Big Blue Summer!
With the end of August we return to school and wrap up the summer of training. This summer has been fantastic with tons of fun, big improvements in fitness and technique, and a lot of adventures had. Now is a great time to look back on all the high points (literally) of summer and look forward to the upcoming season.
Summit Fever
Going on adventures in beautiful and unique places is one of the biggest benefits of nordic skiing! We are extremely fortunate that our training forces us to seek out challenging terrain...Teton Pass, Trail Creek swamps, and all the mountain peaks around our own little valley! One of the team's biggest goals was to climb a lot of peaks in the mountain ranges around Jackson Hole. We accomplished a lot in the last three months...check it out:
Taylor Mountain:
Jackson Peak:
Sheep Mountain (the Sleeping Indian):
South Teton:
Darby Camp:
This past August we invited teams from Bozeman, Park City, and Boise to the Tetons for an awesome week of training. We rented out the Darby Summer Camp on the west side of the Tetons and much fun was had. With over 60 nordic skiers and 7 coaches we got to know people from around the region, trained hard, ate great food, and generally had an amazing time! It is always great to get to know other athletes as more than just a name on a results sheet, they are all doing the same strange ski training we are and we have more in common than we do apart! Making friends from around the West, around the country, and around the world was my favorite part of ski racing and I think everybody made some new friends on this trip!
We played 30 v 30 games of volleyball, built a mountain bike jump line out of dirt piles, slid down the famous Darby slide, had a huge skate rollerski agility session, rallied bounding intervals, explored the Wind Cave, and so much more! This was a definite highlight of the summer and we will hopefully do it again next year!
JHSC Athlete Elsie Hall skis with US Paralympic Nordic Team
Back in May longtime JHSC skier Elsie Hall was invited to a training camp with the US Paralympic Ski Team in Bend, Oregon. Elsie grew up skiing with JHSC Nordic and has been a part of the Club since she was 5 years old! From Lollipoppers to the Comp Team, Elsie has been through the entire JHSC pipeline and is now earning opportunities with the US Paralympic Nordic Team as a visually impaired athlete. After a breakout season last year where she earned top placings at regional championship events, Elsie was invited to train with the US Paralympic Nordic team and is exploring classification and international competition! US National Biathlon team athlete Susan Dunklee wrote this article about mentoring Elsie and the energy at the training camp in Bend. Go Elsie!
2021-22 Winter Registration Almost Full
Winter registration has been stronger than ever! We already have 150 skiers signed up for JHSC nordic programming at the start of September. If you want to secure a spot for your child's nordic winter, sign up TODAY to make sure you can secure a spot with the Club. Monday and Wednesday Lollipoppers (K-1) have filled up, but we have added a Tuesday option if you are still looking to enroll your athlete. Teewinots (2nd-3rd grade) are close to full enrollment, but a few spots remain. The Junior and Development Teams (4th-8th grade) still have some room but spots are going quick! If you have any questions please contact program director Will Wicherski (wwicherski@jhskiclub.org).
