The Vermont Ski & Snowboard Museum's Red Bench Virtual Speaker Series presents "The First Disabled Ski Descent of Denali - Breaking Barriers with Vasu Sojitra" on Thursday, November 17th at 7pm via ZOOM.
This Thursday presents Vasu Sojitra, who is breaking barriers as an adaptive athlete as well as an advocate for racial justice and inclusion. Sojitra is climbing and skiing the highest peaks on one leg. He climbed the Grand Teton, and in 2021, he and fellow adaptive skier Pete McAfee did the first disabled climb and ski descent of Denali, the highest peak in North America. The excursion was featured in the latest Warren Miller ski film. Sojitra is also the first adaptive athlete for The North Face and is a co-founder of Inclusive Outdoors Project. Vasu began backcountry skiing as a student at the University of Vermont, where he graduated in 2013. His first pursuits as an adaptive athlete in Vermont were the subject of a 2014 film, Out On A Limb.
Vasu Sojitra will discuss his Denali descent and his other adaptive skiing accomplishments as well as his ongoing work to make the outdoors more inclusive for marginalized people. We will also see excerpts from recent films featuring Sojitra.
This Red Bench discussion will be moderated by David Goodman, author of "Best Backcountry Skiing in the Northeast".
RSVP below for a Zoom link. The event is free, but a donation of $10 per viewer is greatly appreciated. Red Bench Season Passes good for the entire season are available here: https://www.vtssm.org/red-bench-donation