PA J IV Derby

I'm taking a short break from unloading my car - trying to recuperate from an intense weekend of ski racing.

This past weekend was the PA State J4-J5 Derby at Ski Round Top and I was the lucky parent to accompany my son to the event.

We spent all day Thursday making sure that all the loads of gear were packed into the car. Helmet, check; shin guards, check; padded gloves, check; straight poles, bent poles, check, check; speed suit, check; skis and boots, check; On and on...thank goodness I have a good list or I'm sure we would have left without some important, necessary-can't race-without-it thing. Some how we were able to find it all, collect it all and get it all in the car.

We left at 6:00 AM Friday morning to make it to the training session that started at noon. The drive there was horrible as Western PA was in the midst of receiving another Snowlapalooza-like storm and we made it to Ski Round Top just at the stroke of noon - I bought him his ticket and threw him out on the slopes with the coaches while I got him registered for the weekend.

I hiked the hill rather than ski for the few short hours they were on the hill and was able to watch as the visiting coaches from Green Mountain Valley School, a race-specific academy in Vermont, looked on. My son looked nervous practicing in front of coaches from his father's alma mater but the snow was good and he seemed to relax the more he skied.

That night at the hotel I felt like a Sherpa as we lugged all the gear into the room, tuned skis in the stair well, went to the racer meeting and did homework at the small desk in the room. It wasn't all work, the mom's talked while the team swam in the pool before dinner and the kids played and had a good time before it was time to call it a night.

In the morning all the gear we'd hauled into the hotel had to be hauled back to the car - off to the mountain where all of that same gear had to be hauled into the lodge...get tickets, get race bib, get out on the hill. Then there is the race itself. As 'support staff' I want to be available to my racer without hovering - Heaven knows I don't want to be like the dreaded stage moms!

After the post-race debriefing it was time to haul all the stuff back to the car, back to the hotel, into the room, tune the skis, ready the gear for the next day and take a bit of a break before the festivities of the evening began.

I was thrilled to have the chance to meet some of the other Pennsylvania racers and their families. It was exciting to have a former US Ski Team coach speak about ski racing and how a racer moves up in the race scene - he even made is seem like an attainable goal. Fun as it all was though, I was acutely aware of the need to get my racer back to the hotel for the next day of racing.

Checking out of the hotel the next morning was easy since I was already used to loading and unloading the car several times a day. We headed to the mountain and went through the now familiar routine again - then I waited along the side of the race course with my cowbell app ready on my iphone.

We worked our way through the well choreographed day then ate pizza with the other racers as we waited for the final results, trophies and the announcement of the PA team that would move on to regionals. We already knew that my son would not be part of the regional team but wanted to cheer the other kids on and see things through to the end - it allows for an easier transition back to the 'real' world. When all of the awards were given out, all of the cheering was done, we hauled all of our gear back to the car one final time and drove the 4 1/2 hours home...ready to face the 6th grade, work and other aspects of home life once again.

Ski racing is not an easy sport. It is intense and challenging on the physical, mental and emotional level for all parties involved. I have to admit - playing the role of Sherpa/Mom has been a lot more rewarding after all of the Go Mom commercials during the Olympics. I'm not saying my kid will ever be Olympic-bound but when I see those snowflake-covered eyelashes and the big smile at the bottom of the hill I know he appreciates all it has taken to get him to where he is and for me it is worth every ounce of effort.


I'll see the rest of you Sherpa/Mom's on the slopes!

Kjerstin Klein
Snow Deva

Packed, Stacked and Jacked: Double Header Evens the Field

This has been a winter for the record books - the snow just keeps coming and the conditions at Seven Springs have been amazing.

Seven Springs had a wild weekend - after most of the Pittsburgh area schools had the week off due to weather conditions Seven Springs kicked off Winter Fest, held the USSA J3 State Ski Racing Derby, hosted Michael Rogan, top PSIA ski instructor and a Packed, Stacked and Jacked Double header - all of this on top of the Presidents Day weekend which happened to coincide with Valentines Day.

There was so much going on that the mountain literally hummed with frenetic energy.

All of the events on the mountain show the enthusiasm of the ski crowd - none more than the back-to-back PSJ freestyle ski and snowboard events. The PSJ weekend started on a high note when Joe Green, our Oakley rep, showed up with basketball t's with bib numbers that the competitors got to keep. The weather caused a slight change of plans for the Oakley Big Hit comp on Saturday and it was shifted to a modified slope style event - everyone of the competitors loved the format so I expect we will see more of this type of set up in next years PSJ events. It was an exciting day and brought out some great new competitors we have not seen in previous PSJ events. The winners for the day were:

Lds Ski:
1st Julia Schwartz

2nd Elle Pappas

3rd Emily Cocco

Lds Snb:

1st Ashley Vander Meer

2nd Shelby Layman

3rd Shannon Branthoover

Men's Ski:

1st James Rullo

2nd Freddy Brideweser

3rd Tyler Pence

Men's Snb:

1st Chuck Lengle

2nd Cory Cissel

3rd Clint Cooper

Day two of the Double header was the make up day for the K2 Big Air comp that was postponed last weekend due to Snowlapalooza. The make up day turned out to be tough - the expert park crew was sent out to do a final evaluation to determine if conditions were safe enough to send competitors over a 70 foot jump. The night before a 30 footer was built in anticipation of the nasty conditions and it proved to be the saving grace of the comp. The light was flat and the snow was heavy but it paid off big for those competitors who hung in there and has proven to be the great leveler in the over-all point spread for the entire Packed, Jacked and Stacked series.

The winners for the K2 Big Air contest include:

Lds Snb:

1st Ashley Vander Meer

2nd Shannon Branthoover

3rd Shelby Layman

Snb Men:

1st Chuck Lengle

2nd Zack Yourd

3rd Chris Poe

Lds Ski:

1st Emily Cocco

Men Ski:

1st Justin Petriko

2nd James Rullo

3rd Jimmy Hill

Now, due to the shortened field competing on Sunday the point spread is far closer now than it was at the end of Saturday's Oakley event. As of now Chuck Lengle is still out front but not as many of his snowboard buddies came out to support him - more skier guys showed up, girl skiers bailed for the most part and girl snowboarders stayed fairly consistent - gaining the girl snowboarders some much needed points.

As of now the over-all standings are as follows:

Chuck Lengle - 90 Points

Justin Petriko - 84 Points

James Rullo - 80 Points

Zack Yourd - 76 Points

At this point in the game Justin and Zack are leading for the 16 and under points and Ashley Vander Meer is leading the ladies with 32 points with Shannon Branthoover close behind with 26!

This tight of a point spread means that Anything can happen at the final Nordica, Monster Energy Drink, Gnu Snowboards wrap-up event on March 13th so it should be very exciting for everyone.

Keep in mind there will be tons of prizes and sponsorships being handed out on that final day as well as the grand, Packed, Stacked and Jacked prize package going to the top skier or snowboard - this years Seven Springs King of the Hill!

See ya on the Slopes!

Kjerstin Klein

Snow Deva

This Is Why I Do What I Do

Today was supposed to be my catch up day. I've been feeling so behind in every aspect of my home and work life that I figured I'd send the kids out to ski, husband to mind Willi's and I would lock myself away and work.

In my defense it is a blue-bird day here and the slopes were calling - no singing my name. The last ounce of my concentration slipped away and I gave into it. I rushed down to the slopes to get a few runs in instead of eating lunch and was immediately rewarded by an Anna sighting. She rushed into my arms, gave me a big hug and then took off back to her WPRC ski team mates. It was then that I knew I'd made the right decision.

It was beautiful out on the hill - Greg even came with me for a few runs and now I'm back at 'work' doing what I love to do. I honestly believe my heading out to the slopes was not a work avoidance technique but the vital mental floss I needed to remind me of why I do what I do.

See ya on the slopes!

Kjerstin

Willi's Salomon Jib Academy Rocks Seven Springs

Seven Springs was jumping with activity this weekend but it was the Salomon Jib Academy that finally blew the doors off.

Riders and coaches from the Salomon Team swooped down to coach over 70 10-16 year olds all day on Saturday, February 7th, 2009. The kids learned slope style tricks and jumps then wowed the crowd with an amazing competition to determine who would win the big trip to live like a rock star with the big dawgs at Mammoth Mountain for a week in May.

Since there are only 3 Jib Academy events in the USA the Seven Springs kick off event drew kids from as far as Colorado, Michigan and North Carolina. As to be expected it was the local crew that made up the bulk of the kids and the WPRC Freestyle team showed up in force and now will be a force to be reckoned with at their next comp at Seven Springs on March 7th and 8th. After competing in Rails and Air it was local hero Noah Killen who took home the big prize but there isn't a kid who came that didn't leave with a great memory and a few new tricks up their sleeve.

It was an incredible day for everyone involved. The amazing thing was how easily the kids, pros and coaches mixed. There was a lot of camaraderie and on the slopes it appeared as if they were all just a bunch of friends doing what they love to do.

Of course none of this could happen without the team effort of Salomon, Willi's and Seven Springs - Special kudos goes out to the park crew for creating the most amazing park on the East Coast bar none.

There are tons of pix and videos to be seen so check them out at:
http://picasaweb.google.com/Willisski/TheSalomonJibAcademy200902?feat=email#
http://www.7springs.com/page/category.detail/nav/5348/Community.html





So until next time - See ya on the slopes!

Kjerstin

Rockin' and Rollin' At Seven Springs

It has been an amazing 10 days at Seven Springs! There has been so much going on I couldn't get to it all!

Last Saturday WPRC held the Snow Capitol GS and when I got up to get my racers to the hill it was -18 degrees! President Ken Fedorek was contacted by many of the parents to find out if the race would still be held - his answer? "Well, it is a winter sport."

It turned out to be an incredible race with racers coming from Ohio, Maryland and all over Pennsylvania.

The weather only warmed up a little by mid week when Willi's hosted the annual Head Women's Day. Lisa Densmore signed autographs as the ladies gathered to head out for a day on the hill.

Starting with a wine and cheese party the night before and closing with coctails Apres Ski the event was focused on the lifestyle of skiing as much as skiing itself. The ladies were treated to lessons with the Seven Springs instructors and worked in groups with Lisa throughout the day. As cold as it was everyone had a blast.

By Friday night the temperature was back down below zero but that didn't stop all of the weekend events. WPRC Alpine Team hosted a two day PA Cup slalom race on Saturday and Sunday while the Freestyle Team tore it up with a two day, UPMC sponsored Mogul Challenge.

Sandwiched in between was the kick off of the Red Bull Buttercup - a new contest series on the East Coast. The lights were on and the tricks were hot.

This next weekend WPRC will hold the CTR GS so hold on to your hat - there's is more to come!

See ya on the slopes!

Kjerstin

Taking A Breather!

I am finally taking a second to catch my breath. With the mountain opening in mid November and the busy holiday season I feel like I have been running Mach Schnell. I’m lucky that the lines between work and play are so blurred because I have been at it hard for 6 weeks now and it is beginning to take its toll – it would be nice if things could slow down just a tad for a few days.

It feels good to be sitting to write at my computer for a few minutes – both the sitting part and the writing part! Oddly enough the best place for me to get an internet connection here at Seven Springs is up here in the Foggy Goggle Bar – but as I said the lines between work and play are blurred – often VERY blurred!

So I have yet to post the pictures from the Line Rail Jam on December 20, 2008. I am having some technical difficulties. That is the smooth way of saying that I forgot my cables in the city when I packed and my computer won’t read the card from the ‘good’ camera that I used for the day. I have some good shots and it was a great day so I will get them up as soon as possible.

The mountain has been fantastic – even those four lousy days we had right over Christmas were better than some of the mid season days we had last year. I chalk that up to the excellent job the snow making and grooming team did – those boys have the hardest job on the mountain. You know I can tell they have the most fun though – I am usually here in the Goggle working in the morning when they come down each day – they are in their jump suits riding their shovels like sleds cheering each other on. They get such a good ride that I think maybe I’ll trade in my skis for a shovel!

I’ve been lucky enough to be up on the hill for at least part of everyday. We spent most of the day in the park yesterday as the kids didn’t have race training due to the holiday. I am taking a few minutes off just to do some catching up but it is so beautiful out there I am feeling a bit sorry for myself. I’ll be out there later though as we have our consumer demo here today. Just pop into the store and pay the $10 demo fee and you will get a sheet for the reps to record all of your demos and comments on. Drop the sheet and a photo id at the tents and you can spend the day on new product from Head, Nordica, K2, Rossignol, Atomic, Volkl, Salomon and Line . I’m hoping the weather will hold since tomorrow, Sunday, I’ll be helping out with the WPRC Ohiopyle Slalom Race and cheering my son Dylan on in his first race of the season.

It has been a great holiday break and I want to make the best of what is left of it so…

See ya on the slopes!

Kjerstin

WPRC Begins The 2008-09 Race Season

I just dropped the kids off for the afternoon session of this seasons first day of training with the Western Pennsylvania Race Club. WPRC makes its home at Seven Springs and it couldn't be a more beautiful day here.




There has been quite a bit of natural snow so far this year and the skiing has been great. Seven Springs is obviously dedicated to making sure this is one of the best seasons we've had for a while because they have been adding to their base by blowing man-made snow whenever conditions allow. As I look out on the slopes right now there are a few guns still running but they have turned a number of them off for the comfort of their customers.

The snow guns didn't seem to bother the racers though. They all seemed to just jump right in at this morning's session. Even my little Anna, who loves to sleep, was up at 6:30 ready to go. This is her first year with the team and without even a hint of shagrin she informed me that she was tired of skiing with me and zipped off to make new friends on the team. Dylan is a veteran with the team but was equally excited for the race season to begin and as a parent I can't say enough about the program. WPRC is a great organization where the kids can learn about competing in a supportive, non-threatening environment. They run both a USSA sanctioned Alpine and Freestyle Team and the kids are even allowed to compete and train in both. It is an entirely parent run, volunteer organization where the kids as well as parents can make lifelong friends, are offered superior training and can gain invaluable lessons for life.

The first race of the season is over the holiday break and with the season starting so early I'm sure the level of competition will be great to watch. I wish all the racers the best of luck for the first race and the entire season!

See ya on the slopes!

Kjerstin