Looking back to last year when we were waiting for snow in order to start our season of activities, this year we have been much luckier. This past weekend we were able to run our first day trips of the season to both Mount St. Louis and Blue Mountain. Members also returned from the first charter trip to Panorama, and this coming weekend our downhill instructors are off to Mont Tremblant for their annual training weekend.
On the cross-country front, many of the resorts are already operating and our first trips are open for registrations and have filled quickly – if you would like to go please join the waitlist and if there are enough members we might be able to run a second bus.
As a reminder, we have downhill day trips scheduled for December 28 and 29 so if you want to get out over the holidays please register quickly. January trips will open soon. As a heads up, our annual Double Double day with both morning and afternoon lessons is scheduled for January 11 at Mount St. Louis.
I would also like to thank everyone who attended our First Tracks Holiday Party last Friday at the National Yacht Club. It was a fun evening catching up with so many members. We have more social events planned for the new year, including our special 75th Anniversary Gala next spring, so please keep reading all of the communication from the club.
Please take care over the holidays and stay healthy! See you in the new year!
Now that we’ve got some local snow, the last few spots will start to fill up on the Jasper, Alberta and Lake Placid, NY trips. Please see the last edition of SnoBiz or the HPSC website for a detailed description of these two iconic trips.
We are also looking for one female to share a hotel room at the Killington Grand, and have spots remaining on our Mont Tremblant early and late season trips. The mid-season mid-week trip in February is full. Spots do open up on other trips but only if another member has to cancel. Sign up for the last few open spots on our trips now!
One spot open for a male in a double room for C6 Newfoundland (XC and Downhill). Final payments are due December 3, 2024, so if you are interested register on the waitlist ASAP and you will removed from the waitlist and registered right away.
Skiing and snowshoeing in Newfoundland is amazing; last year they had tons more snow than we did. Plus Newfoundlanders are the friendliest people. Come join us and get “screeched in” and become an honourary Newfoundlander!
This past weekend was a very encouraging sign that this winter will be a snowy one.
This means that our first trips are very likely to run. The first downhill trips will open shortly, while the cross-country trips will open on December 16. Except for the coming weekend, we have downhill day trips scheduled for all of the remaining weekends in December, while the first cross-country and snowshoe day trip is planned for December 28.
As we head into the holiday season, I also want to mention that we are holding a Holiday Party on Friday, December 13 at the National Yacht Club. This will be a buffet dinner for a cost of $65 which includes the gratuity and tax. Because we need to provide numbers to the NYC we require that everyone register by this coming Saturday, December 7. Looking forward to seeing many of you at the event. I will also be handing out our special 75th Anniversary pins. Guests are welcome.
Speaking of social events, it is with sadness that our Director of Social Events, Jen Beatty, has made the decision to step away due to new work commitments. Jen has been a director for 4.5 years. Originally elected as the Director of Marketing in 2020, she switched portfolios in 2022 as we were starting to re-establish our social events after the pandemic. Thank you Jen for all of your hard work and dedication to the club.
Luckily, long-time member Mary Tountas has volunteered to step into the role of Social Director for the remainder of this year. Mary and a small team of volunteers have already been working on upcoming social events for the remainder of the year. If you would like to help out as part of the team, please contact Mary at social@hpsc.ca. Thank you Mary!
As a heads up, we will be holding a special 75th Anniversary Gala next spring on May 9. More details will be forthcoming in the New Year. All current and past members are invited.
My name is Jesse Han. I am excited to be one of your new 2024/2025 snowboard instructors at High Park Snow School. I joined the High Park Snow School because I love snowboarding and want to share my love and passion for snowboarding with others. It would bring me great joy to see others pick up the sport and thrive in their journey. I have been snowboarding for two years and have obtained my Canadian Association of Snowboard Instructor (CASI) Level 1 certification. When I am not snowboarding, I am busy training for my triathlons.
Chris Luong
Hi everyone, my name is Chris. I started snowboarding later in my adult life and fell in love with it because of how much fun it is. When I first started I told myself I would never do anything dangerous like jumps and rails but somehow it ended up being my favorite things to do on the slopes.
This season will be my 8th season of snowboarding with 7 of them focused on freestyle. I joined HPSC last season because I wanted to learn how to ski properly and now I want to do my part in giving back to the community and hopefully help grow the freestyle community in HPSC.
I can’t believe we are so close to the start of the season. It seems like just yesterday that we had our first SkiFit and a kick-off pub night. But this past weekend was the 12th and final official SkiFit of the season. However, there will be an extra session on November 23–thank you to Dave Flowers for taking over this weekend!
Speaking of SkiFit, this past Saturday we had a record turnout of about 60 members. Special thank you to Astrid Petersons and George Lorenz for leading groups almost every week. Thank you to all the other volunteers who took the lead at various SkiFits. Without all of you, we could not run the program. I also want to send a special thank you to Karen Evans and John McHutchion who have led SkiFit for many, many years. Hope you have a fantastic season out west.
On the topic of thanking volunteers, we held our annual Volunteer Appreciation Dinner and Awards evening a couple of weeks ago at The Hot House Café. We handed out 14 awards, including the special Lifetime Achievement Award. This is “Awarded to a long-time member for outstanding and long-term volunteering and leadership in the club. A member can only receive this award once.” This year’s recipient was Kevin Thyer. Kevin has been instrumental in the development and running of our very popular race program. Please see the article below regarding the Volunteer Awards.
As a heads up, the write-up that I mentioned in the last SnoBiz that will be in the upcoming edition of Horizon Travel & Lifestyle magazine, will be distributed in the November 30th Toronto Star. This will go out with 50,000 print copies of the paper and to over 100,000 digitally.
One last item. Rocco Romeo, our very talented Director of Marketing, has designed a special club pin commemorating our 75th Anniversary season. We received the pins late last week and began handing them out at last weekend’s SkiFit. They will be available at upcoming social events, and on day trips and long trips.
I hope that you are all as excited as I am for the upcoming season!!
High Park Ski Club (HPSC), Canada’s most active adult travelling ski club, is celebrating our 75th Anniversary. The club was founded by a group of enthusiastic skiers at the local ‘Y’ in 1950 in the High Park neighbourhood (which is why we are the High Park Ski Club) and initially involved word of mouth carpools to local ski hills. We are no longer associated with the ‘Y’ nor carpooling but are still fully volunteer run for the benefit of our members.
“To inspire and enable members to enjoy winter snow sports in a fun, friendly and supportive community” is our stated mission and it is achieved by providing members access to day trips, overnight and charter ski trips, free lessons, as well as social events and fitness activities throughout the year.
During our special 75th Anniversary season we have planned more than 60 day trips to local resorts, as well as 18 overnight bus and charter trips to domestic and international destinations, including Japan, Italy, France, and the United States!
Relax and enjoy!
HPSC runs deluxe coach buses four days per week (Saturday, Sunday, Monday and Wednesday) to local downhill resorts and on the weekend to various Ontario cross-country resorts, with convenient pick-up locations in west and central Toronto and in Vaughan. For those living in the city without a car, or who just do not want to drive all the way to the hills, our buses provide a relaxing and social way to get to the hills or trails.
Reduce the cost of skiing
While skiing can be an expensive sport, HPSC helps to reduce those costs through the power of group discounts on lift tickets and travel for our members. As well, all members have access to free unlimited lessons with our own Canadian certified (CSIA, CASI, CANSI) instructors in downhill, boarding, and cross-country disciplines. Your membership will pay for itself after just a one or two lesson compared to the costs of lessons at a resort! We also offer guided snowshoeing.
Improve mental health by connecting with people IRL
But it is not just about saving money . . . for those whose friends or family have stopped skiing, don’t ski, who are new to the GTA, or who want to learn to ski or board, HPSC provides the opportunity to meet and ski, board or snowshoe with others who share your interest.
In this day and age, when social connections seem to be more and more online or virtual, HPSC offers the opportunity to connect IRL with people who share your passion and interests.
One thing we learned during the pandemic is that without having something to get us outside and active, winters in Toronto can feel very long – despite as skier, it not being long enough! The other learning from the pandemic is that for our own mental health and for the good of our society we need in-person social connections. As per Professor Robert D. Putnam groundbreaking book Bowling Alone, it is these personal connections that expand our social capital and help develop the sense of generalized reciprocity (the idea that you do things for others without the expectation of anything in return) that keeps our society running smoothly. We do not want to end up a society of people “Skiing Alone”.
We like to say that people join HPSC for the activities but return each year because of the friendships they make!
For the entire season, the rate for new members remains at only $155 (plus HST)!
Check us out or for more information.
as published in the Toronoto Ski & Snowboard Show guide
As we enter November the excitement regarding the new season is building!
For some members, skiing is just weeks away; for others of us it is still a bit further. But in either case, we are all looking forward to a far more normal season. The weather forecasts appear to indicate a better season for winter sports than we experienced last year.
The downhill day trip schedule is now posted on the website and was emailed out last week. HPSC is the most active ski club in the country with more than 170 days of skiing scheduled including 61 downhill day trips, 24 cross-country/snowshoeing day trips, 11 charter trips and 7 overnight bus trips.
The Toronto Ski & Snow Show was a great success, with what appeared to be both more exhibitors and more attendees. The new location back on the CNE grounds was a popular change. Thank you to all who stopped by to say hello. It was great speaking with many of you at the show. Since the show there has been a significant increase in new members signing up for the club.
Speaking of membership, overall, our current level is similar to last year at the same time. The end of the Early Bird rate last week resulted in a surge of renewals, which are now at a higher level than last year.
Our participation at the show also provided the opportunity to have a one-page editorial in the show guide to promote the club and our 75th Anniversary season (3,500 print editions + 20,000 digital). The write-up will also appear in the upcoming holiday edition of Horizon Travel & Lifestyle magazine that will be distributed to 50,000 print (via the Toronto Star) and 100,000+ digital. (See below for the write-up.) Thank you to Rocco for co-ordinating our participation at the show and all of the design work.
While advertising is helpful to attracting members, word of mouth is always the best way to attract new members. As a reminder, when referring members to the club, if they include your name as the person who told them about the club, we will send you a bus voucher.
On a final note, we are planning more social events for the season, but require help. If you are interested in being on our club social committee, please send me a note.
As the weather cools down, we are getting closer to the beginning of the season, with more and more club activities occurring.
In all the years that I have been going to SkiFit, I do not recall a Saturday with heavy rain (OK maybe one). Most weeks, as was the case this past Saturday, are beautiful and sunny. In my view there is nothing more fantastic than to spend an autumn Saturday morning in High Park. After a smaller turnout over Thanksgiving weekend, more than 40 members participated this past Saturday. Just as a reminder, registration opens each Tuesday for the following Saturday. The colours should be at their peak this coming week.
On Sunday afternoon, 18 HPSC members attended the Toronto Marlies game at Coca-Cola Coliseum witnessing up close future NHL players. We all had a fantastic time cheering on our future Maples Leafs to a 4-0 win over the New Utica Comets (NJ Devils farm team).
Also on Sunday was the first of six Sunday evening Cross-Fit sessions. All of the sessions are open for registration now. Each session is the discounted rate of $15 (plus tax).
This coming week is our overnight bus trip sign-up night (see the article below); as well as the Toronto Ski & Snowboard Show starting on Friday afternoon at the Better Living Centre on the CNE grounds. As a reminder, you can receive a 30% discount on show tickets by purchasing online and using the promo code HighParkSkiClub. Please stop by our booth and say hello. You will also be able to see our special 75th Anniversary logo – designed by our own very talented Director of Marketing, Rocco Romeo.
On another note, I received a message this past week from our long-time bus driver, Wib Bach. He cracked a rib last year which has been causing continued pain, as well as suffering from some other health issues. Wib has decided to retire from driving bus. He added “I honestly enjoyed driving for the club & know that the feeling was mutual.” All of the trip leaders knew that if Wib was driving there would not be any issues, and if something did come up he would know how to handle it. Wib was hired by our current bus partner, Attridge, based on our suggestion, after having driven for our previous supplier Pacific Western until they shut down their Ontario operations. I know that we will all miss Wib.
And finally, I know the season is getting close – my Ikon pass arrived in the mail on Friday .
I am excited to be stepping into the Director role for 2024-2025. This season, I’m looking forward to some new après-ski activities, bringing back “fun races”, and trying some dress-up theme days (optional, of course … but I’m sure the team photos are going to be great!). As director, I am committed to ensuring the new and returning HPSC XC skiers and snowshoers have the best season possible! Let’s go!
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