Below is the show summary as well as links to the show notes and audio
Beep Baseball is a variant of American baseball that has been adapted to be safe for its blind participants. Hosts Nancy and Pete Torpey speak with Blake Boudreaux and Stephen Guerra of the National Beep Baseball Association about how the game is played, what special equipment is used and the annual World Series of Beep Baseball.
How does a blind athlete turn adversity into opportunity? Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with Tanner Gers, a Paralympic athlete and founder of AccessAbility Officer, about his journey from life-changing injury to empowering other blind individuals through employment, digital access, and inclusive athletics like beep baseball.
Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey's Arizona vacation took an unexpected turn when Pete's All Terrain Hiking Cane needed repair. Fortunately, Sedona Dave, designer of the cane, lived just a few minutes from their hotel. Inviting them into his “Cane Lab”, Dave not only repaired the cane, but also described the various canes offered by Awarewolf Gear.
Just because you are visually impaired doesn’t mean you can’t stay fit and healthy. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with Evan Schwerbrock, founder of Cane and Able Fitness and the world’s strongest blind man, about his remote training approach, the importance of small steps in fitness, and his journey from vision loss to competing in adaptive strength events.
Aira is a service developed to give the blind instant access to information using a smart phone, a video camera, and a remote sighted agent. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with Erich Manser, a blind distance runner and triathlete, and Jess Jakeway, a sighted distance runner who served as Erich's remote guide using Aira at the 2017 Boston Marathon.
Hard as one might try, success in achieving one's goal isn't always guaranteed. When one misses the goal, however, the question is how one reacts to failure and what one learns from it. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with Dave Wilkinson about these issues as they relate to his unsuccessful attempt to complete a 3,000-mile cross country bike race.
Participating in a sport can get you out meeting people, making friends, and staying healthy by being active. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with Robert 'Doc'� Wright who has been a blind bowler for many years. He tells how the sport works for someone with vision loss and how you can find one of the many blind bowling leagues around the country.
If you can't see what is happening on the field, it is difficult to fully enjoy live sports even if it is being announced. But there might be another way. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with Jerred Mace, CEO and co-founder of OneCourt, about how their unique technology enables blind users to enjoy watching live sports using a tactile display.
A long hike can be much more than a walk in the woods. We'll talk with Karl Ritter, also known as Bats, about long distance hiking including his end-to-end hike on the 2200 mile long Appalachian Trail. Karl has very little vision and did the first 500 miles alone. Learn how he used other senses and tools to compensate as well as what was in his first aid kit.
Using Voiceover to monitor one's heart rate while running on a noisy treadmill wearing an Apple Watch and noise cancelling AirPods is difficult. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with Alex Weiner, developer at PK Fitness, about how he added Siri commands to provide on demand speech feedback in their Echo Heart Rate app, as well as about their Fat Burn app.
Foresight provides accessible and affordable outdoor recreation like skiing and snowboarding for individuals with blindness or low vision, promoting fun, safety, and independence. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with board member and guide Bill Murphy, board member and participant Kevin Foster, and blind skier Claire Schultz about the program and their experiences.
Justin Bishop was fully sighted when he started skateboarding at 10 years old. Despite losing all of his useful sight in his 20’s, Justin’s dedication to skateboarding has been unwavering. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with Justin about his passion for skateboarding and what accommodations he makes to enable him to excel at this active sport.
Zach Tidwell is a blind military veteran who enjoys a variety of physical activities such as snowboarding, ski biking, mountain biking, rock-climbing, white-water kayaking, jiu-jitsu, rafting, and recently, skydiving. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with Zach about skydiving without sight and how it compared to skydiving before he lost his sight.
The All Terrain Cane (ATC) is a sturdy folding cane designed for blind hikers. Made of lightweight titanium and having an adjustable length, the ATC is suitable for a variety of terrains. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with Sedona Dave, founder of Awarewolf Gear, about how he came up with the idea, and the benefits of using it for hiking and other outdoor activities.
Learn how beep baseballs are made as well as about the surprising connection between beep baseball and the phone company when hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with John Cruz, lead volunteer for the group that assembles beep baseball equipment, and J Kelly, chapter president of the Colorado Legacy West Pioneers. We’ll also talk about how the game is played.
Have you ever considered becoming a pole dancer? Surprisingly, the experience might not be what you would have expected. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with Lauren Back, a blind pole dancer, who has enjoyed participating in several pole dancing groups and extols the virtues of pole dancing as a means of exercise and socializing with others.
Is your visual impairment keeping you from exercising and being as active as you would like? If so, this is the book for you. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with Judy Dixon and Bonnie O'Day about their new book, “Your Personal Path To Fitness”, and some of the fitness opportunities that are available to people who are blind or low vision.
John Churcher’s experience is proof that it is never too late to begin something new. Inspired by a friend later in life, he soon became an avid rock climber. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with John about what rock climbing means to him, how he does it as a blind person, and about some of his adventures including scaling the Eiger, a several day endeavor.
Competitive blind swimmers currently rely on sighted assistants to signal them before making their turn for the next lap. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with Mirthe Hofstede who, for a student project, developed a system that obviates the need for an assistant while at the same time provides better feedback to the blind swimmer.
Camp Abilities is a week long sports camp for children with visual impairments. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with Lauren Lieberman, the camp’s founder and director, about the program and the benefits it provides to blind youth who otherwise might have missed out on such opportunities to participate in activities with their peers.
Google’s “Project Guideline” is an early stage research project aimed at enabling those with vision loss to run independently. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with Bill Ma, director of IT and operations and Jessy DiNapoli, manager of admissions at Guiding Eyes for the Blind about how their blind CEO, Thomas Panek, has used the app to run on his own.
People who are visually impaired are no strangers to participating in sports. On the other hand, it is difficult to imagine jumping over a 10 or 12 foot high bar without seeing the bar. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with Bradly Rainwater, a competitive blind pole vaulter, and his coach and grandfather Brad Rainwater about how it can be done.
Lawrence Gunther is host of the podcast “Outdoors with Lawrence Gunther”. The podcast is a mix of interesting facts about our environment and outdoor activities and includes interviews with blind people who enjoy the outdoors. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with Lawrence, who is blind himself, about the podcast as well as about his own adventures in nature.
Tony Giles, also known as “Tony The Traveller”, joins host Nancy and Peter Torpey once again to talk about his latest book entitled “Seeing a Slice of Southern Africa My Way”. Tony’s stories as a solo traveler who is totally blind and partially deaf are filled with fun and adventure, including white water rafting, bungee jumping and sky diving.
Krishna Washburn is a professional ballet dancer and instructor who runs Dark Room Ballet. She believes that visually impaired people could benefit from having a better understanding of how their bodies and body parts work. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with her about her instructional methods as well as how her on-line classes work.
Every episode of Eyes On Success starts with a “Tip of the Week”. These tips offer suggestions from people we interview about anything from the benefits of participating in sports to the importance of learning blindness skills. This week hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey share some of their favorite tips from the past 10 years with our listeners.
Participating in sports can not only help to keep you healthy but can also be a rewarding social activity. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with Tim McCorcle, president of the Ski For Light organization, about programs run by the organization in which blind skiers can partner with sighted guides to enjoy the outdoors and make new friends.
NEWSREEL is a monthly audio magazine offering three hours of helpful information and inspiration in the voices of its members. Topics include technology, travel tips, books, recipes, personal experiences, sports and more. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with NEWSREEL's editor, Irwin Hott, about the magazine for and by the blind and its history.
In episode 1752 hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talked with Thomas Panek, President and CEO of Guiding Eyes for the Blind, about a program they started to train guide dogs to serve as running companions for their handlers. This week we hear about how the program has evolved and Thomas’ experience running the New York City half marathon guided only by guide dogs.
Wild Blind Hockey is the companion team to the Minnesota Wild Hockey NHL team and consists of visually impaired skaters of all ages. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with Lonny Evans, the team’s Director of Operations, about how the team came about, modifications used to make it possible to play with limited or no vision, and what it means to the players.
Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with Dan Parker who was fully sighted at the age of 41 when he was injured in a drag racing accident that left him totally blind. Despite his injuries Dan continues to build and race cars and motorcycles, went on to participate in acoustic target shooting, and also teaches machine shop to sighted high school students.
Despite being totally blind, Joshua Loya engages in many extreme sports. This week hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with Joshua, who is a US Sight Impaired Surfing Champion, about how he got into surfing, the mechanics of surfing as a blind individual, how he works with his sighted coach, and his passion for succeeding in such sports.
Last week hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talked with Michael Somsan, a military veteran who was blinded by a gunshot to the head at the age of 23. Now a successful lawyer, judge, and professor, Michael talks about his participation in ironman triathlons as well as some of the special challenges faced by blind athletes in these extreme sporting events.
Michael Somsan was a young man in the military and in the best of shape when his life was suddenly changed. As a result of a gunshot to the head he was left blinded at the age of 23 wondering what the rest of his life would bring. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk to him about how he worked through many challenges to become a lawyer, judge, and professor.
We talked previously with Staci Mannella about competitive skiing and what it was like to participate in the Paralympics in both Sochi and PyeongChang. Now hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with Staci about what it takes to succeed as a visually impaired college student while travelling the world to compete in alpine skiing and how she juggled the two.
When you strive to be the best in the world it takes a lot of hard work and dedication. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with Staci Mannella who recently competed in four Alpine Skiing events at the PyeongChang Paralympic Games. Staci talks about how she compensates for her visual limitations, prepared for the competition, and experienced the event.
There are many opportunities for the disabled to participate in a variety of sports and recreational activities these days. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with Nancy Stevens of Oregon Adaptive Sports about how the program got started and what they do. Whether you are interested in skiing, cycling, kayaking, etc., there is something for you!
Developing new access technologies sometimes requires intrepid individuals willing to test and work out the kinks in new systems despite occasional failures. Hosts Peter and Nancy Torpey speak with Simon Wheatcroft, a blind motivational speaker and distance runner, about his experiences testing the WayBand device by running the New York City marathon.
Tennis anyone? Having limited vision is no longer an excuse for not getting out on the court and enjoying this sport with others. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey speak with Brooke Severance who runs a program through Court 16 which teaches people with visual impairments to play tennis with some minor modifications to the rules and equipment.
Now in its 23rd year, Camp Abilities has spread to locations not only throughout the U.S. but also around the world. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with founder and director, Lauren Lieberman, about the benefits of this week long, sports oriented camp for visually impaired youth and how it can be a life changing experience for those who attend.
This week hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with Dirk Price, an avid hunter who has continued to hunt even after his vision failed, and John Brod, president of the Physically Challenged Bowhunters of America, a nationwide non-profit which provides hunting opportunities for men, women and youth with all kinds of physical challenges in almost every state.
Aira is a service developed to give the blind instant access to information using a smart phone, a video camera, and a remote sighted agent. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with Erich Manser, a blind distance runner and triathlete, and Jess Jakeway, a sighted distance runner who served as Erich’s remote guide using Aira at the 2017 Boston Marathon.
Many outdoor trails have been made so that they can now be enjoyed by people of varying abilities. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with Jerry Berrier, a blind nature enthusiast, and Lucy Gertz of the Mass Audubon Society about what constitutes an accessible trail, how they are developed, and how they can be enjoyed by the blind.
Erik Weihenmayer, the first blind person to summit Mount Everest, has released a new book called “No Barriers: A Blind Man’s Journey to Kayak the Grand Canyon”. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with him about his adventures and about “No Barriers”, an organization he co-founded whose mission is to help people with challenges face barriers head on.
Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey speak with Erich Manser, a blind accessibility engineer at IBM, and Peter Sagal, host of NPR’s “Wait, Wait, Don’t Tell Me” about their experiences running the Boston Marathon together. They talk about how they got together, the special trust required to run as partners, and what happens when things don’t go quite as planned.
This week hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with Matt King about the thrill and excitement of competitive racing on a tandem bicycle. Matt set a world speed record, participated in three Paralympics, and underwent an intense training regimen. He describes these experiences and what it feels like to be going over 45 MPH around turns banked at more than 45 degrees!
If you enjoy running outdoors but your vision loss makes it unsafe to do so alone, now there’s an easy way you can find somebody to guide you. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey speak with Kyle Robidoux from United In Stride which maintains an on-line database of blind or visually impaired runners and volunteer sighted guides all over North America.
Keeping fit is important for both mental and physical health. This week hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with Mel Scott and Lisa Salinger from BlindAlive about their audio exercise programs geared specifically to those who are visually impaired. With described exercise programs ranging from beginner to advance, BlindAlive offers something for everyone.
No matter what type of games you enjoy playing, you’ll probably find it in the book “Anyone Can Play! Accessible Games for the iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch”. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with Judy Dixon, the book’s editor and co-author, about accessible app versions of word games, board and card games, role playing and adventure games, and much more.
Imago Maris Foundation hosts sailing expeditions each year, with half the participants being visually impaired and the other half sighted. Each participant does everything from working the ropes to kitchen duty. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey speak with Julia Krawczuk, a volunteer with Imago Maris and Robert Zarzecki, a blind sailor. Both participated in a 2014 voyage.
Hitting a small ball into a slightly larger cup that is hundreds of yards away might seem like an unlikely activity for a blind person. With minor modifications to the rules it becomes an enjoyable sport for many people. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey will talk with Ty Thompson, avid blind golfer and past board member of the US Blind Golf Association.
G K Mahantesh is the General Secretary of the Cricket Association for the Blind in India and the Vice President of the World Blind Cricket Council. He is also one of the founders of the Samarthanam Trust for the Disabled. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with him about how the blind play cricket as well as about the mission of his organization.
Beep Baseball is a variant of American baseball that has been adapted to be safe for its blind participants. Hosts Nancy and Pete Torpey speak with Blake Boudreaux and Stephen Guerra of the National Beep Baseball Association about how the game is played, what special equipment is used and the upcoming World Series of Beep Baseball.
With over 200 episodes in the archives, Eyes On Success is a valuable resource for learning about products and services for the visually impaired, as well as hearing motivational stories about visually impaired people who pursue rewarding careers and hobbies. This week you’ll learn how to explore this resource and also hear from some pioneers in the blindness field.
Bill Kociaba owned and operated a fitness center for nearly 20 years. Now he works as a massage therapist and runs exercise classes over the internet on The Blind Café. Hosts Peter and Nancy Torpey talk with Bill about his experiences as a blind businessman, the importance of exercise, as well as about other resources one can find on The Blind Café web site.
Staci Mannella, a 17 year old visually impaired alpine skier, and Kim Seevers, her coach and guide, have just returned from the 2014 Sochi Paralympic Games. They speak with hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey about their preparation for and participation in this world class event as well as the friendliness of their hosts, meals, and security at the games.
Ice hockey can be a safe and fun sport for people with little or no vision. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey speak with Matt Morrow, executive director of Courage Canada Hockey for the Blind. We’ll learn about their programs for youth and adults, what adaptations are made for the visually impaired and Courage Canada’s annual tournament.
This week hosts Peter and Nancy Torpey talk with “Blind Dave” Heeley, a motivational speaker who raises money for a variety of charities through his participation in ultra endurance sporting events. Learn what it is like to train for and complete multiple consecutive daily marathons and/or 100+ mile bike rides spanning counties, countries or continents.
Hosts Nancy Goodman Torpey and Peter Torpey talk with Gary Steeves, a nearly totally blind social worker and TV reporter for Accessible Media Incorporated. He’ll describe some of the pleasures and challenges of both on-air reporting and one of his pastimes, playing ice hockey. He also has some interesting stories about having his seeing eye poodle on the set.
Many horseback riding facilities offer programs for people with various special needs including the visually impaired. Join hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey on a tour of the EquiCenter near Rochester, NY which specializes in therapeutic horseback riding. We’ll learn about the program and its benefits, meet the director and an instructor, and follow a student through parts of her lesson.
Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey speak with Andrew Leibs, author of “The Encyclopedia of Sports and Recreation for People With Visual Impairments”. More or less following the structure of the book, we’ll discuss specific sports that the visually impaired can do, interviews he did with experts in adaptive sports and finally some useful resources for people who want to get involved.
Bill Barkeley is a self-described deaf-blind outdoor adventurer and storyteller. Join hosts Peter and Nancy Torpey as they talk with Bill about climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, running the Boston marathon and leading groups of deaf and/or blind teens through the Amazon. Technology helps, but his successes are mostly due to his can-do attitude.
A long hike can be much more than a walk in the woods. Hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with Karl Ritter, whose trail name is Bats, about long distance hiking including his recent end to end hike on the 2200 mile long Appalachian Trail. Karl has very little vision and did the first 500 miles alone. Learn how he used other senses and tools to compensate.
Hosts Nancy Goodman Torpey and Peter Torpey spoke with Jose Tamayo shortly after he returned from a 65 mile canoe trip through the Florida jungle. The trip turned out to be even more exciting and eventful than anybody could have expected. As the only blind member of the party, Jose’s unique skills were a valuable asset.
Camp Abilities is a sport camp for visually impaired children with over a dozen locations in the US and other countries. Hosts Peter and Nancy Torpey talk with its founder, Dr. Lauren Lieberman about how they use the camp to teach and empower the campers, to teach future physical education teachers and to do research to improve teaching methods.
Staci Mannella is a visually impaired skier whose goal is to participate in the 2014 Paralympics with her guide and coach Kim Seevers. Hosts Peter Torpey and Nancy Goodman Torpey talk with them about how they train, what aids they use and how they ski at speeds up to 55 MPH. They also discuss how to find an adaptive ski program for you.
Blind people enjoy some activities you may not expect! Hosts Nancy Goodman Torpey and Peter Torpey interview Jose Tamayo, a blind computer scientist who leads annual multi-day canoeing and camping trips through alligator infested waters and uses an assortment of modern technology to report his progress from the jungle.
Hosts Peter Torpey and Nancy Goodman Torpey give an overview of sources of accessible reading material and focus on National Braille Press. They also discuss using talking devices to help you exercise, methods of exercising for the visually impaired (biking, running, hiking, etc) and explain formats used for audio files (DAISY, MP3, WMA, etc).
Hosts Peter Torpey and Nancy Goodman Torpey talk about organizing your house, and using keyboard shortcuts instead of the mouse for computer interaction. They also tell you about "Tell Me", a free phone service that gives you audio access to information about weather, sports, stock quotes, movies, and more.