{"id":7624,"date":"2022-09-05T06:08:25","date_gmt":"2022-09-05T11:08:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blindabilities.com\/?p=7624"},"modified":"2022-09-05T06:08:27","modified_gmt":"2022-09-05T11:08:27","slug":"%ef%bf%bcricky-ties-is-living-his-best-life-training-for-competitive-sport-member-of-team-usa-vi-judo-all-american-wrestler-and-a-masters-in-sports-psychology-can-you-say-psych","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blindabilities.com\/?p=7624","title":{"rendered":"\ufffcRicky Ties is Living His Best Life Training for Competitive Sport. Member of Team USA VI Judo, All-American Wrestler and a Masters in Sports Psychology&#8230; Can You Say, Psych?"},"content":{"rendered":"<!--powerpress_player--><div class=\"powerpress_player\" id=\"powerpress_player_2354\"><audio class=\"wp-audio-shortcode\" id=\"audio-7624-1\" preload=\"none\" style=\"width: 100%;\" controls=\"controls\"><source type=\"audio\/mpeg\" src=\"https:\/\/traffic.libsyn.com\/secure\/blindabilities\/RickyTies.mp3?_=1\" \/><a href=\"https:\/\/traffic.libsyn.com\/secure\/blindabilities\/RickyTies.mp3\">https:\/\/traffic.libsyn.com\/secure\/blindabilities\/RickyTies.mp3<\/a><\/audio><\/div>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Podcast Summary:<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Ricky Ties is a member of the Team USA Visually Impaired Judo Team. Ricky wrestled in high school and was a 2 time participant in the state tournament and was a National Highschool Coaches Association All-American. Ricky went on to college and&nbsp;&nbsp;qualified for Nationals 2 times and Regional Champion in his sophomore&nbsp;&nbsp;year. Ricky began coaching wrestling and started his own wrestling club.&nbsp;&nbsp;if that wasn&#8217;t enough, during this time Ricky attained his master\u2019s degree in Sports Psychology.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Once hearing about the USA Judo Team looking for former BVI wrestlers to represent USA, Ricky soon left his coaching and moved out to the Olympic Training Center in Colorado.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>With 1 Silver\u00a0\u00a0and3 Bronze medals, it has been quite a journey as he joins Jeff Thompson in the Blind Abilities Studio to share his story and give advice to those interested in competitive sports and how adaptive sports are gaining in areas around the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"contact-your-state-services\"><strong>Contact Your State Services<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>If you reside in Minnesota, and you would like to know more about Transition Services from State Services contact Pre-ETS Program and Transition Services Manager Sheila Koenig by&nbsp;<a>email<\/a>&nbsp;or contact her via phone at 651-539-2361.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"contact\"><strong>Contact:<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>You can follow us on Twitter&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/www.twitter.com\/blindabilities\">@BlindAbilities<\/a><br>On the web at&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/blindabilities.com\/\">www.BlindAbilities.com<\/a><br>Send us an&nbsp;<a href=\"mailto:info@BlindAbilities.com?subject=Podcast\">email<\/a>&nbsp;and give us a call at 612-367-6093, we would love to hear from you!<br><br>Get the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/itunes.apple.com\/us\/app\/blind-abilities\/id1085849859?l=es&amp;mt=8\">Free Blind Abilities App&nbsp;on the App Store<\/a>and&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/play.google.com\/store\/apps\/details?id=com.blindabilities.android.blind&amp;hl=en_US\">Google Play Store<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Give us a call and leave us some feedback at 612-367-6093 we would love to hear from you!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Check out the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/groups\/607027582712671\/\">Blind Abilities Community<\/a>&nbsp;on Facebook, the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/BlindAbilities\/\">Blind Abilities Page<\/a>, and the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/groups\/jobinsightsgroup\">Career Resources for the Blind and Visually Impaired<\/a>&nbsp;group<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<!--powerpress_player--><div class=\"powerpress_player\" id=\"powerpress_player_2356\"><audio class=\"wp-audio-shortcode\" id=\"audio-7624-3\" preload=\"none\" style=\"width: 100%;\" controls=\"controls\"><source type=\"audio\/mpeg\" src=\"https:\/\/traffic.libsyn.com\/secure\/blindabilities\/RickyTies.mp3?_=3\" \/><a href=\"https:\/\/traffic.libsyn.com\/secure\/blindabilities\/RickyTies.mp3\">https:\/\/traffic.libsyn.com\/secure\/blindabilities\/RickyTies.mp3<\/a><\/audio><\/div><p>https:\/\/traffic.libsyn.com\/secure\/blindabilities\/RickyTies.mp3 Podcast Summary: Ricky Ties is a member of the Team USA Visually Impaired Judo Team. Ricky wrestled in high school and was a 2 time participant in the state tournament and was a National Highschool Coaches Association All-American. Ricky went on to college and&nbsp;&nbsp;qualified for Nationals 2 times and Regional Champion in his sophomore&nbsp;&nbsp;year. [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[17,495],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7624","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-bapresents","category-lifeenrichment"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Blind-Abilities-Logo.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p6rcRg-1YY","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":9401,"url":"https:\/\/blindabilities.com\/?p=9401","url_meta":{"origin":7624,"position":0},"title":"Fear Less &#8211; Do More! Envision Blind Sports Is Here!","author":"Blind Abilities Team","date":"February 22, 2026","format":"audio","excerpt":"Podcast Summary: Envision Blind Sports\u00a0is expanding to Minnesota\u2014and that means more chances for blind and low vision youth to move, compete, and discover what they\u2019re capable of. In this episode, Jeff talks with Minnesota Regional Manager Ricky Ties and Program Director Jillian Stringfellow about how adaptive sports build confidence, independence,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;BlindAbilities Presents&quot;","block_context":{"text":"BlindAbilities Presents","link":"https:\/\/blindabilities.com\/?cat=17"},"img":{"alt_text":"Envision blind Sports Logo Fear Less. Do More.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/EnvisionBlindSportsLogo.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/EnvisionBlindSportsLogo.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/EnvisionBlindSportsLogo.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/EnvisionBlindSportsLogo.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/EnvisionBlindSportsLogo.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":7459,"url":"https:\/\/blindabilities.com\/?p=7459","url_meta":{"origin":7624,"position":1},"title":"Blind Boys of Alabama &#8211; Meet Ricky McKinnie, and like he says, Don&#8217;t Miss It When the Boys are Back in Town!","author":"Blind Abilities Team","date":"July 11, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Podcast Summary: Our guest today on Blind Abilities is Ricky McKinnie. Ricky is a longtime member of the iconic gospel singing group, The Blind Boys of Alabama. Winners of five Grammy awards and the coveted Lifetime Achievement Award. They have also been\u00a0inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame, and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;BlindAbilities Presents&quot;","block_context":{"text":"BlindAbilities Presents","link":"https:\/\/blindabilities.com\/?cat=17"},"img":{"alt_text":"BlindAbilities Logo A black square with white initials, B A.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Blind-Abilities-Logo.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Blind-Abilities-Logo.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Blind-Abilities-Logo.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Blind-Abilities-Logo.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Blind-Abilities-Logo.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Blind-Abilities-Logo.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":5094,"url":"https:\/\/blindabilities.com\/?p=5094","url_meta":{"origin":7624,"position":2},"title":"Meet Anthony Ferraro &#8211; Athlete, Motivational Speaker, Musician and Advocate for Disabled Youth","author":"Blind Abilities Team","date":"June 7, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Full Transcript Show Summary: Blind Abilities Teen Correspondent Simon Bonenfant introduces us to Anthony Ferraro. Anthony shares his inspiring story of dealing with his blindness and a variety of life's challenges, yet finding his own special means of rising above them all. Join Simon and Anthony as they chronicle Anthony\u2019s\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;BlindAbilities Presents&quot;","block_context":{"text":"BlindAbilities Presents","link":"https:\/\/blindabilities.com\/?cat=17"},"img":{"alt_text":"BlindAbilities Logo A black square with white initials, B A.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Blind-Abilities-Logo.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Blind-Abilities-Logo.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Blind-Abilities-Logo.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Blind-Abilities-Logo.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Blind-Abilities-Logo.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Blind-Abilities-Logo.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":5231,"url":"https:\/\/blindabilities.com\/?p=5231","url_meta":{"origin":7624,"position":3},"title":"The Complete Story of Johnny Hiland: Legendary Guitarist, , Legally Blind and a Chicken Pickin\u2019 Good Person, Too!","author":"Blind Abilities Team","date":"July 25, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Full Transcript Show Summary: Blind Abilities presents another epic podcast featuring an in depth interview with an amazing guest. Johnny Hiland is a highly successful and well-respected musician, a fantastic country guitarist who is widely recognized as one of the fastest \u201cchicken pickers\u201d in the world. But his musical expertise\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;BlindAbilities Presents&quot;","block_context":{"text":"BlindAbilities Presents","link":"https:\/\/blindabilities.com\/?cat=17"},"img":{"alt_text":"BlindAbilities Logo A black square with white initials, B A.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Blind-Abilities-Logo.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Blind-Abilities-Logo.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Blind-Abilities-Logo.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Blind-Abilities-Logo.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Blind-Abilities-Logo.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Blind-Abilities-Logo.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":6782,"url":"https:\/\/blindabilities.com\/?p=6782","url_meta":{"origin":7624,"position":4},"title":"Musician Spotlight Series: The Complete Story of Johnny Hiland: Legendary Guitarist, , Legally Blind and a Chicken Pickin\u2019 Good Person, Too!","author":"Blind Abilities Team","date":"June 23, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Full Transcript Show Summary: As part of the Musician Spotlight Series we are proud to bring you Johnny Hiland. Johnny is one of the fastest guitar pickers in the world and his playing will surely reinforce that thought. Here is our interview with Johnny Hiland recorded in 2019. We hope\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"BlindAbilities Logo A black square with white initials, B A.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Blind-Abilities-Logo.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Blind-Abilities-Logo.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Blind-Abilities-Logo.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Blind-Abilities-Logo.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Blind-Abilities-Logo.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Blind-Abilities-Logo.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":9265,"url":"https:\/\/blindabilities.com\/?p=9265","url_meta":{"origin":7624,"position":5},"title":"Introducing Ava : Two Paths, One Team: Meet the Peer Ambassadors of State Services for the Blind","author":"Blind Abilities Team","date":"December 17, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Podcast Summary: In this Blind Abilities episode, listeners meet Ava, a fully blind high school junior and Peer Ambassador with State Services for the Blind of Minnesota. Ava shares what it\u2019s like balancing a packed academic schedule filled with AP and college-in-the-schools classes, while staying involved in speech, music, and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;BlindAbilities Presents&quot;","block_context":{"text":"BlindAbilities Presents","link":"https:\/\/blindabilities.com\/?cat=17"},"img":{"alt_text":"BlindAbilities Logo A black square with white initials, B A.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Blind-Abilities-Logo.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Blind-Abilities-Logo.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Blind-Abilities-Logo.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Blind-Abilities-Logo.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Blind-Abilities-Logo.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blindabilities.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Blind-Abilities-Logo.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blindabilities.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7624","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blindabilities.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blindabilities.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blindabilities.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blindabilities.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=7624"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blindabilities.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7624\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7625,"href":"https:\/\/blindabilities.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7624\/revisions\/7625"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blindabilities.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/8"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blindabilities.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=7624"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blindabilities.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=7624"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blindabilities.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=7624"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}