Giving up

[Chet]

A couple of weeks ago I attended a tournament in Palm Bay Fl. It was a great event and I think everyone had a good time. While there my friend Lou Alcamo had an experience that he shared with us and his kids. I thought I would share it with this group.

Lou writing to his kids

”As a father it’s my job to teach you as much as I can. 
That being said…its been 6 years and 7 months along with 7 major surgeries, 8 broken ribs, a punctured lung, , a broken leg and a coma since I’ve run 38 off in a tournament. I did it today.

lesson is never give up no matter what. Set goals, write them down if it helps but never quit trying… never give up.”

[Wish]

I’ve been in the boat watching Lou ski. Never give up is an understatement. I’ve never said to the other person in the boat “”…op, he’s done..nope he made that ball..but he’s not gonna make the ne….oh wow, he made that one too ..but now he’s prob do..  son of a bitch he made that one too. . That’s all 6. Shortening the rope.””  …. until watching Lou ski. 
 

No lie, our ski group refers to the skier that didn’t give up on a pass and it payed off as “pulling a Lou”. 
 

I’ve also had the pleasure of listening to his stories about his days as a Notre Dame football player. Every story had a life lesson. At least that’s my take away. Been a good while since I’ve seen him having not skied tournaments in some time. Look forward to running into him again. Just a great guy. Thanks for sharing the above 

[Peebs]

Chet, thank you for posting that inspirational story....I needed to hear Lou's story.

Its been 1.5 years since I experienced multiple leg fractures (1 - femur, 3 - tib/fib's,) and a crushed foot (front foot of course)... hopefully one day I will have a life / skiing success story to pass on to my children.

XOXO for Nate 

[Chet]

Lou is a warrior. I wanted to both congratulate him for an amazing feat and encourage those who have been struggling and trying hard to find a path. Sometimes the steps forward seem so small but often those baby steps lead to amazing results. And  in our sport even the effort to move forward is so worth the journey.

[lpskier]

Lou payed center at NC State under Lou Holtz. Of course he’s not going to give up. 

[Wish]

Oh dang. I knew it was Lou Holtz. Just associated him with ND…my bad. 

[teammalibu]

Awsome I may give up when you pry this handle out of my cold dead hands!!

[BrianKennedy91]

On 7/17/2023 at 8:07 PM, Wish said:

I’ve been in the boat watching Lou ski. Never give up is an understatement. I’ve never said to the other person in the boat “”…op, he’s done..nope he made that ball..but he’s not gonna make the ne….oh wow, he made that one too ..but now he’s prob do..  son of a bitch he made that one too. . That’s all 6. Shortening the rope.””  …. until watching Lou ski. 
 

No lie, our ski group refers to the skier that didn’t give up on a pass and it payed off as “pulling a Lou”. 
 

I’ve also had the pleasure of listening to his stories about his days as a Notre Dame football player. Every story had a life lesson. At least that’s my take away. Been a good while since I’ve seen him having not skied tournaments in some time. Look forward to running into him again. Just a great guy. Thanks for sharing the above 

This guy describing Lou ski is exactly what I was thinking the first time I saw Slade Cole ski.   I thought he was going to die first pass and by the time he was into 38 I was at a loss for words.  Somehow he just kept making 6...

[DaveD]

Do I have to hurt myself to prove I’m not giving up?   
 

I gave up playing basketball because I was constantly getting hurt, which was preventing me from skiing.  Does that make me a quitter?

That’s awesome if Lou has worked his way thru multiple injuries to get back to skiing at a high level, I wish I could ski somewhere close to that.  But I’m guessing Chet’s point isn’t to ski with reckless abandon to show you are not quitting.  

[Chet]

Absolutely not. Reckless abandon is the opposite of what I recommend. Many people that ski have either been discouraged or injured. Skiing is a tough game. It requires a certain level of dedication and hard work. Doing it is fun. Improving and overcoming obstacles can be hard and at times discouraging. Smart ,effective and efficient training can create pathways to amazing improvement. Lou’s hard work is undeniable. His spirit to improve absolute. And the path at times elusive. But the combo paid off in a score that at times looked unattainable. Yet here we are. Now it’s a great story to tell as is any great story when it works out well.  When it’s time to move on which it can and may be my only hope is you move that passion and hard work onto the next adventure. In the mean time Lou’s story is a story of hope and commitment , hard work and endurance. Not a bad lesson.

[EM_]

I was very lucky to have @Chet and KLP on my side when I wanted to give up. Without them, I don’t think I would have come back from my injuries last spring. These are the important stories we need to share with each other so we don’t lose more skiers to discouragement, and I will happily go first — An Open Letter to Injured Athletes

[tjs1295]

@EM_ Wow!! What an incredible story. It was written perfectly. Captured every aspect for the reader. Glad you’re back, and better than ever. 

[101driver]

@EM_Really well written, captures the complete isolation that you feel even when surrounded by people trying to support you. The thread analogy is perfect. As is the final conclusion.

Edited July 21, 2023 by 101driver