Month: April 2015

Alta Gas Report

Revelstoke Nordic Ski Club

April 2015

 

2014-15 was another successful season for the Revelstoke Nordic Ski Club! For the past three seasons, Alta Gas has generously provided financial support for the club’s Head Coach position. This support has been paramount to the club’s ability to grow and develop its youth programming, in addition to increasing the profile of Nordic skiing within the community. The Head Coach is directly involved with coaching the Ski S’kool, adult classes, clinics, private lessons, the Revelstoke Nordic Ski Team and coordination of Headlamp Heroes.

 

Our Ski S’kool program effectively provided Nordic instruction to 84 3^rd and 4^th grade students from Arrow Heights, Ecole des Glaciers, Columbia Park and Begbie View. Each group took part in four weekly, three-hour sessions at the Macpherson Nordic trails. In addition, 40 1^st and 2^nd grade students from Begbie View were offered the opportunity to try Nordic skiing with a one-day introductory session. Finally, a new partnership was forged with the Revelstoke Secondary School and four physical education classes ranging from grades 8 -12 were each offered two, three-hour session at the Macpherson Nordic trails. Thanks to the generous support from our local school board and teachers, parent helpers and coaches, namely, Louisa Fleming, Nancy Martin, Tayla Koerber, Kendra von Bremen and Rob Evans.

 

New for the 2014-15 season was the addition of Adult Beginner classic and skate classes. 15 students participated in the beginner sessions, offered on a weekly basis over the course of eight weeks. Our technique-based Adult Intermediate and Advanced classes alternate between classic and skate technique for ten weeks. This program continued to be successful with 12 participants partaking in the five-session offering and three skiers opting for the full ten-session program. 11 skiers took part in the January One Day Clinic and 15 skiers sought private or semi-private lessons. Finally, the Wednesday Night Open training sessions gained momentum as a growing crowd of fitness enthusiasts were dedicated to the intensity-oriented sessions.

 

In its second season, the Headlamp Heroes Wednesday Night Race Series provided entertainment and competition on a monthly-basis. The series begin with a classic interval start event in December; King’s Court-style skate sprints in January; a skate mass start in February; and a mixed-technique relay in March. 140 participants took part in the race series, which was generously sponsored by Skookum, The Village Idiot, Valhalla Pure and Flowt. Thanks to Wade Viznaugh and Debbie Koerber for their respective leadership roles with course setup and registration.

 

The Revelstoke Nordic Race Team enjoyed much success during the 2014-15 season. There were a dedicated group of 17 Track Attack skiers (aged 9 -12) and 11 Junior Development skiers (aged 13+). Formal training sessions were offered twice weekly in the summer; two to four times weekly in the fall; and three to five times weekly while on snow (frequency dependent on level of development). In addition to formal group training, seven Junior Development skiers followed a year-round training program. Superb coaching support was integral to the program’s success, with newly trained T2T coaches Rory Luxmoore and Bruce Granstrom providing consistent support for the Track Attack and Junior Development skiers. Clare Peacock also offered coaching support throughout the entire season, while Matti Little led our summer program. Nikki Norrie and Revelstoke Nordic Race Team alumni Hanna Thompson and Brittany and Megan Evans generously offered their coaching services when available. Finally, a huge coaching thanks to Phil Wood and Zina Kocher for offering their expertise and enthusiasm at our Holiday Camp and Revelstoke BC Cup, respectively. Penny Page-Brittin was instrumental in her role as lead Wax Technician, receiving assistance from Lucie Bergeron, Beverley Brosch, Brad Park, Janette Vickers, Rory Luxmoore and Bruce Granstrom. In addition to the aforementioned coaching and waxing aides, a big thank you goes out to the parents and families of skiers for providing ongoing support throughout the season.

 

The 2014-15 began with our Revelstoke skiers attending Spring and Summer Talent Squad Camps in 100 Mile House, the Fall Regional Camp in Vernon and the On-Snow Talent Squad and Regional Camps in Whistler and Vernon. In December, racing season kicked off with the Sovereign Lake Open, the Rossland NORAM and the Okanagan Cup in Salmon Arm. January saw skiers head to the Prince George BC Cup, the Kamloops Okanagan Cup, the Western Championships in Canmore and our first-ever local BC Cup in Revelstoke. In February, a hardy crew trekked to the BC Midget Champs at Mount Washington and ended the month at the BC Championships in Kelowna. One Revelstoke skier, Emily Suchy, proudly represented our club at the Canada Winter Games in Prince George. Finally, the month of March brought Ski Nationals 2015 in Thunder Bay. Here are some highlights from the 2014-15 season:

 

Western Championships

1^st Emily Suchy, 4km & 5km Para Nordic Sit Women

4^th Simon Blackie, Midget Boys Skate Sprint

5^th Simon Blackie, Midget Boys Skate Mass Start

6^th Simon Blackie, Midget Boys Classic Interval Start

8^th Beth Granstrom, Juvenile Girls Classic Interval Start

8^th Elizabeth Elliott, Juvenile Girls Skate Sprint

8^th Beth Granstrom, Juvenile Girls Skate Mass Start

9^th Erik Brosch, Midget Boys Skate Mass Start

 

5^th place team at BC Midget Championships

2^nd Emily MacLeod, 2003 Girls Classic Interval Start

2^nd Alexandra Luxmmore, 2004 Girls Skate Sprint

3^rd Nelson Luxmmore, 2003 Boys Classic Interval Start

3^rd Alexandra Luxmoore, 2004 Girls Classic Interval Start

 

Tied 5^th place team BC Championships

1^st Isobel Wilson, Atom Girls 3 Classic Mass Start

1^st Tayla Koerber, Kate Granstrom and Sarah Newton, Open & Master Women Classic Relay

2^nd Isobel Wilson, Atom Girls 3 Skate Interval Start

2^nd Alexandra Luxmoore, Bantam Girls 1 Classic Mass Start

2^nd Beth Granstrom, Juvenile Girls 1 Skate Interval Start

3^rd Alana Brittin, Juvenile Girls 1 Classic Mass Start

 

2^nd Ruby Serrouya, Pee Wee Girls 1 Aggregate

2^nd Beth Granstrom, Juvenile Girls 1 Aggregate

3^rd Lillian Vickers, Pee Wee Girls 1 Aggregate

3^rd Alexandra Luxmoore, Bantam Girls 1 Aggregate

3^rd Alana Brittin, Juvenile Girls 1 Aggregate

 

Canada Winter Games

1^st Emily Suchy, 2.5km, 600m & 5km Para Nordic Sit Women

 

17^th place team at Ski Nationals

1^st Emily Suchy, 2.4km, 5.6km, 800m & 10km Para Nordic Sit Women

2^nd Alana Brittin, Classic Interval Start

3^rd Alana Brittin, Classic Sprints

5^th Beth Granstrom, Skate Interval Start

5^th Beth Granstrom, Skate Mass Start

10^th Elizabeth Elliott, Classic Sprints

10^th Elizabeth Elliott, Skate Mass Start

 

2^nd Beth Granstrom, 2000 Girls Aggregate

3^rd Alana Brittin, 2000 Girls Aggregate

5^th Elizabeth Elliott, 2000 Girls Aggregate

 

The Revelstoke Nordic Race Team is proud of their accomplishments this past season and equally important is the continued growth in energy and enthusiasm for the sport of Nordic skiing. Congratulations to our Director of Youth Programs, Robyn Thomas and our Athlete Development Committee for their hard work orchestrating a successful year. Our club is grateful to Alta Gas for providing us the opportunity to develop capacity within our ski programs over the past three seasons.

 

Matthew Smider

Revelstoke Nordic Ski Club Head Coach