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Stuart James Martin — Instructor
Stuart’s mantra:
'Life’s a reach, then you gybe.'
Stuart has over 12 years experience in teaching outdoor pursuits. His passion for outdoor physical activities began at 25 when Stuart decided to upon a career change, this began with a college course in Outdoor Recreation and Leisure and since then he hasn’t looked back. He has worked with diverse groups of people of mixed ages and abilities.
Stuart’s areas of expertise include:
• Canoeing
• Archery
• Nordic Walking
• Cycling
• Dinghy Sailing, to mention a few.
He is very passionate about his teaching particularly when the participants are finding the activity difficult. With his patient and friendly approach he excels in putting people at ease and adapts his teaching technique to get the best from each and every participant. As obtaining his teaching qualifications in outdoor pursuits did not always come easy to Stuart, it has made him all the more determined to make outdoor activities more fun, accessible and enjoyable for all. Stuart highlights this with one very memorable and rewarding teaching session:
'One teaching session that sticks out in my mind is when l taught a lady that had a muscle wasting disease that had confined her to a wheelchair. Despite her condition this lady had a great spirit and she still wanted to have a go at Archery! At first l was unsure of her doing this, but when l noticed how she used her feet to hold things l thought she could try holding the bow horizontal with her feet, and to my amazement she could! So with the help of another Instructor we held the bow horizontally until she had a hold of it, then we placed an arrow on the bow. Very steadily she held the bow with her left foot and with her right foot she drew the bow string back… then whoosh the arrow flew straight down the range, and into the target. This was a humble moment for me and it is one of the reasons why l enjoy teaching so much.'
When Stuart is not teaching, he enjoys spending time with his family and participating in many outdoor pursuits.
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