Next week

On the eve of ski camp, we also need everyone on the team to be looking ahead to next week and the following week, which both promise to be action packed.

1. We have the first race of the season on Wednesday afternoon, January 3, the day we return to school.  This is a WMC (Western Maine Conference) skate race and we expect it will most likely take place at the Oak Hill area of Pineland.  We will transport skiers to Pineland, probably leaving around 2:15.  Since this race is nearby and many/most parents come to the races, we don't plan on providing transportation back to Desert Rd, but if there are skiers that need a ride back after the race, either the skier or a parent must let Susan know by Wednesday at noon that a ride is needed.
2. Next Saturday (January 6), the team will be heading to Bethel for the Telstar relays.  In this race, everyone is divided up into teams of four with two boys and two girls on each team.  This is a fun race, followed afterward by the legendary crazy tights giveaway.  Going to Telstar is a full day affair, with the vans leaving in the morning (probably 8:00ish) and returning late in the afternoon (5:00ish?).  We need to ID the relay teams a few days prior to the race, so if you are unable to attend, you must let both Susan and John know by Wednesday.  Feel free to talk with John about this race over the next couple days at ski camp.
3. Wednesday, January 10 is our next WMC race, this time hosted by us, along with Falmouth.  As this date gets closer, we will be asking for parent volunteers to help out at the race, collecting bibs, helping the timer, etc.  Consider this a heads up to parents that we will need many of you on this afternoon.

Ski Camp 2017-2018

SKI CAMP INFO …

We'll start with the most important piece about ski camp this week - it's going to be COLD, VERY COLD.  With that in mind, all skiers should be sure to pack sufficient gear to stay warm.  That means layers, warm gloves, some kind of buff/scarf to keep your neck warm and an actual warm hat (not just a headband).  If anyone thinks they don't have enough clothes or is missing some critical piece of gear, definitely reach out to John ahead of time and he will help in getting/loaning you what you need.

Also, there are still a couple more things needed re: food.  Can you make a main course dinner, main course breakfast or batch of cookies?  Please see the "Feeding the Team" section below and sign-up on the online spreadsheet.

On to the regular details ...

Camp will take place at the Sugarloaf Touring Center in Carrabassett Valley

• Friday, December 29 - Monday, January 1.

• Lodging is at the Adaptive Outdoor Education Center (AOEC), which is located on the access road to the touring center - https://www.adaptiveoutdooreducationcenter.org

• The adults on this trip will be John Tarling, Sam Kapala, Gina Quinn-Skillings, Lucy Birkett and Jim Ahearne.

• Contact information:  If communication is necessary during camp: Lucy 607-9630, Gina 210-0864, John 807-1919, Jim 671-2046.  You may also connect with Susan at 353-8800.
• We will assess the cost per family after camp once all expenses are known.  Families will be billed at that time. Costs will include food, lodging, trail passes and gas.

Pre-Camp:

All skiers should prepare their skis prior to camp.

Classic skis:

• Clean kick zone

• Sand kick zone lightly with a 100g sand paper or scotchbrite

• Wax tips and tails with green or green&blue glide wax

• Brush

Skate skis

• Clean and wax with same green or green&blue glide wax

• Brush 

Having skis ready will save time. We will add kick wax at Sugarloaf before skiing.  Skiers should take responsibility for their skis, so everyone should bring a cold hard kick wax and glide wax along with scraper and cork.

Please bring only two pairs of skis.  There shouldn't be a need (and we won't have room) for more.

Trail Passes:

We will be purchasing trail passes for all skiers each day.  If you have a season pass to the Sugarloaf Outdoor Center, please let Susan know via email (highschool@mainecoastwaldorf.org) this week.

Feeding the Team:

Chaperones will be preparing meals and feeding the team at our lodging, with pre-trip help from the families. THANK YOU to all who are contributing with this rather large task.  A few meals/items are still needed. Here is the link to the spreadsheet with food info and shopping/cooking help - ***Link to Food Sign-Up***

Since everyone has their own preference for bars/snacks, all skiers should bring their own.  These should be small enough to be stashed in pockets/waistbelts.

Travel details:
The group will be taking two school vans up to Sugarloaf. Departure time is 10:00 am on Friday, December 29, from the high school parking lot at Desert Rd.  Do check the blog Thursday evening, in case for any reason the departure time is adjusted.

We will have lunch upon arrival and prior to heading out to ski, so everyone should wear their ski gear so they will be ready when it's time to ski.

***If you are already at Sugarloaf and will be meeting the team there instead, let Susan know asap.  Even if you think you already told her, please remind her again.

***If you will be staying at Sugarloaf with your family and not riding the van back to Freeport on Monday, let Susan know asap.

Return travel info:

We plan to ski on Monday morning and head home after lunch, unless weather and conditions dictate otherwise. We should know by Sunday evening what the plans are for the return on Monday.  Either way, the kids will be home by dinnertime on Monday and could be home as early as 3:00. Please check the blog on Sunday evening.

Packing List:
*LABEL ALL THE GEAR AND CLOTHES YOU DON'T WANT TO LOSE.

Must have:

• Your own SNACK for the van ride
• Your own LUNCH (or $ to purchase) for the first day

• Sleeping bag + pillow

• Towel
• Snacks for the 4 days (to be stashed in your water bottle belt). Bars are ideal.

• Workout clothes for 4 days for skiing AND running, including multiple sets of base layers (wool or synthetic long underwear)
• Outer layers: warm jacket parka, wind layer jacket, xc ski pants, etc.

• Warm mid-layers:  vest, sweater or fleece

• Multiple pairs of socks

• Hats, gloves, mittens, etc. - you will need WARM gloves

• Neck warmer / buff

• Plan on layers!

• Warm snow boots

• Apres-ski clothes for evenings + indoor shoes or slippers if you want something on your feet inside

• Pajamas

• Toiletries (including sunscreen)

• Headlamp

• Sunglasses

• Classic AND skate skis, poles, boots - packed as compactly as possible.

• Water-bottle holder with a water bottle - ideally the kind that you can wear around your waist that also has a pocket for a snack

• Basic wax equip

     o   Scraper

     o   Cork

     o   Small amounts of cold, hard kick wax and glide wax

Optional:

• Cash for snacks/hot chocolate at the Outdoor Center

• Books, games, etc. - If you have a good group game, please bring it!

*Please leave CANDY at home.

A note about electronics ... 

-       Cell phones/ipods may come on this trip

-       Leave your laptops/ipads at home

-       We ask that the athletes keep electronic use to a minimum. Using them from time to time should not be a problem, but it will be in the purview of chaperones to assign rest time to the gadgets.

Pineland Passes

Happy snow!  Pineland passes for everyone on the team were received late last week and will be given to skiers when we return to school.  Anyone skiing at Pineland before then (and you should get out on this beautiful new snow!) should just go ahead and ski.  If any Pineland folks ask skiers about their pass, you can explain that you have a Maine Coast team pass and will get the card itself next week.  They should be able to look you up if they really need to.

Race suits

Race suits were given to skiers today.

IMPORTANT information re: race suits:

• These suits cost over $150 each, so take good care of yours (see below for care instructions).
• The suits are to be worn for races only, not as an under layer to keep warm or as a practice suit at any time.
• Race suits must be returned at the end of race season.
• If you lose or damage your suit, you are responsible for the cost of replacing it.

Care Instructions:

• Don't pack in your bag up against any velcro
• Wash in cold water
• HANG dry - don't put in the dryer
• NEVER wash with anything velcro

Practice end time

Now that the ski team is going to and from Pineland for practice, they are not arriving back to Desert Rd until 5:00 or slightly later, so parents picking up at Desert Rd after practice need not arrive until 5:00.

Pineland transportation info

Whenever we practice at Pineland, we will transport skiers there in vans and will return skiers back to Desert Rd after practice.  Skiers and parents - anytime a skier will be picked up at Pineland, either the skier or parents should tell Susan by 12:00 of the practice day. 

Things to do

Pineland Pass forms were given to all skiers this past Friday and need to be returned to Susan by this coming Wednesday, December 6.  If you will be getting a family pass to Pineland on your own, be sure to tell Susan.

Also by Wednesday, anyone wishing to purchase a team jacket must tell Susan and provide their size.  We will need to place the order this week.

Practice starts this week!

Practice will begin on Tuesday, November 28 after school at Desert Rd.  John and Sam are both away on Monday, which is why we are waiting until Tuesday to begin.  Everyone should bring running/workout gear.

Upcoming Ski Swaps

Anyone needing new equipment should consider one (or more) of the upcoming ski swaps.  In the next few weeks, ski swaps can be found at:

• Saturday, December 2, 9:00-1:00 - Greely High School
• Sunday December 3rd, 9:00-12:00 - Falmouth Middle School

Our youngest skier

On Wednesday, March 29 at 12:21 pm, Levi Kapala came into the world.  We expect to see him out on the trails in no time!  Heartfelt congratulations to the happy parents - Christina and Sam Kapala 💗

Photos

Sam Kapala has shared a link to photos from the ski season - thanks Sam :)  Enjoy!

https://www.icloud.com/sharedalbum/#B0x5oqs3qNtrWG

Looking ahead - updated

Congrats Class C State Champions! Here's what there is to know about the nordic team for the next week or so.

End of Season Gathering:
Please be sure you're free for our team appreciation night on Tuesday, February 28 at 7:00 in the Community Hall.  This is the evening for our end of season gathering, where we will look back at the season, say many thank-yous, and enjoy dessert.

Photos:
Anyone with photos from this season should share them with Sam (sam.kapala@gmail.com) by Saturday (tomorrow) evening, February 25, so he can include them in the slideshow.

Optional Races:
With states behind us, the regular high school race season is now complete.  Coming up next weekend (Saturday, March 4) is the U16/Eastern High School Qualifier, which is scheduled to take place at Black Mountain in Rumford.  For those that don't know what this is, the qualifier is a "two race in one day format" (usually classic in the morning, skate pursuit in the afternoon) to determine who is eligible to represent Maine in both the U16 festival and the Eastern High School festival.  Each of these festivals is a 3 day/2 night event of skiing and racing.  U16s are for younger skiers (kids born in 2001 or 2002) and EHSs are for high school skiers.  Each state in New England (and nearby) will field a similar team and they all race against each other on the festival weekends.  Note that if you make either of these teams and choose to attend the festival weekend, there is a not insignificant fee to be paid by the skier/family (probably $300 plus NENSA membership).  Click here for a post on mainehighschoolskiing.com re: the qualifier

Anyone is welcome to participate in the qualifier - info will be found on www.mainehighschoolskiing.com over the next few days.  Please note that this is not a MCWS team event, so the registration fee is not covered by your MCWS team fee.  John Tarling has graciously agreed to wax for our skiers participating in the qualifier, so please extend an extra thank you to John for his help.  Good luck to all that elect to ski in this race!  Remember that if you make one (or both) of these teams and intend on participating in the festival weekend(s), you must have a check in hand and be prepared to pay on March 4, the qualifier day.

For those that do make either the U16 or Maine EHS team - those festival weekends are:
U16 - March 10-12 at Titcomb Mt, Farmington, ME
EHS - March 17-19 at Mountain Top, Chittenden, VT

If you do plan on skiing in the qualifier, please let Susan know early this week, as we may do a group registration (TBD). 
New info posted today on mainehighschoolskiing.com shows a link to an online registration form, so we will not be doing a group registration.  All skiers participating in the qualifier will need to submit their own registration.

Practices:
Since the regular high school season is over, there will not be any more official after school practices at Pineland.  Since we still have snow, skiers are welcome to stay at Pineland and ski on their own (passes are still good), you will just need to find your own rides home from Pineland at the end of the day.

It's possible that John may come out to ski a couple afternoons a week.  If/when this happens, Susan will let let kids know at school and/or post on the blog.  If John does this, he will be volunteering his time because he is really nice, so be sure to thank him :)

Uniforms:
Everyone should return their CLEAN uniform to Susan this week.  Kids skiing in the qualifier next weekend may keep their uniforms until after that race.

Friday

All team members should have their team jackets with them on Friday and wear them to the awards and for photos.

A reminder that skiers riding on the van to Waterville should arrive at Desert Rd no later than 7:20 on Friday morning.  We will immediately load the vans and drive away no later than 7:30.

It is hard to pinpoint an exact arrival time back to Desert Rd, but it will most likely be in the 1:45-2:45 timeframe.

Great day today everyone!

Thursday afternoon

As mentioned in the previous post re: States, the vans (and any else that wants to) will be stopping at Portland Pie in Brunswick for a bite to eat on the way back from the races.  Kids should bring $20.  Expected time back to Desert Rd is 6:30ish.  Anyone needing their van riding kids earlier is welcome to collect them at Portland Pie.

Go team!

States Info

~ Updated Sunday 2/19/17 ~

States will be taking place this coming Thursday and Friday, February 23 and 24, at the Quarry Road trails in Waterville.  Directions to the venue can be found here: Directions to Quarry Rd.

Practice During Vacation Week:
See the Practice Tab

Who's Racing at States:

Send pictures to Sam

A reminder to everyone to send any pictures from this season to Sam (sam.kapala@gmail.com), who is putting together a slideshow for our appreciation evening on February 28.  Pictures can be from practice, races, riding in the van, pasta party, waxing, etc.  Thank you!

Chocolate and Skiing

For something to do after the States races, how about combining chocolate and skiing?  Check out the Chocolate Festival taking place in NH on Sunday, February 28!
http://www.mwvskitouring.org/Chocolate-Festival.html

Note from John

The Maine Coast Waldorf HS Ski Team spent this past Saturday competing at the WMC Championships in a one day race series in Fryeburg. The light snow and cold temperatures made for a great day of skiing at Stark's Hill. The Classic Boys race started the day and our boys had a solid start with Tucker winning, Nick in 6th, Eli in 15th and Davis in 17th. For the Girls Classic race Louise and Fiona were solid in 3rd and 11th, also scoring were Wilson in 16th and Ava T in 29th. In the afternoon Skate race the Boys again were lead byTucker a very close second, Nick in 6th, Eli in 14th and Dylan in 18th. The Girls skate race closed the series, Louise again leading the team in 3rd followed by Fiona in 12th, Wilson in 22nd and Ava T in 30th. For the day the Boys were second to a very strong Freeport team and the Girls ended in 4th. We are hopeful the Girls will regroup from illness and be in good form for the upcoming State Class C Championships at Quarry Road in Waterville.

This season has been a challenge as our team is larger than years past. This is a good sign, however the large group requires more attention to ensure everyone gets the proper level of support. We have nine new freshman as well as two guest skiers from Morse High School, and thankfully Sam K is back again this year to help with coaching. We started the year with two plus weeks of dryland training before getting early skiing at Pineland before the Christmas break. This year's ski camp was back at Rangeley, again thanks to the generosity of the Pierce family. The snow came the day the camp started and we had four great days of cold weather skiing.

The WMC race season opened the week after the break with a 5K skate race at Pineland. The season started great with Tucker and Olivia winning their races, Louise and Nick were both in fourth, Eli, Dylan, Fiona and Ava H were the scorers helping the Boys to a first and the Girls a second place finish. The next race up was the popular Telstar Relay Race. The history, the fun, and a deep field make this race a season highlight. This year our first team of Tucker, Nick, Louise and Olivia had a great battle with a strong Gould team, and although we came up a little short, it was a great race with lead changes throughout. We had two teams starting in the A wave, Eli and Fiona joined Morse skiers Jenny and Makail and finished a strong 14th, also our B team of Dylan, Davis,Caitlin and Wilson were second in their race. The second WMC race at Pineland was not held due to no snow.

Our next race was the WMC Relay at Starks Hill. This was a Boys and Girls team race. We tried to even out our teams and had good results as the Boys two teams were 2nd and 3rd and the Girl's were 1st and 6th. The next WMC race at Libby Hill was a skate race in challenging soft new snow. Nick won his first High School race, Olivia won the Girls race and Louise finished in 3rd followed by Caitlin and Fiona, the other scoring girls. Tucker, while taking a needed rest/sick day, still managed a 7th, with Eli and Thomas as the next scorers. The Sassi Classic race at Black Mt is one of the largest High School Races in Maine and Nick, Eli, Dylan and Thomas lead the Boys team. Louise in fifth was our top girl's finisher, Caitlin had a breakout race in 14th and Myla had her first High School race finish. Due to the cancelled WMC race we added the Maranacook Wave race for those who could make this fun unique race with a start for each HS Class. We had great finish results with Tucker, Jenny and Makail winning their class, Olivia was second and Nick 5th, Louise 6th and Caitlin 6th in their respective class. This could be a fun race to add next year. The last regular season WMC race at Stark's was one of the team's best result of the year. Both Boys and Girls teams won their races, Tucker added another win followed by Nick, Eli, and Thomas. Olivia also added another win followed by Louise in 4th, Caitlin continued her strong finishes with a 10th and Fiona a strong 14th.

Our freshman skiers all made great progress and all made it to the starting line this season, this is an achievement they can build on for next year. For the Freshman, Caitlin was outstanding and was among the top four scorers, Adams had a very solid WMC Championships with a 25th and 26th, good for a first year skier, Ava T also had a good WMC with a 29th and 30th. Eliza, Myla, Ethan, Stuart, Aiden and Max all competed in their first WMC Championship races.

With the latest new snow we look forward to another couple weeks of skiing and the Class C State Championships.

Race today

Today's race will be at the Oak Hill section of Pineland.  Boys have individual starts, every 15 seconds, beginning at 3:30.  We don't have an exact time for the girls start, but it will most likely be shortly after the boys finish starting.

Race on Tuesday

There WILL be a race tomorrow (Tuesday).  This is intended to be a fun time, so the format is a little different.  Here are the details:

• SKATE race
• 5K
• At Pineland (will post exact location once we have it)
• Boys start at 3:30
• Skiers will race in reverse seed order, so the fastest skiers will start last

And the most fun of all, everyone should wear Valentine's Day themed attire 💖   There will be prizes for the best costumes!

To be clear - no race suits are necessary or expected.  Wear anything you like, hopefully with a valentine/red/pink theme!

WMC Championships on Saturday at Fryeburg

The races tomorrow ARE ON!

Schedule:
Course for both races is 4.66K
Boys Classic - :15 Intervals, 11:00am
Girls Classic - :15 Intervals, 11:45am

90 minute break (for most finishers) and touch-up grooming

Boys Skate - :15 Intervals, 1:00pm

Preliminary info for Saturday

This Saturday, February 11, the WMC Championship races will take place at Stark's Hill in Fryeburg.

A few things to know about Saturday:

• There will be two races this day, a CLASSIC race at 11:00 followed by a SKATE race at 1:30. These are the boys start times and are approximate for now but will be finalized by Friday.
• We will have vans leaving Desert Rd at 7:30.  Anyone wanting a van ride must contact Susan by Friday at noon.
• Since we will be at Fryeburg from 9:00am until approximately 3:00pm, everyone will be outside for a long time.  The weather forecast for Saturday is mid-teens, so everyone will need to bring enough clothes, move around, etc. to keep warm.
• This is a big race and a fun day, and we hope lots of parents and siblings come out to cheer on the team.  Some teams will undoubtedly have large food spreads, and while we don't plan on that, we could use parent help in a couple areas:

           - Three helpers to be at Fryeburg by 9:00am to help set up the dome tent
           - Someone to provide something warm for the skiers (tea? hot chocolate? soup?).  This would be a nice thing to help keep the skiers warm and sustained throughout the day.
           - If anyone is inspired to help organize some more substantial food (chili, bagels, etc.), please give Sarah Pierce a call (776-4959)
           - A batch of cookies, bag of clementines, etc. is always nice :)
           - If you can help with the tent/tea/etc., please contact Susan.

More detailed info about the races and the schedule for Saturday will be posted in the next day or so.

No race today, yes practice today

Because Gray-New Gloucester (the host of Libby Hill) is closed today, we will not be having a ski race today.  There will be two races on Saturday instead.

There WILL be ski practice at Pineland today.  Bring skate skis.

Update re: this week's WMC Championship races

Here's where we stand on this week's WMC Championship races as of now (Tuesday, 2:50pm) ...

Wednesday's race at Libby Hill in Gray is still on.  This is a SKATE race.  The start time has been changed and it is now scheduled for the boys to start at 3:00pm, girls at 3:45pm.  It is possible that Wednesday's race may be cancelled if ANY of the participating schools end up with a snow day that day.  If this race doesn't happen Wednesday, it will happen on Saturday.  See next paragraph.

FYI - We will be driving away from Pineland on Wednesday at 1:20pm.

Saturday there is a CLASSIC race at Fryeburg, with the boys starting at 11:00am.  If Wednesday's race doesn't happen, then we will have two races on Saturday, a CLASSIC race and a SKATE race, with the classic race taking place first.  Time of these races TBD.  If we have two races on Saturday, the second race will not be a pursuit.

Reminder that we provide transportation TO the Wednesday race but, since it is close by, we expect parents to bring their skiers home from the race.  Let Susan know asap if you need help figuring out transportation.

Winter sports evening

A date has been set for the end of ski season appreciation evening - Tuesday, February 28 at 7:00pm in Merriconeag Hall on the Freeport campus.  More info will follow as the date approaches.  For now, please put this on your calendar.

Race schedule update

Check for updated info on the Race Schedule tab.

Wednesday race in Fryeburg

We plan on driving away from the high school for Fryeburg AT 12:15 on Wednesday, which means all skiers will need to eat lunch in the vans.  They can either bring lunch or buy lunch at the Market at break.

Return from Fryeburg:
It's always difficult to pinpoint the exact time we will depart from a race, but our best guess is that we will return to Desert Rd from Fryeburg around 6:15-6:30.  Kids can call from the road once we're underway.

Ski prep for Wednesday's classic race

Skiers that raced in the Sassi race should leave their race skis as is until further notice - don't clean them yet.  Depending on conditions, it may end up that you don't need to rewax for this Wednesday's race.  More info will be posted as we have it.

Sassi Race Info

The Sassi race is this Saturday, January 28.  Here's what's what ...

Transportation:

• Vans will be leaving Desert Rd at 7:15 AM, so skiers should arrive by 7:05.  Anyone wanting a ride on a van MUST let Susan know by noon on Friday.  If you don't request a ride on the van, don't count on a seat on the van.
• The vans will return to Desert Rd after the race, probably arriving around 5:00-5:30ish.  Kids can call from the van.
• Van riders should bring just the skis they will use today, as space for skis may be tight.

Races:

This is CLASSIC race.

Today's race IS ON

We ARE racing at Libby Hill in Gray today!  Boys start at 3:30, girls to follow.

Directions to the Trail Head (50 Libby Hill Road, Gray, Maine)
Libby Hill Trails start behind the Gray New Gloucester Middle School. The Middle School is located on Libby Hill Road. To find the school, proceed to Gray Maine (Exit 63 Maine Turnpike). In the center of town take Route 26 north for approximately 1.4 miles or alternatively take the new bypass

Sassi Race - Saturday, January 28

The Sassi race is this coming Saturday, January 28.  This is a classic race, very professionally run, and has a lot of skiers from all over the state.  We hope everyone will be able to attend.  In order to get an accurate start list, we need to hear from every skier BY WEDNESDAY (tomorrow) MORNING about their Saturday plans.  Be sure and check in with Susan first thing tomorrow.

States info

In previous years, the states races (over February vacation) have taken place at far away venues, sometimes even far up north in Fort Kent or Presque Isle.  This year states is taking place at Quarry Road in Waterville, just an hour away from Freeport.  Because it's such an important event and so much fun for the entire team to go away together, we hoped to find a place to settle for a couple days for the states races, ideally close to the venue.  Unfortunately the closest place we could find was still 50 minutes from the race venue, meaning that we would be going through the heroic effort of mobilizing the team, gear, food, etc. and wouldn't really be saving any travel time.  Therefore the determination has been made to head up to Waterville on race days for day trips only (Thursday and Friday, February 23 and 24).  John shared this information with the team on Friday afternoon.

We still hope to make the days surrounding the states races a festive time and ask for skiers/families help with arranging team dinners, ski movies, sleepovers, etc. - whatever seems inclusive and fun.  We will talk more about this over the coming weeks, but wanted to get the word out now that states will be day trips to the races plus evening activities close to home.

UPDATE - Maranacook Waves

~ Updated Friday, January 20 ~

We are sending a crew to the Maranacook Waves this Saturday.  Preliminary info is:

Date: Saturday, January 21, 2017

Location:

Info on MLK day race at Stark's Hill in Fryeburg

Hi all,

We have races coming up on Monday, January 16 at Stark's Hill in Fryeburg.  Here's what there is to know:

Transportation:

• Vans will be leaving Desert Rd at 8:15 AM.  Anyone wanting a ride on a van MUST contact Susan by Sunday morning at 9:00 AM.  If you don't request a ride on the van, don't count on a seat on the van.
• The vans will return to Desert Rd after the race, probably arriving around 3:30-4:00ish.  Kids

Help needed at Wednesday's race

Parents - Since we are again co-hosting Wednesday's race, we will need a number of parent helpers.  Please let me know if that will be you!

This week's race

The race this Wednesday has been changed to SKATE.

It will be the same course as last week (River Loop) with a mass start in the same location as last week (in the stadium across from the Outdoor Center).

Stay tuned for wax info and any additional changes necessitated by weather.

No Hornet Classic on Saturday

This coming weekend, we have a WMC race on Monday.  Because that seems like enough, we have decided to NOT go to the Hornet Classic on Saturday.

This week's info ...

A couple things to know about this week.

1.  It is quite possible that due to weather and snow conditions, this week's Wednesday race may change to SKATE.  Check back here in the next couple days for a final determination.

2.  Next Saturday, January 14, there are a couple nordic races - the Hornet Classic in Turner and an Eastern Cup race at Quarry Road in Waterville.  None of these races are mandatory for our team.  Anyone participating in the Eastern Cup is doing so on their own, and we are determining if there is enough interest in our team members to take a group to the Hornet Classic.  Everyone should come to practice on Monday (tomorrow) prepared to tell John if they will ski in the Hornet Classic (and yes, this is a classic race) on Saturday if we do, in fact, decide to go.  If for some reason you won't be at practice, be sure to tell Susan your Saturday plans before you leave for the day on Monday.

Telstar Relays Info

Wax info is posted on the Wax Info tab.

Where:
Telstar Regional High School
284 Walkers Mill Rd (this is Route 26)
Bethel

When:

Telstar Relays - Saturday, January 7

Telstar Relays are this Saturday at Telstar Regional High School in Bethel.  Race times are:

11:00 - Wave A

12:00 - Wave B

1:00 - Individuals

We need to hear from everyone on the team in the next couple days about three things regarding this race:

By Thursday (tomorrow) morning:

Race IS on

Today's race IS ON.  Boys set off at 3:30, girls at 3:40.  Race start/finish is at the stadium area across from the Outdoor Center and The Market.  Because the snow is so soft, spectators are asked to stay off the snow unless they are on skis or snowshoes.  We think there will be a small spectating area for foot traffic by the start/finish area, otherwise please stay off the trails if you are not on skis or snowshoes.

Wednesday's race

Wax info for tomorrow's race is now posted on the Wax Info tab.

We are planning for a mass start skate race on the River Loop at Pineland, to begin and end in the stadium area across from the Outdoor Center.  Boys start at 3:30 with girls to follow.

Be sure to keep checking the blog for any updated info about this race, as tonight's expected rain may require some adjustments to the plan.

Looking ahead to this week

This coming Wednesday, January 4, we have a race scheduled at Pineland.  Exact details of race location will be determined on Tuesday, but a few things to know for now are:

• We are co-hosting this race with Freeport.  That means we need 3-4 parents to help out at the race.  Jobs will be taking bibs, helping the timer, etc.  Please let Susan know if you can be counted on to help at the race.  You will need to be there by 3:15.

• After local races (such as this week's race on Wednesday), we do NOT provide rides back to Desert Rd after the race.  Parents will hopefully be coming to the race and get their skier after the race or make other arrangements for transportation home.  If you are in a real pinch, let Susan know by Wednesday morning if you need help.

• Saturday we will be heading to Bethel for the Telstar Relays, a fun race where most skiers are on a relay team of two boys and two girls, and some skiers will be in an individual race.  Since this is not a WMC race, it is not mandatory, but we do hope most of our skiers will attend.  If you (your skier) will not be attending this race, let Susan know asap, so we won't place you on a relay team.

• A reminder that when we do have weekend races to farther away venues (like this Saturday in Bethel), skiers MUST tell Susan if they need a ride on the van.  Do not count on a ride if you haven't confirmed it.

Look for more specific race info tomorrow and hoping we see lots of parents at the race!

UPDATED - Return from ski camp

Skiers left Rangeley at 2:00, which means they should arrive at Desert Rd 4:15-4:30.