Finding the Puck: In Conversation with Craig Fitzpatrick
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What inspired Craig Fitzpatrick to explore blind hockey?
a couple years ago i tried out blind soccer i lost my vision a few years before that so i thought i'd try out some paris sports because i've always tried to stay active you know and there was a blind soccer team in pickering in the gta that was really close to me so perfect i gave it a go um Running around a field totally blind with seven other totally blind or blindfolded people is an interesting sport. I gave it an honest go and I can confidently say that it's not for me. But in the process, I met people who were genuinely super committed and passionate and developed a really niche skill set to play the game at a high level that just blew me away. But there's another pair of sport adapted for blind players that might be even more bonkers.
Blind hockey. It's played on a regulation rink. There's a range of visual impairments for the different positions and the puck is bigger and rattles super loudly so players can hear it. There are a couple other rule adjustments, but that's the short version. and trust me that the players who play blind hockey have a super impressive super niche skill set like echolocation blind stick handling next level communication with their teammates i'm only scratching the surface today i'm talking to a player who's been central to team usa's blind hockey team and importantly for the show, wrote a memoir. It's called Finding the Puck. I'm talking about Team USA Forward, Craig Fitzpatrick. This is Audiobook Cafe.
I'm Jacob Szymanski. Finding the Puck is available on Audible. It's just a little under six hours long and narrated by Reagan Wilson. Here's a sample.
Hockey's a strange pastime for a blind person. but in many ways, it gave me back my life. Sunday, April 3rd, 2022. I'm in Pittsburgh, suited up for the deciding game of the second hockey championship I've taken part in over the past 10 days. And I'm a wreck. Not mentally, not anymore. I'm in a much better place than I've been for the last several years. Perhaps I'm in the best place mentally that I've ever been. But boy, physically, I'm a disaster.
That was a sample of Finding the Puck by Craig Fitzpatrick, narrated by Regan Wilson. Craig, thank you so much for your time. How's it going, man?
Thanks for having me. It's really good seeing you guys. And a little background on me getting to know AMI. AMI was one of the sponsors of the first competitive blind hockey event I ever played in, which was the 2016 Canadian Blind Hockey Championships. So I very much appreciate you guys' mission. And it's a thrill to be here with you today.
We appreciate it. And I remember that event being quite a big success too. Not the only event that AMI, blind hockey event that AMI sponsored in the past. But speaking of blind hockey, I am not backing down in saying that it's one of the most bonkers para sports I've ever seen. And I will ask the question that everyone who's hearing about blind hockey for the first time is wondering, is blind hockey as dangerous as it sounds?
Well, it's, it's no more dangerous than regulation hockey, I would say. And if you look at the injury rates, there are other sports that are more dangerous. So football, wrestling, but hockey is inherently a, it's a, it's a very physical sport. Blind hockey is supposed to be non-checking. That's not always true, especially when the Americans and the Canadians get together. But, but, I would pivot the word danger to intense and sometimes overwhelming. But the injury rates in blind hockey are roughly on par with regulation hockey.
You would assume that there would be collisions, but I suppose that speaks to the skill set that you develop as players. You're not just out there running like madmen.
Collisions with your own teammates, collisions with the other team, sometimes intentional, sometimes not. But luckily, we've got really good equipment.
Oh, yeah, that's true. That's the important factor in all of this. But for the people who have never heard of it, I only gave a very brief description of what it is. I want to hear it in your words, which is probably something you've done a million times.
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