About the Clinic

The National Disabled Veterans Winter Sports Clinic is a world-leader in adaptive winter sports instruction for U.S. military Veterans and active duty servicemen and women with disabilities.

Set in stunning Snowmass, Colorado, the Clinic will celebrate its 27th year by bringing nearly 400 Veterans with traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, orthopedic amputations, visual impairments, certain neurological conditions and other disabilities to the mountain.

More than 200 certified ski instructors for the disabled, and several current and former members of the U.S. Disabled Ski Team, serve as ski instructors to meet the unique needs of the participants.

In addition to Alpine skiing, the Clinic also features a number of other sports including: cross country, rock climbing, scuba diving, kayaking, trapshooting and snowmobiling.

The Clinic is co-sponsored by The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and Disabled American Veterans (DAV) and made possible by a number of sponsors who make monetary and in-kind donations.

Registration for volunteers begins in June and participants can sign up beginning in August.

2012 DAV Freedom Award Recipient

Every year, one participant is chosen for the Disabled American Veterans (DAV) Freedom Award for Outstanding Courage and Achievement. This honor is given to a veteran whose participation at the National Disabled Veterans Winter Sports Clinic embodies the rehabilitative value and spirit of the event. It denotes the veteran who proves to the world that an injury or disability does not bar the doors to freedom.

The 2012 DAV Freedom Award was presented to an individual who, like many who participated, has time and again defied tremendous odds just to survive his injury.

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Journey to Paralympics

While serving in a support role assisting U.S. Navy Seals in Afghanistan in 2004, Navy Veteran Chris Clemons life would change forever.

His team began taking on small arms fire and the next thing he knew a rocket propelled grenade exploded in their camp. Similar to the stories of many Veterans here at the National Disabled Veterans Winter Sports Clinic, Clemons sustained a traumatic brain injury and began a long road to recovery and rehabilitation.

Recovery was never easy and often filled with setbacks, like many other Veterans he struggled to find his way in this new life.

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