Is It Still Paradise If You Can’t See It?

Getting Outside in Santa Barbara with Blind Fitness
Written By: Amy Ramos     Photo Credits: Credit: Ingrid Bostrom
Wed May 10, 2023 | 9:00am

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If you’ve ever staggered out of tree pose after following a yoga instructor’s cue to attempt it with your eyes closed, you may have concluded it’s impossible for visually impaired people to pursue sports. Brianna Pettit wants to set you straight.

Pettit founded Blind Fitness in 2021 to provide a holistic, mind-body approach to fitness for people with impaired vision. “Vision loss can be very isolating,” said Pettit, who has a master’s in special education and provides orientation and mobility training to people with vision impairment. Noting that spending time outside got her through the monotony of the pandemic, Pettit said the goal of her nonprofit organization is to find ways for people with vision loss to enjoy the outdoors and the healing power of nature. To make it happen, they need volunteers.

I arrived at the Cabrillo Pavilion on a sunny but cool Saturday morning for the Blind Fitness monthly beach walk/run. Pettit led a brief training for new volunteers on how to serve as a guide for a blind athlete: We learned to always ask if the athlete would like help, find out which side they like to be guided on, and to offer our arm rather than a hand. Then we learned what it’s like to be guided. Pettit handed me a cane and a black mask to strap over my eyes, and then paired me with Brian Walters, an Antonio Banderas lookalike and veteran of the London Marathon. He tolerated my cold hand on his arm and patiently instructed me in how to use my cane (sweep, don’t tap) and walk down stairs using the cane to gauge the depth of the step. Then it was my turn to try my guiding skills with Brian: We practiced passing through narrow spaces single file and transitioning from one walking surface to another, such as from pavement to sand.
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By the time the training was over, a sizable group of athletes and volunteers had gathered, along with some guide dogs, including Marvel the golden retriever. Pettit asked us all to form a circle and introduce ourselves, and then she paired athletes with guides based on preference for walking or running. Walters, who’s been guiding runners since 2015, got paired with an athlete who wanted to run. Fortunately for me, Joseph Colunga wanted to walk, and upon meeting me, he immediately asked if I would be his guide, without waiting for Pettit to pair us.
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