Ski Racing Kids!

Windham could pretty much care less about the revenue from a race, Coach.  They have very deep pockets.  They do seem to pride themselves on their race program though.

Is Windham's race program a for profit owned by the Mt or is it a 501c charitable foundation like Nysef?

Those like Nysef rely on fees from big races to fund thier programs and keep costs down for the participant families.  Orda with its charter to support Olympic sports does a great job of working with Nysef.

Goreskimom wrote

And they are hosting U14 super g this weekend.

Windham cancelled their Super G for this weekend

The usual ski racing experience for parents is freezing your butt off standing on the side of a hill.  West Mt. is a great venue to watch races by comparison.  The restaurant windows look directly out on the race trail so you can see every gate and get the and get times and results with the aid of ussa live timing while you eat lunch and have drinks.  I look forward to more SL at West and it looks like a nice GS hill too.

They are having a FIS SL next week from the start at the top of the Wall.

Hi. Mt daughter is a 1st year U14 and we are thinking about giving her some extra opportunities next year.  Academies?Other programs? Any thoughts or experiences would be appreciated.  Thanks

Really need to back into the question. What are the long terms goals in college?  An Engineering or similar major? Or liberal arts?  If Engineering for example, she/he will not have time for training or much travel, and therefore focus on education and a school with a solid DIII program.  Having fun yet still competitive.

If not so much focused on college or a lesser degree, and is one of the top kids in NYS, then go to VT or NH.  Such as GMVS.   Although $40k plus for 4 years, or $160k plus for an academy really offsets the first item (college).  

Back to high school - a solid USSA program with weekends, Fridays, vacations, holidays, a couple camps in CO or other per year, 80 days on snow including high school racing works well if they can handle it with coursework.

Before high school - just be careful, don't get sucked into it all.  Seen too many kids chase FIS programs and academies and international camps for weeks at a time and by the time they are 18 are so burned out they either don't ski, or ski at a D1 school just because they can, are very good at racing, but not having fun nor going to classes nor earn a meaningful degree in today's market.

To summarize, be sure she is having fun, do some camps around the state/east, spend the holidays on the hill, and don't be "that parent" who is racing vicariously through their child.   I have even seen dads screaming at their kids on the NASTAR course.  The "no lunch" threats do happen; I have seen it.  

Follow the child's lead. If they get tied up in a race program they will have little time to ski with family. Race programs can teach a kid how to loose gracefully, pick themselves up and try again. As they progress to U16 or U18 be prepared for injury, blown knee, broken bone or concussion - you have to wrap your head around them getting injured as there is a pretty good chance they will. High school racing is a little less intense.

As far as extra opportunities, the fall ski camps out west are usually the most bang for the buck. However they better be a self motivated student or they will get hopelessly behind in school and make sure the school will work with them. I can't say about academies but they I would be worried about loosing to much family time and lack of academic standards. The likelihood that a kid will get a free ride to college for skiing is very very slim, about as high as a midget basketball player.

My advice would be to let the kid set the goals, check reasonableness and then support as much as financially reasonable and hold very high academic standards so that maybe they will get an academic scholarship to help offset the cost of ski racing.

My granddaughter is a racer, not a point chaser - her college aspirations are a fun club racing team at a good school. She goes to ski camps all over because her grades allow it but she has no interest in an academy because they do not have the level of non skiing activities that she also pursues.

Better to keep them well rounded.

Hi HH

My son is also a first year U14.  The Nysef camp in Colorado right after Thanksgiving was a very good jump start to his season so I would highly recommend that.  Nysef's U14 coach Jimbo has 3 of his past kids on the US team and one on the Canadian team so the coaching is as good as it gets.

Nysef also has a winter term where the kids live at the OTC in Lake Placid and work with tutors that work with the schools at home to keep them in place and they train 6 days a week.  its on the NYSEF web site if you are interested.  it doesn't make much sense for local kids so its something we didn't really consider.

We feel that is a bit much for this age but some of the kids in that are doing really in race results.  My son takes every Friday off school to train at WF which he has been doing since 3rd grade and also trains for a 90 mins at night twice a week.  Right now that is pretty much maxing out things and we are careful to watch energy levels and school work to pick spots to skip a session.  We did that today when he seemed tired plus we were not sure we could drive down our driveway before the plow guy came to sand it.  We are seeing some of the pushy parents kids that are over training not have good results this year compared to the past seasons so that is a real concern.

I guess you need to realistically evaluate how much time and money you are willing to put into this.  Is your girl realistically competitive is another consideration that more training is going to tip the difference.  Also need to see how your daughter is willing to give up socially which is a big issue for a girl I think more than a boy.

My son has been very competitive this year as a 1st year frequently being the top 03 birth year finisher at races and he is a lock to go to U14 champs most likely in the first seed.  We plan to do the same program next year and then he likely will go to Northwood as a day student.  A boarding student at an academy is cost wise about the same as a year of college which for us would be out of the question but we live where its workable.

Send me an email with your cell and we can try to meet and have a beer at Bristol during U14 Champs.

Thanks all.  Very informative

Question RE Northwood - I've heard it is better to board, even if you're relatively local, to get the whole experience of living there etc.  Ran into a couple of people from the LP/SL area who boarded their kids. Thoughts?

if you got the cash I guess go for it but I don't know of any locals that have done it.  Do you have a fracking oil well in your back yard?  In that case you can buy me a beer at Bristol.

I don't think you get a locals discount on the boarding

For the stand point of if you are not a local and willing to pay for boarding then you can also open up your universe of academies you would consider.  They all have pros and cons with some better academics and others maybe better skiing. The VT ones have a bit less travel to races I would think as they are more centrally located.  Northwood has an excellent academic tradition so that is a key consideration for us.  I hear very good things about Holderness on both fronts and they train at Cannon where USSA is building a center of excellence on the old Mittersill ski area section which may be a huge plus.  My assumption is that is where all the U16 and U19 eastern champs are going to be in a year or so.

HAHA

Working on the well

We have relatives in Ticonderoga so thought about boarding her at NWS but would still have family relatively close which would make us comfortable

GMVS at Sugarbush is probably closer to Tico than LP is

Coach, his username is hunthollowmtn1, which I believe is a private club.  I wouldn't think money would be an issue for anyone who is a member of a private ski area.

Nice work Coach.  


My son is #2 in PARA, making states next weekend.    Appears he is more of a GS than SL at this time.   He  has a first in SL but some of the heavier kids seem to be inching him out..   I would love to run that Super G course...looks so fun...and the snow appears to be snow and not ice.     I don't think I could ski the injected slopes.    

snoloco wrote

Coach, his username is hunthollowmtn1, which I believe is a private club.  I wouldn't think money would be an issue for anyone who is a member of a private ski area.

Sno, commenting on this seems a bit forward, to me.

Harvey wrote

snoloco wrote

Coach, his username is hunthollowmtn1, which I believe is a private club.  I wouldn't think money would be an issue for anyone who is a member of a private ski area.

Sno, commenting on this seems a bit forward, to me.

So what I said was bad, while the constant posts about how "sno is spending daddy's money" are fine?

All I was saying is that I wouldn't expect cost to be a concern to the OP.  Maybe I said it in a bad way, and I should have said it the more simple way first.

Wasn't really commenting on anything but the post above.

IMO one difference is you have voluntarily shared that information. I think once you said that the recession in 2008 really didn't affect your family at all.  That's a really enviable position to be in financially.

Another difference is you have hundreds of posts here, this is not your first day.  To your credit you don't seem to be offended by much.

To me it feels like an awkward way to greet a new member.

Harvey wrote

IMO one difference is you have voluntarily shared that information. I think once you said that the recession in 2008 really didn't affect your family at all.  That's a really enviable position to be in financially.

Can't believe you still remember that one post out of almost 1,900.  I think it was in one of my snowmaking, grooming, high speed lifts "discussions".  

Being a member of a private ski area and being able to afford boarding school is also an enviable position to be in.

Out of curiosity I tried to see what it cost to join Hunt Hollow but there is no pricing on the web site.  In that part of the state I can't imagine it's anything too crazy.

I've heard they have a decent race program

I:)skiing wrote

Nice work Coach.  


My son is #2 in PARA, making states next weekend.    Appears he is more of a GS than SL at this time.   He  has a first in SL but some of the heavier kids seem to be inching him out..   I would love to run that Super G course...looks so fun...and the snow appears to be snow and not ice.     I don't think I could ski the injected slopes.

He is a U12 I recall right?  Headed to Pische then?