One hand is all this young Peterborough athlete needs
Prosthetic has not been Nick Aldrich’s choice, because he ‘finds a way’
Nick Aldrich is used to the second looks he gets on a basketball or volleyball court when people notice he is missing his right hand.
The Grade 9 Adam Scott Collegiate student has never hesitated to try anything that interests him. Being born without a right hand, Aldrich has never known what it’s like to have two hands.
“It’s hard to explain because I’ve just adapted so easily,” said Aldrich, who doesn’t just play basketball, he plays with the Peterborough Power rep program. He is also a member of the Adam Scott Lions junior volleyball team that won the Kawartha AA championship earlier this month.
“I’ve never had the chance to really play with two hands so I’ve just found my own way to play with one. I never had any second thoughts. I always just thought I’d find a way to do it.”
He stopped using a prosthetic hand when he was three years old.
“It was never very comfortable,” he said. “It was a robotic one that would move when I would move the end of my arm. I never found much use for it because I could always do whatever I needed with my left hand.”
Aldrich has loved sports for as long as he can remember. Soccer was the first one he tried in Grade 1. Three years later he started basketball.
It hasn’t been enough for Aldrich to simply participate. He wants to play well and contribute so he’s worked hard to limit any disadvantage there might be to play with one hand, particularly in basketball.
“When I first started basketball I was always driving with my left hand,” he said. “Whenever we did drills where people had to dribble with both hands I would struggle to do that and lose the ball easily. My moves were very predictable because they could just assume I was going to my left. After a long time of working and training at the Y with my coaches I’ve now learned how to use my right arm so I’m able to make different moves and not be as predictable.”
Adam Scott volleyball coach Chris Entwistle has coached Aldrich since Grade 7.
“He’s always been a strong presence not just in his game play but in how he works with players on the court,” Entwistle said. “He’s a very positive individual. He looks to support other teammates when he’s not on the court.
“He really has that gift of perseverance. That really hits the nail on the head when it comes to Nick. I’ve seen in soccer, basketball, volleyball, he doesn’t feel like he’s short of anything. He adapts and puts forth his very best effort. That’s why he made this volleyball team. He demonstrates that he should be there.”
There is some thought that a prosthetic hand could be helpful in volleyball. It would help create a greater platform, or surface area, when the hands and forearms are brought together to play the ball.
“He’s adapted and done very well to this point,” said Entwistle.
“What he needs is that platform in order to give a good pass and it would change his game play because he is an excellent swinger and he reads the play very well. We want to see if we can support him to get to the point where he even more so adapts to the game of volleyball. It’s coming.”
“I have an appointment soon to test it out,” said Aldrich.
He’s used to attracting attention when he plays.
“Especially when I first started,” he said. “People started to underestimate me and assumed I wouldn’t be able to do much. It made it much easier for me to show them I could actually play rather than just being there to pity.”