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Show Wednesday, October 1, 1997 The Park Record A-13 Park Record Profile Expertise Perfoimance Physical Therapy co-founder creates individualized programs for patients by Dave Fields OF THE RECORD STAFF On one table sits a dog catcher recovering from a broken foot. On the other table is a freestyle skier recovering from anterior-cruciate ligament surgery. Both women are at Performance Physical Therapy to get back to whatever normal is for them. And both women are receiving receiv-ing the same personalized attention that Pete Dickinson provides for so many locals and professionals alike. For the woman who Dickinson has doing stretches that mirror walking recovery means getting back on her favorite hiking trail. For the woman with an ice pack and electrodes strapped to her knee, recovery means flying 20 or 30 feet in the air, pulling a double-twisting double-twisting triple flip and landing upright on packed snow. T ' S V. L . ' Hi.'; v. n DAVE FIELDSPARK RECORD Even though Dickinson is one of the two original physical therapists ther-apists who started Performance Physical Therapy, he still spends most of his time on the "floor," working on patients. I B 131. - MID .. .it's time for a change! Call Nikki at 649 0424 with your questions, concerns, ideas. and sensitivity make Peter "Everybody has something different dif-ferent they need to get back to," Dickinson said. And for both women, and with countless other skiers, runners, bikers, bik-ers, hikers and everyday people unable to play or work, Dickinson creates a physical therapy regimen custom suited to the needs of the patient and administers the care in a way that draws the injured from far away. Dickinson, who founded Performance with partr, r Laurie Savage four years ago, could be called the injured Parkites' Pied Piper guiding the injured back from whatever traumatizing incident, inci-dent, and sometimes subsequent surgery, that has taken them away from what it is they love to do. And in doing so, Dickinson has created a Richard Steadman-like reputation in some sports circles and within the Park City community. communi-ty. Dickinson is a breathing encyclopedia ency-clopedia of local athletes' injuries Paid for by Nikki Lowiy for Miyor ..." " m. v and fitness. If they compete in endurance running races, ski races, mountain bike races or any kind of races, Dickinson knows their injuries and their abilities. "That guy is amazing," or "she is a machine," come out of Dickinson's mouth frequently when talking talk-ing about young and old local athletes. In a small town like Park City that is filled with athletes, a good Two good happened to me met my wife and came up with the notion of going to physical therapy school. Peter Dickinson physical i therapist may be better known than the Mayor. "It makes shopping hard," Dickinson humbly admits. The health-conscious mentality is part of the reason Dickinson and his family live in the West, and Park City in particular. World-class athletes are a-dime-a-dozen in Park City, which makes for an interesting physical therapy clientele. clien-tele. He tells of one patient whose knee started hurting after Mile 50. "We get some of the goofiest over-use injuries," Dickinson said. "I'm usually having to pull people back instead of push them." But the self-described athletic "jack of all trades, master of none," lights up when he talks about each of his patients and their accomplishments. accom-plishments. He appreciates the bond formed between a person in need and someone who can help them to recovery. "It's an honor for people to trust their injuries with your care," Dickinson said. "We take that very seriously." And it shows. Lining the walls of the physical therapy room's entrance are signed posters from Jeremy Nobis, Heidi Voelker and Tommy Moe. But those are just the U.S. Ski Team athletes. On another wall is a signed print from a local artist. "Pete's an incredible support," Canadian freestyler and physical therapist Sheri Woroschuk said as she iced her sore knee. "He's not just doing the physical aspect of your rehabilitation, he's here for all aspects of the recovery." it) I Bwncisi I I as Gsual J J A hands-on philosophy Professional and recreational alike, athletes are moved by Dickinson's sensitivity and caring style. He has surrounded himself with a small, competent staff who share in his desire to help the injured. As his business and repu-t repu-t a t i o n grows , t h e and i o n s mount. B u t working with people, things have on chairlifts pushing paper, is where the 40-year-old is happiest. Physical therapy is not just about muscles, tendons, ligaments and bones. Much of Dickinson's job involves human interaction listening lis-tening to people, talking to people and understanding what clients are going through. As a knee injury victim himself, Dickinson knows what it's like to not be able to ride a bike for two years. However, he also uses a bachelor's degree in psychology psy-chology to work through the often-unpredictable often-unpredictable nature of injury victims. vic-tims. "We're really good at reading people," Dickinson said. "It's a great fit for who I am as a person...I understand their love for sport because I share that." During what is supposed to be an interview for a newspaper article, arti-cle, Dickinson's natural knack for conversation kicks in. Soon, he is asking the questions and telling stories sto-ries of his high school coach saying "Dickinson, you're small but you're slow." And he uses the same devices with his patients. As he lays a piece of styrofoam on the ground for the dog catcher to stretch her broken foot on, he quickly realizes it's going to be too painful. The patient never says a word. "Is that too much?" Dickinson asks the woman. And before she can reply, "let's try it on the floor instead." Customizing each patient's care is one of the challenges that keeps Dickinson excited, and in return IF";'-. t j,-. ' -' .' ' . If1.'.' "Encourage your children to read a newspaper every day. It will make them stars in the most important game of all-the game of life." The It all THIS MESSAGE IS BROUGHT TO YOU Dickinson unique successful, as a physical therapist. "It's not about them fitting my goals," Dickinson said. "You have to find that right fit...and it's fun." A Midwesterner discovers the West Dickinson grew up as the son of the town doctor in a Midwestern town of 35,000. There were two sports basketball and football. It was in the high school football program pro-gram that the coach told Dickinson he was both small and slow. "It was typical middle-America stuff," Dickinson jokes of his upbringing. And unlike the prodigal success story you would expect from someone some-one like Dickinson, he didnt know from childhood that his future happiness hap-piness would be found tweaking the injured for a living. Instead, "my eyes were opened on my first trip West." Dickinson spent his first summer sum-mer out of college as a cook at the Old Faithful Lodge in Yellowstone National Park. He then got involved in the National Outdoor Leadership School and spent as much time in the outdoors as possible. possi-ble. His love for the Western way of life eventually landed him in Breckenridge, Colo., working for the Colorado Outdoor Education Center for the Disabled, a program Peter Dickinson , . ' ' ! ' C ( im Nun" I V J m Smuix Summit ( -nun " INKU Park Record PARK CITY, UTAH starts with newspapers. BY THIS NEWSPAPER AND THE NEWSPAPER ASSOCIATION OF A M E ' I C A Peter Bryant Dickinson Age-40 Family-wife, Janice; daughter, Kelsey, 4; son, Riley, 2; golden retriever- Kira Born-Rochester, Minn. Raised-Urbana, Illinois Education-Hanover College (B.A.); University of Indianapolis (Masters of Science and Physical Therapy) Occupation physical therapist similar to Park City's National Ability Center. Dickinson was teaching sit-ski-ing and making the outdoors accessible acces-sible to people who wouldn't normally nor-mally be able to enjoy what Dickinson had fallen in love with. It was at Breckenridge that Dickinson met an Outward Bound instructor named Janice. "Two good things have happened hap-pened to me on chairlifts I met my wife, and came up with the notion of going to physical therapy school," Dickinson said. Within a two-week span, Pete and Janice married, moved to Park City, got jobs and bought a house. Seven years after proposing to Janice atop one of Colorado's 14,000-foot peaks, Janice and Pete have two children; four-year-old Kelsey and two-year-old Riley. Both Pete and Janice still love to get outdoors and spend time together running on the trails that surround their Pinebrook home. Like you would expect from two outdoor school instructors, "we have a running commentary on how we tie our bags shut." Adding children to the equation has been a "big eye-opener," said Dickinson. "I have had to massively massive-ly adjust." Dickinson now teaches his own children to appreciate the outdoors. He and Kelsey recently learned to traverse rock faces and can be found hanging off the holds at the new Hang Time climbing gym. "It's been fun to pass that on to her." P. -John Elway, Quarterback COPY |