Thank You!

         Fourteen teenagers, 4 adults on a three day nordic ski camp.  Can you imagine finding a date for the camp, a place, forecasting the weather and organizing food/people/timing/cars/equipment/movies/chores/entertainment/workouts?  The fact of the matter is that Susan, Jennifer, Jason and John did a fantastic job in every category.  We managed to get in a winter hike, two VERY LONG ski workouts (both skate and classic) and a VERY EARLY morning run, fueled by restaurant-grade food.  We would like to thank all of the parents who contributed to the food.  We would also like to thank all four adults who came on the trip for donating their energy and time towards making a detailed and very fun camp for our ski team.  We all had a killer time and we have you to thank for it!

                                                                                 -The Merriconeag Nordic Ski Team

Coming home from Christmas Camp

Greetings all!

You will be glad to hear that all skiers are with us and intact - we haven't left anyone behind.  We are stopping for dinner on the way home today and expect to hit Freeport around 7:00 PM.  See everyone at Desert Rd!

Craftsbury, VT

Christmas Camp

Hi All,

Due to the weather in the next 12-18 hours we will wait till the departure from Desert Rd at 8 am to decide the destination for Wednesday.  If Black Mt is open for Nordic we will go there directly, then continue to NH after skiing.  If Black is not open we will go direct to NH and look for a good hike, Pinkham Notch or Crawford Notch makes sense but we can sort this out en route.  We can also check the Alpine hills near North Conway/Mt.Washington Valley to see if we can do a late afternoon ski after the lifts close. Thursday we may have to travel to ski, I think Craftsbury in VT could work as they have a solid man made track.  We could then travel to Rumford, another man made track at Black Mt. on Friday and return from there.  This sounds like lots of driving so if we get the right set up closer to the lodging we could stay put. Please try to remain flexible as we work around the conditions. I am confident we will have a great camp regardless of the conditions, think positive!

Thanks,

John

WEATHER UPDATE...

It will be very cold and windy on Thursday. One site predicts negative 17 with the windchill factor. Bring neckwarmers, dermatone or other skin protector if you have it, and plenty of layers for top and bottom.

See you in the morning!

CHRISTMAS CAMP UPDATE...

Departure: From MWS Desert Rd. parking lot 8 am on Wednesday. Please arrive 10 minutes early to pack cars. (We will take 1 school van, the Neveu's truck, and 1 Subaru.)

Wear ski gear just in case we get lucky enough to be able to ski on the way. Have your water bottle, AM snack, and lunch in the car with you and not deep in a duffle bag. Have your skate boots in a dedicated bag, if possible, to expedite the gear-up if we do get to ski on the way.

Gear:

• Check the more complete list, posted on the blog on Friday, December 23 (titled Christmas Camp Update).
• You won't need roller skis.

• Your skis should be ready to ski on other than needing kick wax.

• If you have them, please bring your own kick wax and cork for classic skiing. This will save a lot of time.

• Bring your Pineland Pass. If we ski at Black Mtn. it will come in handy - free skiing!

• Don't forget to bring some good boots for a walk/hike in the woods.

• It will be mild and then VERY COLD on Thursday. Pack appropriately.

• Please pack your gear efficiently. You may be holding it on your lap!

• Leave your phones, laptops, electronic games, etc. at home. iPods are welcome.

• Please remember to bring your contribution towards meals at the camp.

Return: We'll post an ETA on the blog by mid-day Friday. If all goes well we'll ski until dark and return home after dinner.

Contact Info:

We do have wi-fi at the house, so feel free to email if you need to get in touch. If it is an emergency, call one of the numbers below. We have each skier's emergency contact and health information form. If you have a new cell phone number you would like us to have, let one of the chaperones know.

• Jen: 208-9822

• Susan: 749-8680

• Jason : 400-9290 (don't leave a message)

• John: 807-1919

Please check the blog Tuesday night and one last time before you leave in Wednesday AM.

Monday Practice

Hi,

Lets meet for practice on Monday 12/26 at Val Halla Golf Course in Cumberland at 10:30, bring skate skis.  I skied there today and it was good early season conditions, very thin cover but it works.

Thanks,

John T

Local Skiing

I thought I would report on what I found for local skiing. I skied on the Val Hala golf course and it was good for skate skiing. There is only about an inch of snow (maybe more by now) but that is enough as long as the temperature stays low.  The fairways were very good, not the pathways and rough.  All in all worth checking out.


Have a great Christmas everyone.

John T