Posted: 2/21/07
Local youth nordic skiers enjoy winter and receive local corporate support
 The Wild River Youth Nordic Ski Club, front row (l to r): Hannah Gillette, Peter Grund; second row; Whitney Gillette, Greta Dupslaf, Eli Dupslaf, Thomas Wurdemann, Nick Hillestad, Ryan Hillestad; third row: Group Leader John Grund, Cammie Kelly, Rachel Holle, Grace Wurdemann. Not pictured: Bryza Paulson, Jesse Paulson, Laura Backus, Amy Backus, Eli Gibbons, Zach Gibbons, Ben Wilson, Spencer Kotys, Bonnie Haslach, Mila Mix, Annalise Scheibe. |
From John Grund
The Wild River Youth Nordic Ski Club currently has 22 youths involved in cross country skiing. The group meets on Saturdays through February at the Wild River State Park.
The weather has been the biggest problem this year with the lack of snow being the biggest challenge. This is also the first year in existence for our club. The Wild River Youth Nordic Ski Club is a member club of the Minnesota Youth Ski League.
The Minnesota Youth Ski League is a state-wide organization of volunteers who bring the joy of cross country skiing to youths, ages 4-14.
Currently, there are 18 clubs affiliated with the Minnesota Youth Ski League.
As a group leader, I have been fortunate to have six local residents with excellent cross country skiing backgrounds step up and volunteer their time coaching the youth the skills of Nordic skiing. Coaches for the club are; Anna Pouliot, Pam Kotys, Bridget Duoos, Aaron Gibbons, Jessica Cypull and Abby Bateman.
In the final analysis of our first year as a club, I am pleased at the local interest shown in Nordic skiing. I am also pleased with the number of youth who signed up.
All six coaches are invaluable to making this first year for the club a successful one. Each year we hope to build to our base of skiers and continue to spread the joy of Nordic skiing to youth in the North Branch area.
This past weekend the club moved from its regular meeting spot of Wild River State Park and traveled to Mora, to take place in the Miniloppet. The Miniloppet is a youth ski race that is held annually as part of the Vasaloppet weekend in Mora.
The youth who participated did an awesome job completing either the 1.5 Kilometer or a 4 Kilometer race. All youth were awarded a finisher medal and were given treats of hot chocolate, cookies, and healthy snacks.
The Wild River Youth Nordic Ski Club meets for a total of eight sessions from January through February. It's a lot of fun for the youths. Parents can ski with their youths during the ski sessions, or get some skiing in by themselves. We encourage parents to participate in someway to help make the club function more successfully. Some parents are coaches and others signed up to bring a snack for the whole group when we meet each Saturday. Parent involvement is important to our success as a club.
The benefits of learning how and regularly participating in Nordic skiing are numerous. Nordic skiing is an excellent lifetime sport. Once you learn how, you can do it throughout your lifetime. From a health perspective, Nordic skiing provides you with a good cardio respiratory workout. Nordic Skiing also is a great way to get outside and enjoy our Minnesota winters.
If you would like to sign up your son or daughter (or volunteer as a coach) for the next Nordic ski season of 2008, the club has a Web site with important dates and information posted where you can learn more about the Wild River Youth Nordic Ski Club. For more information visit, www.wildriver@mysl.org/.
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