A shared adventure.
A lasting place in our hearts.
Remembering a club built on adaptive skiing, support and friendship.
A simple idea
with a big heart.
Peel Ski Club was established against the backdrop of the conflict in Northern Ireland. Officers from the Metropolitan Police Service formed the club to provide holidays for members of the Royal Ulster Constabulary who had sustained injuries on duty.
The first trip took place in 1998, to Spital am Semmering in Austria. Adaptive skiing enabled even severely injured officers to take part. The success of that holiday led to regular trips every two years.
As the peace process meant fewer officers were being injured in service, the club widened its community to include people outside the police who were disabled through injury or illness.
The buddy system
Each adaptive skier had two or three buddies who skied with them throughout the week and cared for them as needed. Being there for one another was at the heart of the Peel experience.
Andrew (Andy) Baddock served as Club Secretary and Holiday Organiser. Alongside the club’s buddies, volunteers and supporters, the organisers helped make these shared experiences possible.
A few moments to look back on.
- 1998
The first adventure
The club’s first skiing trip to Spital am Semmering, Austria.
- 2010
A holiday in pictures
A collection of 176 photographs, kept in our shared album.
- 2014–2020
Memories in motion
Films from 2014, 2016 and 2020 capture moments on the slopes.
- 2023
Another chapter together
Fifty photographs from the 2023 trip preserve the people and places of that holiday.
- 2025
From the club archive
The club’s holiday announcement listed an Austria trip for 11–18 January 2025.
- 2026
A place for remembrance
Peel Ski Club is no longer active as of 2026. This website remains as a tribute to the club and a home for its memories.