February Alpine Newsletter

This month, read updates from each team to learn what we've been up to: it's been a BUSY month!

Rockchuck Racers

We have had a fun January! So far this season, we have worked on improving our ski skills, specifically our balanced athletic stance. We spend our Saturdays skiing all the goodies Snow King has to offer. We navigate many different types of terrain, varying snow conditions, brushies, and teamwork by pushing our own limits and encouraging others to do the same. Many Rockchuckers have goals of skiing their first black and double black diamond runs this season! We're looking forward to more fun this February.

- Head Coach Jenny Patterson

U10 Team

The JHSC U10 team is in the midst of another record-breaking season. At 37 athletes, our U10s are the largest (and loudest) team in the Jackson Hole Ski & Snowboard Club. With three to four days on snow per week, these young athletes are learning mountain etiquette and alpine fundamentals, while building on what I hope will be a lifelong love of skiing. Our competition season kicked off January 7th with the Caroline Classic. It was a beautiful day for racing and full of firsts for every kiddo. The Club’s youngest and most rambunctious crew, the U8 boys, claimed a clean sweep of the podium, while supporting one another in their first race. The U10 podium was well represented as well, and many 3rd year Ski Clubbers climbed their way to the top for the first time. At Grand Targhee, we kicked off the IMD North Series on Jan 15th. A total of 26 JHSC groms made the trip over Teton Pass, 2 days in a row, putting on a show for Sun Valley, McCall, and every other club in attendance. With every athlete eager for more racing, we are looking forward to heading to Sun Valley for the Monroe Cup, followed by the prestigious Flamingo Cup at White Pine.

- Head Coach Matt Beauregard

THANK YOU to Adam Wirth for the beautiful photos of the Caroline Classic. There were proud, smiling faces everywhere, coaches, families, and athletes alike! 

  

  

  

U12 Team

Grand Targhee IMD Qualifier GS Series 

We had 2 great days of racing at the ‘ghee with multiple podiums by JHSC U12 racers!! All the athletes skied strong on the pitch and in the flat light-something Snow King really prepares you for! Throughout the weekend the kids got more confident on the hill and had stronger and stronger runs each time. It was awesome to see the athletes apply their training to a new venue, and everyone looked super speedy and steezy with the speed glitter and hair colors. 

Thank you to all the parents, guardians, and volunteers who ran the tent and provided food for the whole team and who helped carry coats down. It’s so appreciated and helps our days run much smoother! 

And although the stubby slalom on January 28th got canceled, we appreciate all who came out and supported the athletes, and we hope everyone got to ski some good snow!!

After the GS races at Targhee, we are starting to get back into some slalom to prepare for what’s ahead, and we will start to do more drill work and start work. Looking forward, our next race is the IMD SL Qualifier at Rotarun on February 4th and 5th. After that there is a Club Series GS at White Pine on February 11th, and a Club Series slalom at JHMR on February 25th. All of the U12 staff members are stoked to see the athletes continue to challenge themselves and grow in this sport and continue to push their own limits. Can’t wait to see how hard they  charge at our next races and beyond! 

- Marika Hanson, U12 Coach

U14 Team

The U14 team has been working hard in January, first toward their first qualifier and then on Super G in preparation for the Wes Barron Speed series. The Alpine Program hosted a U14 IMD qualifier at Snow King Jan 13-15. Charlie Ryan had some of the top overall results of the weekend: he finished this first qualifier with a 2nd place (pictured below) and a 5th place finish in SL; he was 8th in the first GS race.

Taryn Moe finished 6th and Ruby Hoelscher 10th in the first women’s GS race. Lyvi Ulmer, Hennessey Van Gelder, and Maia Zorkendorfer finished in the top 20. Jack McNamara was 5th and Charlie Ryan 8th in the first Men’s GS race.

On Day 2, 4 JHSC boys placed in the top 10 in the men’s SL: Charlie Ryan (2nd), Jack McNamara (4), Tyler Ramage (8), and Ashton Ritter (9). Ruby Hoelscher finished 6th for the women. In the second slalom races on Jan 15, Ryan was 5th and Ritter 8th. 

Unfortunately, due to the heavy snow, only the boys got to race in one day of SG races at JHMR for the Wes Barron; the U14 women will have to wait til the next opportunity, as Sunday's races were called after roughly the first 40 women had taken their runs. The training will come in handy, though, as the next qualifier is a SG race from Feb 10-13 at Brundage Mtn. 

U16 Team

The U16 team has had a month to be proud of, with strong finishes, growth, and a lot of adverse snow conditions that they raced through like Champions! 

This year, their outing at Snowbird, for the first of three Intermountain Division Qualifiers, was a huge improvement over last year’s results. The entire team had a great weekend, despite some very challenging conditions, with multiple podiums at their first qualifier en route to the Western Region Championships. The coaches were extremely proud of how the athletes composed themselves in low visibility and skied just as they’d trained.  

Taylor Moe and Lucy Wirth had a great GS race, with first-year U16 Moe finishing in 2nd place. Wirth took 3rd, and teammate Dylan Witherite finished in 13th. Witherite also took 12th in the women’s slalom. Joey McNamara finished 2nd in GS and 4th in slalom. Oliver Sanders was 7th in GS and 9th in Slalom. Liam Logan was 8th in GS.

Their second race of the month, the Wes Barron at JHMR, kicked off on Thursday, January 26, with a Men’s Super G race. This annual series is one of the few speed events for U16 racers, with two days of Super G for boys followed by two days for girls. On the first day, the JHSC men came out strong, with notable top-ten finishes in a pool of roughly 95. Oliver Sanders finished 2nd, with teammates Joey MacNamara (4th) and Jaden D’Amours (7th) finishing in the top 10. Cash Warren was 15th. In the second race, D’Amours finished 4th, with MacNamara in 12th and Warren in 13th. 

We’re grateful that the races went off as planned on Thursday, because the forecasted snow did not disappoint those in the valley hoping for a much-needed refill. Unfortunately, the nearly 4 feet of snow that fell between Thursday and Sunday made for a rough weekend for Alpine racing (see photos of JHSC staff at the races, below!). Friday’s and Saturday’s races were canceled due to heavy snow and the dangerous conditions it causes for racers. The JHSC and JHMR race crews made their best attempts to get the course safe for Sunday, and the race began, but it was called after just over one-third of the start list had taken their runs. Taylor Moe was third among those who finished, with a time of 52.70. Lucy Wirth was 7th with a time of 54.22.

- Head Coach Ned Lazarevic

FIS Team 

Our JHSC FIS team has been off to a quick start to the season. With races spanning from December to April, we have seen good results from all of our athletes in the first half of this long winter campaign. We have seen many improvements over these 2 months with both results and team spirit moving in the right direction. The latest of our trips definitely showed this, as 5 of our athletes took the long and arduous drive to sunny Palisades Tahoe. Our athletes thrived in the tough conditions of Sugar Bowl, and continued our success on the near perfect hill at Palisades. Boosted by the warm weather and positive results, our team spirit was at an all-time high at the end of the series. With half the competitive season left, we hope to take the momentum off this trip and continue to succeed in our upcoming races.

- FIS team member, Kye Bessette