JHSC Club and Community Nordic Update
Happenings of the JHSC Nordic Program, Trail Creek Nordic Center, and Local Nordic Community
Welcome to the January Edition of “What’s Going On” for the 2024-2025 season!
Happy New Year from the JHSC Nordic program and Trail Creek Nordic Center! As we roll into January things are going to get really busy at Trail Creek. All of the teams returned to training January 6th, and Mondays and Wednesdays will be especially busy at Trail Creek in the afternoons after school. The general weekly schedule is below.
Happy New Year! As I sit and write this passage, I can hear the laughter and shouts from all ages of skiers behind me at Trail Creek! Today marks the first day of Teewinot and Lollipopper practice and the beginning of a great season here at Trail Creek! It is always inspiring to see so many kids, from first time skiers to experienced high school racers, all skiing together. We have seen near-record levels of participation this year and our ranks are swelling with tons of enthusiastic, happy kids!
In addition to growing grassroots skiing in Jackson Hole, my mission is also to develop world-class local athletes. Just yesterday, US National Championships wrapped up and we had many fantastic performances! Nate Streubel and Lena Poduska skied well enough to qualify to represent the USA at the U18 Scandinavian Cup that will take place in Gjøvik, Norway in February! Lena also qualified for World Junior U20 Championships, along with recent alum Lucas Wilmot, who is in his freshman year skiing for U of Utah! World Junior Ski Championships will take place in Bergamo-Schilpario, Italy at the start of February. This is the first time we have qualified multiple athletes for World Juniors, and this is the third year in a row JHSC has qualified at least one athlete to the U18 Scandinavian Cup! We are so proud of these kids and so happy that their immense amount of hard work has paid off!
We are so stoked for all of our upcoming fun practices at Trail Creek and events later this winter! Make sure to save the date for the Moose Chase, a skate mass start race on February 15th. It has distances and categories for every skier, from the seasoned racer to the first time skier! We will have food from FRX, candy for the younger kids, challenging racing, and everything in between! Make sure to be at Trail Creek for the Moose Chase this February!
Will Wicherski
Nordic Program Director
Lollipoppers
Hi everyone!
I'm excited to see y'all at Trail Creek this week. Week 1 will be all about getting comfortable on skis.
- Regular practice starts this week JANUARY 6/7/8, 2025
- M, T, or W 3:45-5:15 at Trail Creek Ranch in Wilson (please text me if you've forgotten which day of the week your child is signed up for)
- PLEASE DON’T BE LATER THAN 4PM - coaches cannot accommodate
- Please come prepared
- Bring water & snacks!!
- Make sure mittens/clothes are not wet from school at the start of practice
- Please be courteous and follow pick-up rules (don’t stop in front of the cabin, turn around at the end of the line of parked cars, etc.)
We're looking forward to meeting your kiddos!
Cheers,
Coaches Adam, Elena, Stephanie, and Elsie
Teewinots
Hi Teewinot Friends and Family,
Teewinot Team greeted the new year with lots of striding and gliding the first week of practice. These 2nd and 3rd grade student athletes (over 50 kids!) spent the first days of their season getting to know each other through games and exploring Grunt Hill and Sam the Truck. Coaches are excited with the high enthusiasm of these young skiers - it’s sure to be a great winter!
The trails are in great shape, and all the coaches are excited to ski with your kids this winter!
Cheers,
Libby & Kirsys
Devos
The Devo Team is entering the third month of the ski season, and everyone has been skiing really strong! A handful of kids from the team raced the Betty Woolsey in December and we are so proud of their efforts! A highlight from practice on snow so far was breaking into small groups and sending the kids out on the trails with a map to navigate within their teams to predetermined points all over Trail Creek.
We are looking forward to more adventure skis in the new snow, honing our technique, and introducing the Double Pole Challenge!
Kaya Morelli
Head Devo Coach
Junior Team
Happy New Year, Junior Nordic Families!
December was a great month for our team as we trained hard in both classic and skate techniques while eagerly awaiting the arrival of snow. Over the holidays, the snow finally came, and it was worth the wait!
Several of our athletes represented the team at the IMD Opener, putting their skills to the test and performing exceptionally well. It was inspiring to see their hard work and determination pay off on race day!
Throughout December we focused on refining technique in both classic and skate skiing. Practices included a mix of interval sessions to build speed and endurance, longer distance skis to develop stamina, and plenty of relays and games to keep things fun and engaging.
Looking ahead, January will bring exciting opportunities to showcase all the progress we have made. We will set our sights on the Teton Ridge Classic, the Soldier Hollow Super Qualifier, and the Lander Middle School Race. These events will provide excellent challenges and experiences for our athletes as they continue to grow and improve.
Thank you for your continued support, and we will see you on the trails!
• Coach George and the Junior Nordic Team
Ositos
The Ositos will have their first practice Tuesday, January 7th! We are excited to get the team out on snow and meet the new teammates! We have an awesome crew of coaches for the Ositos this year and are looking forward to exploring as many trail systems as possible in the Jackson area.
Kaya Morelli
Head Ositos Coach
Prep/Comp Team
The last month has been a busy one for the Prep/Comp Teams.
In the middle of December we hosted the IMD opener, bringing teams from the entire IMD region as well as Wyoming high school teams from around the state to a weekend of racing at Trail Creek.
Our staff and athletes put in many hours of shoveling and trail prep to pull off hosting the races. Conditions were thin but everyone had a positive attitude and showed up ready to race. JHSC Nordic saw many podiums across all age classes and distances. Results can be seen here:
https://zone4.ca/event/2024/rom9PN/
A squad of Prep/Comp athletes also traveled to Steamboat Springs, CO to get some race starts at a Rocky Mountain Division race and face some new competitors. The team did great and utilized this racing opportunity to practice race tactics, warm up preparations, and organization before heading in to our own regions races. Results can be seen here: https://zone4.ca/event/2024/d8QDly/
It finally began to snow after the first races of the season, and the team has been enjoying training at Trail Creek. We consistently trained throughout winter break to prepare for the Junior National Qualifier races beginning in January.
At the end of December, Coaches Luna Wasson and Jon Filardo took Comp athletes Abby Murphy, Colton Petsch, Nate Streubel, Sam Hutchinson, and Lena Poduska to Anchorage, AK, for a week of racing at US Nationals. These races are the highest level of competition our athletes encounter during a regular season, and serve as qualification for any international Junior racing trips (U18 trip or World Junior Championships). The team stepped up and handled the high intensity week well, reaching personal bests at US Nationals all around. Nate Streubel will be representing Team USA at the U18 Scando Trip in Gjøvik, Norway in February, and Lena Poduska will be representing Team USA at the World Junior Championships in Schilpario, Italy as well as the U18 Trip, both in February. Huge congratulations to all these athletes on their accomplishments and preparations for the season. The entire group demonstrated their toughness and adaptability this week while racing far from home.
We are now getting into the JNQ portion of our season and we are heading to Soldier Hollow, UT for JNQ #1 Jan. 16-18. Happy New Year!
Nordic Masters
The Nordic Masters program got off to a great start at Teton Pines Nordic Center in December. The snow was a bit thin but enough for students to do some skiing. The group tried to get the cobwebs out as most hadn’t been able to ski yet do to the low snow. We did have enough snow to work on our fundamental positions and movements. Like our other teams the Masters skiers learn skills, practice with drills and finish with some games that solidify the new skills.
We will have two more sessions at Teton Pines before moving to Trail Creek. With the new snow, skiing will be great as we work our way through the “Gears” of Skate skiing and learn methods for going up and down hills. Classic skiers will also learn hill techniques as we ski around at Trail Creek.
A new offering this year from the Masters crew is a clinic for parents during normal training time. Look for registration to start soon for this fun oriented program aimed to improve parent’s skiing so they can keep up with their kiddos.
Rob Murphy
Nordic Masters Head Coach
Adam Meyer
Many days at Trail Creek you will find some amazing tracks, especially those of our smallest skiers, the Lollipoppers, discovering the joy of Nordic skiing and making amazing progress in the process. This year these kindergartners and first graders are being led by one of our returning coaches, Adam Meyer. Adam has a serious Nordic resume, not to mention that he tends to bring joy wherever he goes. The Lollipoppers should be in for a treat this winter with Coach Adam at the helm. Adam is keeping really busy, as he will also be helping with Teewinots on Thursdays, and Juniors on Fridays this winter.
While Adam has been featured previously in the Nordic Newsletter, there is more to know about the new head Lollipopper coach! Read on for Coach Adam’s bio from the JHSC website, and more detailed information about his Nordic passions.
Adam grew up in Falmouth, ME where he spent winters tubing in his backyard. His stoke for Nordic skiing blossomed when he began racing in high school. Adam continued racing while studying environmental economics at Tufts University in Massachusetts. Nabbing a remote day job at a climate-change-focused startup after graduating allowed Adam to spend his post-college winter evenings coaching in Vermont, Colorado, and now Jackson. Adam is fired up to be coaching JHSC Lollipopper and Junior athletes!
Sport-specific Background and Experience
--Tufts University Nordic Ski Team
--Assistant Coach Essex High School (VT) 2020/21
--Head Devo Coach, Crested Butte (CO) 2021/22
--Assistant Juniors Coach, Jackson (WY) 2022-current
Education
--B.A. Environmental Economics, Tufts University
Personal Philosophy
--Protect and share the outdoors :)
Thanks so much, Adam, for being the featured coach this month. Your bio on the club website includes a serious skiing resume. Looking back to growing up in Maine, did you ski recreationally with your family as a kid?
- I grew up tubing in my backyard in southern Maine. That's where my love of snow came from. It wasn't until high school that my cross country running teammate, Jay Lesser, convinced me to strap on Nordic skis.
Were your parents from Maine, too, or did they move there for opportunities or lifestyle?
- My dad hails from Massachusetts and my mom is from New Hampshire. Both of my parents moved to Maine for college.
How was your high school Nordic experience similar and/or different to what high school students encounter here?
- I Nordic skied through all of high school for my high school team. The experience was similar to the Jackson Hole Ski Club, with training camps and the caliber of racers (Sophia Laukli from Team USA grew up in the town next to mine), but different in the amount of travel. Our team always did a Christmas training camp in New Hampshire, where we stayed at the AMC Highland Center. I still fondly remember bringing Falling Leaves scented Febreeze (since discontinued) to training camp starting my 2nd time there because my teammate/roommate, Max, had warfare-level stinky feet. We'd ski at the Mount Washington Hotel when they had snow and other times at Bear Notch Road (very similar infrastructure vibes to Trail Creek). The Maine High School Nordic circuit is most similar to Colorado because of the density of skiers. We never had to travel out of state to race.
What is your most memorable race from high school?
- I still remember the races we had at the Black Mountain of Maine where we had to climb up "High School Hill." That monster hill felt much closer to the Snow King Hill Climb than it did to ascending Trail Creek's Grunt. The most valuable part of high school racing is the faces I still interact with -- Lily Johnston (Mainer/Bozeman Head Coach), Kaelyn Woods (Mainer/Bozeman Head Coach), and Fiona Ahearne (Mainer/Sun Valley Assistant Coach).
How about college? Is there a race that is really memorable?
- College racing was a fun time. I went to Tufts, in the snowless suburbs of Boston. Occasionally we'd get snow and I would ski around the ball fields like a crazy person. Other times I'd drive back to Maine and ski at Pineland, the premier training grounds for every youngster in Southern Maine. Pineland is a mentally unfit campus turned 5,000 acre dairy farm. The post-practice free cheese samples in high school were heaven on earth.
- I didn't race my first two years in college, but my high school friends who raced at UVM convinced me to create a USCSA ski team (the alternative to NCAA) and restart my racing career. My junior year I paid the $150 USCSA Team Creation Fee and was off to the races. To avoid having to deal with any Tufts club-creation paperwork, I kept my newly created team a secret from everyone at Tufts. Every weekend I'd go to Vermont or New York to race and I'd stay with the UVM team at every race. USCSA racing took me all the way to Jackson's own Trail Creek for 2019 Nationals, but the most memorable race was in March 2020 during Nationals in Lake Placid where the UVM team rented a 4 bedroom house and we crammed 20+ UVM/Dartmouth/McGill skiers in the house. Each day after races we'd all go back to the house and make delicious meals (one day we made guac with 40 avocadoes) while reading the news about the world imploding from Covid. Andrew Siegel, the new Jackson Hole High School Nordic coach, was there. If the world ever implodes again, I hope I'm in a cozy house with my favorite people doing my favorite sport and eating great food.
You are obviously skiing at Trail Creek a lot. Do you get out for any other ski outings beyond Trail Creek?
- Snow King is my favorite place in town. You can find me trampling up the skin track and bootpacking in my iconic heart-shaped glasses at least one day a week, if not more often. I love biking there from my apartment in East Jackson with my skis strapped to my backpack.
Are you still working in environmental economics and, if so, do you want to elaborate on what you are doing with that?
- If any of the folks reading this are looking to hire a data/operations analyst, after 3 years at an energy finance firm, I'm on the hunt for a new daytime gig! I left my last employer in the fall of 2023. Since then I've had a blast working a variety of jobs:
- Coaching year round with the club (summer roller ski basketball practices might be my new favorite thing in life)
- Providing Salesforce, data, and coding consulting services to a local nonprofit
- Cooking for the US Alpine Ski Team (They loved my weekly trivia nights. Lindsey Vonn and I had a memorable argument over my "What are fingernails made of?" question)
- Substitute teaching at the local public schools
- Catering with three companies in town
- Herding sheep in Iceland
Moving on to your present position as Head Coach for the Lollipoppers, do you have any special affiliation with this age group, or did fate bring you where you are now?
- I'm excited to accept the reins from my friend and previous Head Coach, Sam Johnson. Having substitute taught in many kindergarten and 1st grade classrooms in the valley, I'm super excited for all of the energy that kids in this age group have. My assistant coaches, Stephanie Thomas and Elena Breed, are fantastic additions who will keep things super fun.
Lollipoppers are kindergarteners and first graders, an age that can be challenging. Do you have any sage insight for dealing with this age group?
- Keep it fun and keep them moving!
What are the season dates for the Lollipoppers, how often do they practice each week, and what racing opportunities do they have each year?
- The party starts on January 6th. Each kiddo practices once a week. We'll have a Monday cohort, a Tuesday cohort, and a Wednesday cohort. At this young age, we're just emphasizing how fun skiing can be.
Do you have any other words of wisdom for the Jackson Hole Nordic Community?
- Thank your groomer!!
Thanks so much Adam, best of luck for the rest of the season!
Racing is up and running at full speed this winter already. We kicked off the season in a big way with the IMD Opener/Betty Woolsey/Johnny Curtis Memorial/High Plains/Wyoming High School meet December 13th-15th. While it was nip and tuck whether the snow was going to come through, we had just enough to run the race, and during the final day of racing the snow finally began to seriously fall. All the results are available on this Zone4 webpage. Many thanks to all volunteers and racers for allowing us to host a race with nearly 400 skiers!
Also, recently the high school skiers were able to compete in a Wyoming High School meet in Pinedale January 3rd and 4th, and a small group of IMD racers travelled to the SuperTour #2- U.S. National Championships at Kincaid Park in Anchorage, AK. Results from Pinedale are available here, and results from Alaska are available on the event website.
Let it snow!
After a slow start, one of the presents for Christmas this year entailed multiple days of significant snowfall. As the calendar turns to 2025, conditions have moved into the full winter mode, with pretty much every trail open and skiing well. Looking at the snow report from the nearest reporting station, Phillips Bench, conditions are just about normal for this time of year, with long term forecasts calling for continued snowfall.
While the practice schedule is very busy at Trail Creek this month, especially Monday and Wednesday afternoons (see welcome above), it is a quiet month racing wise at Trail Creek. Recreational skiers should be able to find plenty of opportunities to enjoy all that we have to offer.
Winter wildlife seems to have settled in for the season with the recent snowfall. While moose numbers seem a bit low this year, there is once again a healthy population of elk wandering the trails at night. Elk tend to disappear during daylight hours. On the other hand, if you encounter a moose, always be careful and ready to go the other direction. There have been no reports of cranky moose yet this winter.
There has been one great documented sighting of a pine marten, who was most likely taking advantage of the abundant squirrel population. There have also been reports of foxes and coyotes hanging around the trails.
Remember to get your pass purchased at the Trail Creek Page if you have not already done so, and fully enjoy all the great skiing at Trail Creek.
Citizen skiers have lots of opportunities for Nordic skiing in the month ahead. On January 11th the Teton Ridge Classic will be held in Victor, Idaho. January 12th is the 7th annual JH Nordic Free Day at Turpin Meadows. January 18th is the Pinedale Stampede. January 25th is the Spud Chase in Idaho. February 1st is the Boulder Mountain Tour in Sun Valley, Idaho. What a month of fantastic skiing!
Youth racing kicks into high gear in January, with IMD racers gathering in Utah for the first Junior National Qualifier in Soldier Hollow January 17th and 18th. High school racers will be competing in the Bighorns January 10th and 11th, as Sheridan hosts its first ever Nordic meet, and January 24th- 25th they will race in Lander.
In short, there is no lack of opportunity to ski or spectate in the busy month ahead, so get those skis waxed and be ready to keep on skiing! Click here or on the image below to go to the full calendar, complete with clickable links.
Thanks so much to the skiers and sponsors who make this all possible, with an extra special thanks to our season pass holders: David Adams, the Bitzer Family, the Brigham Family, Lori Cahn, Patricia Campbell, Broughton Coburn, the Curtis-Randol Family, the Curtis-Adams Family, Pam Cutler, Jake Elkins, Tirzah Ellis, Kylie Fletcher, Bob Gordon, the Graham Family, the Gross Family, the Halaby Family, Francesca Hammer, Tilly Hoath, Cynthia Hogan, Katy Hollbacher, Laurie Huff, Stephen Koch, Maddie Krasula, Ted Larsen, Adam Loo, the MacWilliams Family, Mahood, Ann Makely, the Newcomb Household, the O’Brien Family, the Ohmart Family, Cypress Ohmart, Jacqueline Oldham, Chris Peck, Emiline Shuptrine, Angus Spankie, the Springer Family, Carson Stanwood, the Stile Family, the Thal Family, the Thomas-White Family, Allison VonMaur, Stori Weenig, Malcolm Welch, the Wheeler Family, Pete Wiswell, and Sita Jo Yeomans.
Thanks to our amazing staff! Will Wicherski, Luna Wasson, Jon Filardo, Ben Morley, George Cartwright, Kaya Morelli. Adam Meyer, Johnny Springer, Christian Otto, Matt Wiseman, Charlotte Cadow, Tyra (JT) Wynn, Annabel Hagen, Megan Tattersall, Miles Yazzolino, Libby Hall, Kirsys Campbell, Adam Fabrikant, Ezra Smith, Trisha Mayers, Lizzie Johnson, Sevi Hagen, Adam Meyer, Stephanie Thomas, Amelia Mayer, Bill Mayer, Andie Cornish, Elena Breed, Rob Murphy, Scott Horn, Brent Peacock, Nancy, Leon, Chloe Stines, Dori Sinclair, Axel Klomparens, Andie Cornish, Elsie Hall, and Sydney Wilmot.
Thank you to the multitude of youth athletes for your dedication and support, for whom this program is designed, and without whom it would be impossible!
A special thanks to Jackson Hole Nordic for being a strong supporter of our programs.
