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| While we are hoping to run more trips, the reality is that this coming weekend may be our last. It will be sunny and warm, so come celebrate the season in the slush with your ski friends. Saturday we will be at Scenic Caves and will hold our annual wine and cheese in the log cabin before we leave (departure time remains the same, we will just end our ski day a bit early). There are lessons and guided snowshoeing. The Sunday crew (if enough register) will be headed to Hardwood for one last glorious day in the sun. Register by Wednesday, Feb. 28 at 6pm. March can be unpredictable and if we magically get more snow, you know we will be on it and will try to run more trips! But as much as it pains me, the forecast is just not looking favourable at the moment. So get it in while you can! Heather, Director, XC Skiing and Snowshoeing |
Cross-Country finally has snow!
It was a long, frustrating wait, but we are back in business! Many of our ski areas got walloped with snow this past Sunday. It really does take just one good day of snow squalls. We ran our first trip to the snow globe that was Scenic Caves last Sunday and we are preparing for many more.
January 20 we are headed to Highlands Nordic and January 21 we are headed to Hardwood Ski and Bike. Both should have great conditions as it’s supposed to be a cold week.
Register for trips here: https://hpsc.ca/Cross-Country-Day-Trips-Registration. We are still opening trips on a week by week basis, be we should be able to move to our normal two-week registration window at some point soon.
If trips are full (people are keen to ski!), put your name on the waitlist. If enough people want to go, we can check with the resorts to see if we can bring two buses. Or, if there are cancellations, you could get moved on the trip. As I have mentioned, we know people like to ski Saturdays, but we can’t accommodate everyone who prefers that. Sunday often doesn’t fill up as quickly.
Let’s get out and enjoy winter!!!
Reminder: Cross-Country is not permitting drive ups
Another reminder that cross-country is not permitting drive ups for lessons this year. We simply do not have the instructor capacity to accommodate it. This likely will be the case for the next few years, as it takes time to find and train new instructors.
If you signed up specifically to drive up for XC lessons, please email membership@hpsc.ca and we can refund your membership. You may still drive up for alpine lessons (and need to be a member for that). Thanks for your understanding.
Cross-Country Ski School special programming is back
New to cross-country skiing? Our classic beginners series might be for you. Join instructor Vera (or Liora, depending on demand) for three consecutive weeks of beginner classes designed for new skiers. You will have the same instructor and classmates and learn to get moving on your skis. You must be available all three dates (January 7, 14, 21) and email crosscountry@hpsc.ca to register. If you can’t join the series, you can participate in our regular beginner lessons.
We are also offering special hill clinics that will give you more practice time than in a regular lesson. Our beginner hill clinic on January 20 will teach you to get up and down hills safely. For more advanced skiers who want to play around going faster (step turns anyone?), we are offering an intermediate/advanced hill clinic on February 4 (TBD as to whether it’s classic or skate). Sign up online during trip registration.
Also for more intermediate/advanced skiers, we are offering a classic trail handling clinic on February 24. Learn how to transition between techniques on the trail to ski smarter and faster. You will need some facility with all the main techniques – diagonal stride, double poling, one step double pole in particular. Sign up online during trip registration.
And for those who just want to get tips for a specific technique, we are offering two dates of skate and classic tips and tricks (February 10 & 24). Book 15-20 minutes with an instructor to work something specific – whatever you want! Sign up online during trip registration.
Please note that on the days we offer intermediate + clinics, we will not be offering any other intermediate/advanced lessons. We may schedule more clinics for later in the season as we assess how its going. If there is something in particular you would like a clinic on, let us know at crosscountry@hpsc.ca.
Cross-country ski school special programming is back
| New to cross-country skiing? Our classic beginners series might be for you. Join instructor Vera (or Liora, depending on demand) for three consecutive weeks of beginner classes designed for new skiers. You will have the same instructor and classmates and learn to get moving on your skis. You must be available all three dates (January 7, 14, 21) and email crosscountry@hpsc.ca to register. If you can’t join the series, you can participate in our regular beginner lessons. We are also offering special hill clinics that will give you more practice time than in a regular lesson. Our beginner hill clinic on January 20 will teach you to get up and down hills safely. For more advanced skiers who want to play around going faster (step turns anyone?), we are offering an intermediate/advanced hill clinic on February 4 (TBD as to whether it’s classic or skate). Sign up online during trip registration. Also for more intermediate/advanced skiers, we are offering a classic trail handling clinic on February 24. Learn how to transition between techniques on the trail to ski smarter and faster. You will need some facility with all the main techniques – diagonal stride, double poling, one step double pole in particular. Sign up online during trip registration. And for those who just want to get tips for a specific technique, we are offering two dates of skate and classic tips and tricks (February 10 & 24). Book 15-20 minutes with an instructor to work something specific – whatever you want! Sign up online during trip registration.Please note that on the days we offer intermediate + clinics, we will not be offering any other intermediate/advanced lessons. We may schedule more clinics for later in the season as we assess how its going. If there is something in particular you would like a clinic on, let us know at crosscountry@hpsc.ca.  |
Thanks for a Great Season!
Thank you to everyone who participated in our cross-country day trips this year. While winter got off to a very sluggish start, we ran 18 trips.
A huge thank you to all our volunteers who make it happen:
- Monica Sauer and Theo Kempe – who make sure that all the bus captains, DODs and guides have all the paperwork and info they need on every trip. Monica also volunteers on our long trips committee, organizing the long weekend bus trips.
- Paul Moser – who does all the trip financial reconciliations and audits.
- David Cloutier – who orders our buses every week.
- Jean-Emile Paraiso and Gayatri Bharadwaj – who create all of our trip modules on the website.
- Howard Gibson – who schedules all our bus captains.
- Linda Lavalee – who runs our new member ambassador program.
- All the bus captains – Monica Sauer, Marjanne Lyn, Carol Collinson, Howard Gibson, Jennifer Meyer, and Claire Patregion. Our thoughts are with Paul Dover, who we hope is well enough to rejoin the group next year.
- Jeff Stainsby – who sets the schedule and does all the post-season administrative work for ski school.
- All of our instructors who taught this season – Jean-Emile Paraiso, Regina Eiras, George Lorenz, Suzanne Denis, Owen Rogers, Nicole Pepper, Vera Polyakova, Adrian Butscher, Liora Freedman, Janine Jorgenson, Elaine Rennet, Andrew Mahoney, Ron Duffy, and Carine Wood.
- Our snowshoe guides – Melain Cheung, Cynthia Johnson, Cynthia Wheatley, and Queena Kwok (who stepped in late in the season and will be leading next year!).
- And the finance team, including Clark Seadon and Lisa Philpott, who ably and quickly dealt with our payment issues this season. Also, thanks to Hilary Childs, Richard Kinread, Steve Jonjev, Judy Chen, and Michele Williamson. There were a lot of refunds this year, due to the weather and the IT issues, and they did a great job.
After we wrap up the season, we will be taking a well-deserved break over the summer. We will ramp back up in late summer, but the schedule won’t be posted until November. You can expect the same pattern – the season will begin December 30 and then we will have trips every Saturday and Sunday thereafter until the snow disappears at some point in March. Registrations for the first few trips likely will open around December 18. Nothing for you to do before then except renew your membership and get in ski shape!
Have a wonderful summer!
Heather Steel
Director of Cross-Country Skiing and Snowshoeing
Masking on the Bus
| Unfortunately, COVID and other respiratory illnesses are clearly still with us. While this will not deter our plans for a more normal ski season, it still must be acknowledged. The bus is the one indoor area that the club has full control over. As such, we made the decision and communicated numerous times during the fall, that we are leaving the mask mandate on the bus in place for this year. This requirement is also stated on all trip descriptions. Given the unpredictability of case counts, we did not want to have to reimpose masks if public health rules reverted back. Many of you have received every COVID shot available to you; however, there are others who have not. While it was extremely important last season, requiring proof of vaccination was a huge undertaking for a volunteer club. Given that there is currently no recognized number of what is considered as the effective vaccination level and the proportion with booster shots is not as high as the initial shots, retaining masks on the bus is the most basic level of protection we could insist on. We apologize for any inconvenience, but this is the club policy for the current season. Those who contravene the policy may face club disciplinary action. Justin Graham President, High Park Ski Club |
Cross-Country Update – Nov. 20, 2022
There is snow on the ground! Some of the resorts up north have opened limited trails. There is no track set yet – and it is definitely rough rock skiing – but it is setting up for hopefully some nice December skiing, which we didn’t have at all last year. Hopefully all this bodes well for great conditions through our season! A few updates as we get closer:
Schedule: We are close to posting the schedule. The resorts are confirmed and we are just scheduling the guided snowshoeing. Stay tuned! It will be posted here by the end of the month. Registration will not open until two weeks prior to the trips. The schedule will indicate when registration for each trip opens.
HPSC XC 101: If you are a new member, join us Dec. 14 for a virtual session to learn all about our policies, procedures, what to expect on trips etc. It will be led by HPSC’s XC director, Heather Steel. Register here. Registration is open until Dec. 13 and is limited to 100 people.
Equipment: A hold over from the pandemic, rentals at a few of the resorts (Hardwood, Horseshoe) are a bit more complicated than in the past (as they require you to pay in advance online, which is fine, but if you don’t show up, you may have difficulty getting your money back). If you are joining us for snowshoeing, we recommend getting a pair of your own snowshoes. They are not expensive and will pay for themselves fairly quickly (and you will avoid all the hassles of renting). MEC has affordable ones, or you can buy online as you don’t need to be fit for them in the same way as skis. Ski gear is more expensive, but if you love it and plan on doing it ~5 times/year, a beginner package will pay for itself over 2-3 seasons (depending on what you get). The more you ski, the more it’s worth it. Of course, if you are new to the sport, it does make sense to rent to see if you actually like it. In Toronto, the best place to visit for equipment is Velotique. You can also visit the pro shops at Hardwood and Highlands. While you can buy gear at other locations (MEC etc.). we feel these three places have the most knowledge about fitting people on skis (which is important to a good ski experience). We have more information on the blog on the types of ski gear and snowshoes .
I’m a new XC member – where can I find information?
Welcome! We’re happy to have you in the club and looking forward to skiing and/or snowshoeing with you this season. We’re planning a relatively normal season, pending procedures at the resorts (which will not be clear until later).
We know that being a new member comes with a lot of questions – and we’ve got you covered. Below find website and blog links where you should find all the information you need. The cross-country pages are kept updated; if the information isn’t yet there, we don’t yet know it! Information is updated as it becomes available. Given the ongoing COVID situation, it is taking time to confirm information with the resorts.
You should also be contacted by a HPSC ambassador – sometime this fall – who can answer your questions. We will also be holding a new member info virtual session in November.
We would appreciate it if you would take the time to see if your question is answered in the following resources before reaching out. We’re busy planning the season (and with our day jobs!). But if you can’t find the answer online, we are happy to help.
The most detailed information (on day trips and lessons) can be found on our FAQ page: https://hpsc.ca/Cross-Country-FAQ
Here is a XC ski/snowshoe 101 resource sheet I created last year, with ski tips (since we weren’t able to offer trips and lessons yet): https://blog.hpsc.ca/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Cross-Country-Skiing-101-Resource-Sheet.pdf
The schedule will be posted when ready (later November) here: https://hpsc.ca/Cross-Country-Day-Trips-Registration
Curious about what happens on a day trip? This was written in 2019, but should be largely applicable, with maybe a few tweaks, this year. But, it will give you an idea: https://blog.hpsc.ca/2019/11/what-to-expect-on-a-xc-day-trip/
While no one can give you a definitive answer, here is some advice how to choose between classic and skate skiing: https://blog.hpsc.ca/2020/10/classic-vs-skate-whats-the-difference-and-what-do-i-choose/
Looking for ski gear? This is my most comprehensive advice for what and where to buy: https://blog.hpsc.ca/2019/10/gear-talk-skis-poles-boots-edition/
Questions about waxing those new skis? Check out this: https://blog.hpsc.ca/2019/11/gear-talk-wait-what-i-need-to-wax-waxless-skis/
Looking for snowshoe gear? This is my most comprehensive advice for what and where to buy: https://blog.hpsc.ca/2019/10/gear-talk-snowshoe-edition/
Wondering what to wear when skiing and snowshoeing? Look no further than here: https://blog.hpsc.ca/2019/11/gear-talk-clothing-edition/
Want to ski in the city? It’s possible when we have enough snow! https://blog.hpsc.ca/2021/02/yes-you-can-ski-in-high-park-or-any-other-park/
A unique opportunity to try out roller skiing!
| Looking for a way to get in shape for ski season or work on your technique in the off-season? Roller skiing is cross-country ski specific dryland training that will achieve both goals! It’s also a fun sport in its own right.In conjunction with Ski Fit, HPSC is offering members a chance to try it out in High Park. In small groups (we have four pairs of roller skis), we will cover safety, the basic manoeuvres, how to slow and stop, how to cross uneven pavement, and point out hazards and how to avoid them. We will also cover equipment and where to get it and good places in the city you could ski. Lesson options: October 1, 9:30 – 10:15 am October 8, 9:30 – 10:15 am October 22, 9:30 -10:15 am Location: High Park. Meet at the Grenadier Cafe parking lot. Equipment: Bike helmet (mandatory) Ski boots (mandatory – see below under booking) Gloves (any kind, mandatory) Optional, but highly recommended: knee and elbow pads. Spills on concrete can happen leading to scrapes. But we will be doing slow manoeuvres on flat pavement. To book your spot: email crosscountry@hpsc.ca with the date you are interested and the type of ski boots you will bring (skate NNN, classic NNN or classic/skate SNS with the older Profil bindings that have one metal bar. If you have SNS bindings with two bars, we don’t have skis for you). If you have your own roller skis, you are welcome to attend. Heather will confirm your participation prior to the first session. Heather SteelDirector, Cross-Country Skiing and Snowshoeing crosscountry@hpsc.ca |