Posted on Mon, Jun. 06, 2005
MIAMI-DADE COUNTY

Sled hockey team helps physically disabled players

BY CARLI TEPROFF cteproff@herald.com

As a teenager, David Bradbury remembers the exhilarating feeling of playing ice hockey -- chasing after a puck, trying to score a goal, cheering on his teammates.
''It was just a great feeling,'' Bradbury said.It has been a while since those days, and a lot has changed since. For one, Bradbury uses a wheelchair since he had a skiing accident in 1983.
But on Sunday, few would have known that he is paralyzed from the waist down.Bradbury was able to play thanks to sled hockey -- a game that follows the same rules as hockey, but instead of skating, players sit on specially designed sleds and use two short ice picks to propel themselves across the ice.Sunday's game was part of Miami Beach's Sled Hockey Tournament to raise money and awareness for the MAPET International Foundation, a Coral Gables-based nonprofit group that assists people with disabilities.
''Anyone can play sled hockey,'' said Rony Curvelo, who through the foundation created the MAPET Angels sled hockey team. ``Everyone is on the same playing field when they are on the sleds, abled or disabled.''Volunteers from the Miami Beach fire and police departments, the office of the mayor and commissioners, as well as the Parks and Recreation and Public Works departments, raised $4,000 for the cause.
Players strapped themselves onto the sleds, which have bucket-type seats, and a metal pole-like bottom with two blades underneath.Their legs are strapped in, and to maneuver they must rely on their upper-body strength.''It is a real workout,'' firefighter David Frazier said. ``It is a lot harder than it looks.''But to 14-year-old Joey Szymaszek, there is a lot more to it. Born with spina bifida, he says sled hockey is an opportunity to forget about everything else and focus solely on the sport.
''It's just an amazing feeling to be able to speed across the ice,'' he said. ``When we are out there, everyone is equal.''