Invasion of the Snow Leopards

Feb 4 practice

Coach Nick cruisin' Winter Park Minocqua

Approach to the back 9 at Viroqua Hills (Friday)

Yes, I poached first tracks again... sorry.

Get out and Ski!

In this whacked-out winter, you need to take advantage of the good conditions when we get them.  Some area trails are in really good shape right now.  Kickapoo Valley Reserve has been grooming after each of the recent snowfalls.  Old 131 is a nice, gently rolling scenic ski along the Kickapoo River.  Justin Trails near Sparta was in great shape on Wednesday.  They have some killer terrain (big hills), but also a flatter loop.  The Viroqua Golf Course was groomed recently.  I skated there this evening, and it was really good.  There is about an inch of fresh snow on top, and it was really fun and fast.  There were no tracks set, but you could easily ski in your own tracks on the side of the skate deck.

KVR earlier this week.

Race details

The jumping starts at noon on Saturday, and will be fun to watch.  Following the jump, those skiers will have a nordic race.  Their start times will be staggered, based on their performance in the jump. 

Right after they finish, at about 2:00PM, we will have several heats of nordic races for the kids in the nordic program.  They can skate or stride.  The distances will be; Polar Bear 0.5km, Arctic Foxes 1.0km, Snow Leopards 1.5km and Arctic Explorers 3.0km.  There is no entry fee, but I will have entry forms to fill out inside the Rod and Gun Club.  This is meant to be a fun introduction to racing.  There will be food for sale at the Rod and Gun Club. 

Hope to see you on Saturday!

Race on Saturday/Costumes on Monday

I don't have the details yet, but there will be a junior ski race on Saturday at Snowflake.  It will be in conjunction with the Junior Jump tournament.  The cost will be low, and it will be a fun event.  There should be juniors from other clubs competing in both jumping and the ski race (Nordic Combined).  I encourage all of our skiers to give the race a try.  I will try to post the details tomorrow.  We may need a few parents to help direct skiers along the course.

Monday is Costume Day at Snowflake!  Wear a good costume that you can ski in.  Hopefully you will be able to guess who your coach is.

Don't call Pete

My bad.  Pete and his little elves are working on your skis right now.  Making them all slippery for skating.  Pete will bring them tomorrow at 3:30, and some extra poles.  It may take a few minutes for skiers to swap their poles around, so arrive a little early if you can.  (This applies only to Snow Leopards and Arctic Explorers).

Practice at Snowflake

Tomorrow's practice will be at Snowflake.  Fresh snow is in the forcast and it will be in the low teens at practice.  We might still have one of the remaining practices at a different location, but I couldn't get the logistics figured out this time.

Snow Leopards and Arctic Explorers should have picked up their skis at Bluedog and traded in their poles for longer ones for skating.  If you haven't picked up your gear yet, call Pete to make arrangements.

Coach Dan may not be at practice (if the weather is good I'll be counting deer from an airplane).  Coach Chris will take my group.

Welcome back, Winter

I hope you have gotten out to enjoy the nice new snow.  Kickapoo Valley Reserve groomed their trails on Thursday, and they are in good shape.  Things are in high gear down at the Ski Jump with the tournament starting today.  Thanks to the parents and skiers who cleaned the food booth last weekend and signed up to work a shift this weekend!

I hope to have our next practice on Monday (Feb 4) at the Viroqua Golf Course.  I am still trying to get permission to groom out there, so stay tuned.  I will update the blog as soon as I can.