitive water-skiing is something I'd really like to do. I even threw around the idea of putting together a local team. That could still happen."

Getting the conditions just right
Clawson currently skis on the shadow super-comp(etition) water-ski, which is no longer being made. Affixed to the ski is an aluminum cage with padding and a canvas seat sling. The seating has adjustable buckles that can be tightened or loosened depending upon the individual's size. "It's always good to start with a lower seating position and gradually work your way to higher setting," he explained. The adjustability allows for learning to take place. Water conditions, according to Clawson, play a big part in his success. Wind or choppy water can curtail his full potential. Still, he said, "If the water is glass and I'm dialed into my equipment, the sky's the limit."

He explained how he loves the outdoor environment -- the sheer exhilaration he feels, cutting across a smooth mountain lake: "That alone is worth the price of admission." Adaptive water-skiing gives him a chance to get out of his chair and cut some wake with his family and friends. "On the water," Clawson said, "the playing field becomes a lot more level."


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Bethany Broadwell is an iCan content producer for the Self-Discovery channel. You can reach her at SelfDiscovery@icanonline.net. Photo credit: National Ability Center.

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