How does a boy with a deformed leg become a competitive ski racer?

When the superhero suits up, they become what the exterior represents. When a boy with a deformed leg suits up with his ski racing gear he becomes what he desires because he believes he can. He works and makes adjustments in adapting his body to perform and develop the skills necessary to compete. Belief is further strengthened as he becomes better and better. Fear steps aside as he decides to push boundaries and test limits. He becomes what he believes he can achieve and he never quits but instead develops resilience and persists on, learning from setbacks. As time passes he finds himself on top of the podium. 

"Pillars of achievement rest on a foundation of belief. When you face overwhelming odds and those around you say it can’t be done, but you do it anyway. The universe take notice.”

Now let’s back up to the beginning. My personal story begins being born in Lagrange, IL. At 6 months old I was misdiagnosed with MS and had both legs in casts. Turns out I had a spinal tumor that was causing havoc on my left leg. The nerve signals were getting cut off and my leg was not developing the same was my right. By the time I was 10 years old I had undergone six different surgeries/procedures, three of which were spinal. I had my last at ten years old to finally clear up the spinal tumor once and for all. I was given a clean bill of health but left with a deformed and shorter left leg. The interesting thing is I never let it hold me back. I think every time I endured a procedure It build a resilience in me to come back stronger. I remember thinking I was the six million dollar man from the TV show. I was being rebuilt to become stronger, faster, and better than before. I would imagine that in my mind and put into practice. One of the first things I put into practice was by becoming a really good ski racer.

The story begins by my mother moving my sister and I to Lake Tahoe CA when I was 5 years old. The first thing I remember is looking at the amazing mountains and being told you’re going to ski school tomorrow morning. “Cool Mom” that was my response. Being put on skis at 5 is kind of like jumping in the water to swim for the first time. You just have to figure it out. Besides the worst thing that can happen is I would just fall down versus drowning but the concept is the same. You learn by doing and I loved it!

Now being 5 and having a left leg that was underdeveloped compared to my right was insignificant to me because I was having too much fun. I remember looking up a K2. That was one of the most difficult and steepest runs at Squaw Valley where I took lessons. Our lessons were literally at the base of this run and it was incredibly intimidating and exciting at the same time. My thoughts were I want to get good enough to ski that run. The cool thing about being a kid is I think most believe they can do anything and our imagination runs wild at that age. Makes you realize as an adult maybe we should just be more like kids when it comes to believing in doing things.

I progressed rapidly through ski school and before you knew it I was skiing the whole mountain at Squaw. Not only was I skiing but I was tearing it up!I was fearless and can remember looking at runs analyzing paths and oh yes looking for ways to fly! Not only with speed but literally I wanted to fly and the best way to do that was jumps or launching myself off a vertical drop of 20 plus feet. I also made the ski team and took on whole new challenges of learning racing technique and ways to analyze runs. These early days in my childhood formed a foundation in my life that anything I put my mind to could be achieved. That there are ways to figure things out and I am eternally grateful for it. One of the most important things I learned and probably didn’t even realize at the time was the choice was up to me. There is always a choice on how you will handle things and respond to them. I made the choice to thrive through all the struggle and temporary setbacks.

It really is a choice and I could have decided to go the other way. Many people choose to do just that. The outcomes are not their fault but the fault of circumstance. I want to share my story to show just how far from the truth that is. I applied everything from skiing into every aspect of my life. One thing carried over into the other. I found there to be a consistency to how I approached things. I could do anything I wanted by making the choice to do it. My leg made me think. I had to be creative and adapt. I worked harder and made other parts of my body stronger to compensate. The best part is all this built confidence in myself. Confidence to try out for the wrestling team in high school and make it. Confidence to compete in weightlifting and make the track team in college as a thrower. Confidence to set goals and pursue them and not give up. Confidence to ask a girl out on a date and not be afraid of rejection because of my leg. It took me time but I eventually came to realize my leg was an asset in my life. It did not take away but rather gave me things I could never have imagined.

This mindset and foundation carried over into every part of my life and I used it to always see the positive in every situation. I wish everyone could grow up like I did, not with a deformed leg but being able to experience things the way I did. It has had such a strong and powerful impact on my life, all I want to do now is share it not only to inspire but teach. The biggest lesson to walk away from my story is that the greatest struggles and adversities we face in life can yield the greatest discoveries and growth in ourselves to move forward to our absolute best selves.

As a child even though I faced challenges I felt like I was on a rocket ship most of the time. Always progressing and reaching for new heights. That carried over through college and into my career as a medical device sales rep. I used all the things I learned as a child to propel myself to the highest levels no matter what I did. Were there set backs and obstacles along the way? Absolutely and I deal with hem the same way I did growing up. With a positive mental attitude and knowing in my soul that everything will always work out for me. Now at 50 years old I’m just as ambitious as I was when I started skiing. My passion now is to share and give back so others can experience what I have. 4 years ago I was tested. The tumor I had as a child had left some residual scar tissue and after 35 years it decided to come back. In many ways it was a cereal experience. I have spent the last 28 years selling equipment into hospitals after all I went through as a child and now here I am on the opposite side again as a patient.

I made a decision when I found out about my situation that I would get through it with flying colors. I knew there was a higher purpose for me to experience this. My surgery was extremely successful and I recovered with lightening speed. My doctor thinks I have super powers. I walked into his office pain free 10 days post-op. If anything he tried to slow me down just to be careful. You never know why certain things happen but I believe this was something to show me just how powerful I had become. Today I’m stronger than ever before and in many ways come full circle from childhood. That experience also awakened something inside of me. It awakened a calling that has been inside for a very long time. The time has come for me to share this gift on a much larger scale. To reach as many people as I can in an effort to inspire and uplift others. To share all of it! The lessons and the experiences. That is my mission and I hope you not only enjoy what is expressed in this story but are left imprinted with the positivity to reach for your goals and know “All is possible for one who believes”.

Where has that taken me professionally? While I am certainly not perfect my own story of success culminated in becoming a 4 time sales rep of the year, rookie of the year, and thirteen time presidents club award winner over the course of my medical sales career and I’m still going at 50. I graduated high school early not because my grades were good but because I knew I needed to get a jump start on college and jr. college provided the ticket to get into DePaul University. After a year of Junior college I had the grades and credits to be accepted and transferred into DePaul as a sophomore. I paid my way through college all on my own and found ways to make it happen through athletics and working. I graduated with a degree in Business and knew exactly what I wanted to do. It was not easy but when the mind is fixated through directed thought it is almost impossible for it not to happen.

For me success is not about how much money you make or how high you climb the ladder but rather what Earl Nightingale describes as the “Progressive Realization of a Worthy Ideal”. What does that mean? It means those of us who pursue goals in life. Whatever you want to do you go after it and have a destination in mind. That to me makes all the difference and I can look back at every point of accomplishment and know if I didn’t have a set goal I would not have achieved it. When you have goals you have purpose!

So here is to you setting, realizing, with purpose your Goals and Dreams in life!

All the Best!

Matthew Lawrence Scigousky