Nordic Racers Ski Club:
The Leading Edge,
October 2002

President's Message

For too long the nordic ski community has quietly brought the new ski season in ... no longer! This year we bring it in with a bang! The first ever Nordic Racer Ice Breaker Party / Fashion Show / Dance / Bottle Auction will kick off the season by allowing the nordic ski community to have some fun while raising funds for our junior development program!

I am really looking forward to this new ski year!

Besides our new season opening fundraiser party, we have our always fun Wine & Cheese Night (Nov. 6th) and our Silver Star Ski Camp (Nov. 29th - Dec. 1st). I encourage everyone to come out to the Wine & Cheese to renew their old acquaintances and, more importantly, to renew their memberships! Yes, it's time to pay your dues for the best ski club in Vancouver -- and it's still a bargain at only $25.00.

I am also excited about this year's Holly Burn Pursuit. Last year's inaugural Holly Burn Loppet was a great race but we think we can do better still and make the race more exciting for both the racers and the spectators. This year's race will be in 'Same-Day Pursuit' format. To make it accessible and inviting for all skiers, both new and hardcore, we have designed it so that you can ski just the classic leg, just the skating leg, or in a team (with one person skiing the skating leg and another the classic leg).

As always, these events are only as good as the volunteers that support them. We need you! We need volunteers to help out with the Ice Breaker Dance and with the Holly Burn Pursuit. With the Holly Burn Pursuit in particular, we know we will need a lot of volunteers, especially with the critical and most important function: timekeeping. If you aren't into racing, then be part of the action and support these events by being a volunteer.

Don't feel confident being a race official? Well, we can help you there too. Your club is organizing and subsidizing many courses this year to help you become qualified, confident Officials and Coaches. Take advantage of the opportunity to become a certified CCC Official or NCCP Coach.

I look forward to the upcoming season as we have many events planned -- far too many for me to spell out in this column! Get involved, make new friends and above all, ski!

See you all at the next Nordic Racers' function!

-- Tony

UBC Nordic Ski Team

The Nordic Racers club executive has decided to extend a welcoming hand to the fifteen or so members of the UBC Nordic Ski Team. In order to help them with their training, coaching, and race participation, the Nordic Racers club will offer, to paid-up members of the UBC Nordics, an invitation to participate in our dryland training and other social events.

The executive is aware that the demographics of the Nordic Racers Ski Club is slowly changing and that there is a paucity of club members in the younger age groups. The club is getting 'long in the tooth' according to young Tom D. We need to make an effort to encourage younger skiers to participate in and to join our Ski Club. The executive welcomes any suggestions from club members on how to achieve club growth from the participation of younger skiers.

Nordic Racers Jackets

The club still has a few Nordic Racers jackets left over from our second jacket order (medium, large, and X-large). The cost is $75.00.

To order a jacket, contact Brian Hardie.

Club & Other Events

Nordic Racers Strength Training Clinic

Upper body strength is a large part of skiing and -- while most of us keep our lower bodies in shape during the summer with running and biking -- upper body strength is often overlooked. To remedy those pulpy pecs and drooping deltoids, we will be staging an orientation session for strength training at a local gym.

The workouts will be in small groups and led by a certified trainer with a very low-key approach (alas, we could not get Tony Little). Don't worry if you can't bench press the new Mini; the point is to learn proper techniques to give you more strength and muscle balance to make you ready for skiing.

Please let Dave McKee know A.S.A.P. if you want to join a session which will entail about two hours of instruction and practice and take place on a weekend afternoon.

Besides a free introduction/consultation, we will probably get a free three-week pass which means hot tub access for after those rainy dryland sessions. Hopefully, we can train together in small groups to make it more fun and motivating.

Dryland Training

As the leaves begin to fall, it's time to start tuning the cardio engine for ski season. A typical training day will take two hours and involve stretching, strength, and intervals. For non-runners, we do very little actual running. Training will be on Sunday mornings starting at 9:30 a.m. and will alternate between Spanish Banks and the Seymour Demonstration Forest (a.k.a.: Lower Seymour Conservation Reserve).

The first session will be on Sunday, October 20th. Please note that this session will start at 9:00 a.m. Meet at the western-most parking lot at Spanish Banks. Please come ready for any weather with running shoes, dry clothes, etc., and classic-length ski poles.

The following weekend, October 27th, meet at the Lower Seymour parking lot at 9:30 a.m., but bring your roller blades or skis (and skating poles if possible) as well as your running shoes and other gear.

For additional information please contact the coach, Dave McKee. Cost: free.

CCBC Officials Course - Level 1 & 2

Nordic Racers isn't just about racing; we also need race officials to help organize and run races -- especially our own club race, the Holly Burn. The CCBC Level 1 Officials course, which introduces you to all the aspects of putting on a race (including the structure of race organizations, timekeeping, officiating, and liability concerns), will be held on Saturday, October 26th. This compressed, one-day course will be run from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at a yet to be determined location. The course conductor will be Robin Woods and the cost will be $40.00.

Note: the Nordic Racers will subsidize the Level 1 & 2 Officials Courses by paying for the meeting room and providing a lunch on course days.

The Level 2 Officials course will be held on the following weekend, November 2nd & 3rd. This two-day course (16 hours) covers all official race formats, rules and regulations, rule interpretation, electronic timing and all aspects of the results system.

This course will be led by Georgia Manhard and will run from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at a location TBD. The cost for the Level 2 course will be $35.00.

To register for these courses or to get involved with the Holly Burn race, contact Tony Chin.

Wine and Cheese Night

The Nordic Racers Club is proud to host the annual 'season-opener' social event and membership sign-up night on November 6th, 7:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. at Sigge's Sport Villa (2077 West 4th Avenue, Vancouver). Renew your club membership, meet your new executives, buy your Ice Breaker tickets and sign up for the now famous Silver Star Ski Weekend.

Note: If you can't attend the Wine and Cheese night, please print off a membership form from the Nordic Racers' website (www.nordicracers.bc.ca) and mail in your membership renewal.

Nordic Racer Ice Breaker / Fundraiser

Mark Saturday, November 16th (8:00 p.m. to midnight) down on your calendar! The first ever season kick-off party for the nordic ski community is coming at you from the Burnaby Lake Pavilion. This dance is a fundraiser for junior racing development and promises to be a hopping good time. To add to the entertainment, we are asking members to donate a bottle (of anything) -- wrapped up nice and pretty please! -- for the bottle auction.

Adding to the excitement will be numerous raffle prizes -- including two night's accommodations for two at Silver Star! -- and an opportunity to view some of the latest gear/clothing from our sponsors. A cash bar and hot food will also be available.

Tickets are $25.00 for adults, $15.00 for juniors and $50.00 for families. Tickets will be available from your club executives or at the Wine & Cheese Night. Sigge's will also be selling Ice Breaker tickets but will only accept cash, no credit cards or cheques. There are only 200 tickets available, so don't delay.

For additional information, tickets, or volunteer offers please contact Junior Challenge leader Chris Bowlby.

Sigge's Club Night

On Wednesday, November 13th, Sigge's Sport Villa will hold a closed-door ski equipment sale for paid-up Nordic Racers club members. The sale starts at 7:00 p.m. and will offer a 15% discount on all new equipment as well as last year's stock. All methods of payment are being accepted.

Silver Star Ski Camp

The Nordic Racers have once again booked most of Silver Star Village for the popular early-season ski training camp to be held on the vast cross-country ski trail network around Silver Star and Sovereign Lake. This always well-attended weekend will include skiing, training, quality instruction, and gourmet 'get togethers.'

The cost this year will again be $80.00 for two nights' accommodation (Friday, November 29th and Saturday, November 30th). An optional third night (Thursday, November 28th) is available for $40.00 more. To pay for, and thus reserve your accommodations, contact Tony Chin. or come to the Wine & Cheese Night.

To enroll in the Ski Camp, contact Dave McKee. The cost of the ski camp and coaching has not been finalized yet but is expected to be about $90.00 per person.

Note: The new owners of Silver Star have failed to keep the Continental Cup at Silver Star during the American Thanksgiving weekend and so the traditional Friday night activity of watching the Sprint Races will not be available. Also, due to the exorbitant increase in the trail ticket prices ($17.50 per day), we will be hosting the ski camp on the Sovereign Lake trails this year. The Sovereign Lake Nordics will be operating a shuttle to take skiers between Silver Star and Sovereign Lake.

Hollyburn Jackrabbit Ski Swap

On November 19th at 7:00 p.m., Sigge's Sport Villa will offer Jackrabbits and their parents a chance to swap kids' ski gear, buy new kids' ski equipment, and meet other Jackrabbit parental units. Sigge's will offer parents (or Jackrabbits with money) a 15% discount on the purchase of new Jackrabbit ski equipment.

Coaching

Interested in becoming a coach? Well, the first step is to take the NCCP Level 1 Technical Course. The Technical 1 course will be held on January 3rd and 4th at Cypress Mountain. The cost is $60.00.

If you intend to coach children then you are advised to take the CCBC Leader Training Course as well. The CCBC Leader Training Course is $35.00 and is scheduled for Saturday, December 14th and Sunday, December 15th, 2002.

To register for either of these courses contact Brad Gilbert. For more information on coaching, check out the CCBC website at www.crosscountrybc.ca.

The NCCP Level 2 Technical On-Snow Course is available for those who have completed the Technical 1 and Theory 1 components. This course will be held at Cypress on December 6th to 8th. The cost is $85.00 if this is the first Technical 2 course being taken or $70.00 if you have already completed the Technical Level 2 Dryland Course. Contact Tony Chin (ph. 604-451-8571) to register.

The Holly Burn

The Nordic Racers' club race is to be held on the lower trails of Hollyburn on Saturday, March 22nd, 2003, and will be a classic/free-technique same-day pursuit. The intention is to run the race in conjunction with the Hollyburn Jackrabbits as part of the Coast Cup race series.

If you are interested in getting involved in the organization of the Holly Burn Race, please contact Tony Chin (ph. 604-451-8571). Planning for this race is already underway.