Uncategorised – Page 24 – High Park Ski Club Blog

2019-09-102019-09-10

Long Trips

Overnight Bus Trips

The list of 2020 overnight bus trips with a detailed description of the resorts, hotels, options and what is included in each trip is now on the website, here. These trips go on sale on Thursday, October 24. At that time, the “Register” button will appear on the trip page to allow you to sign up. Don’t look for the Register button now, you have to wait until October 24.

Charter Trips

The remainder of the 2020 charter trips will go on sale on Thursday, October 10. While the first two charter trips to Jasper, New Years and Pragelato, Italy are sold out, you can still add your name to the Jasper waiting list in case of a cancellation. For Pragelato, the waiting list is closed because there were many names already and adding more would not be productive

IKON Pass

Some members may have purchased the IKON pass for unlimited use at Blue Mountain. The cost of the base pass is $1,000 CAD and the full pass is $1,400 CAD. These members can use their pass on a number of our trips where the pass applies: Mt Tremblant (3 trips), Killington, Aspen, and Taos. These members would select the no-lifts option. Savings for using the pass are listed in the descriptions.

Trip Sign-Up Night

The procedures for registering on Trip Sign-Up Nights (TSUN) are shown on the website, TRIP SIGN UP PROCESS. Please read this page so you understand what to do when the time comes. You can register for yourself and ONE additional member at the same time. Simply put a “1” in the Guest field and continue to the payment page.

FCFS

In the August blog, we discussed the way our trip registrations are done, ie First Come First Served (FCFS). We have used this procedure ever since we changed from lining up in person to signing up online. We felt that FCFS was the fairest and most transparent way although we realize that some members may be at a disadvantage (slow internet, slow fingers, away on TSUN, etc). If you have a suggestion as to how we could improve the procedure, we would like to hear from you. Our objective is to be fair to all members. Please send your suggestions to Bill Bates, longtrips@hpsc.ca.

Trip Leaders

Thank you to those who applied to be a 2020 trip leader. During September we will be training these leaders to lead the trips that you will be on. In the week before each TSUN, you will find the names and contact information for trip leaders on the website so you can ask any particular questions that are not covered in the detailed descriptions.

Bill Bates, Director

2019-09-06

Wild Apricot for Members app

The Wild Apricot for Members app is a completely free app where you can register for our upcoming events and pay event fees straight from your phone.

The main features this app offers are:

View an event calendar and event details
Register for an event through the app
View existing event registrations
Pay an outstanding event registration fee

Here are some previews of what you can see

2019-08-122019-08-13

Long Trips

Charter Trips

The complete list of 2020 charter trips with a detailed description of the resorts, hotels, flights, options and what is included in each trip is now on the website here. These trips will go on sale on Thursday, October 10. For those with an IKON pass, have a close look at C3 Aspen and C8 Taos where you will save $325 on Aspen and $500 on Taos.

The first two charter trips to Jasper, New Years and Pragelato, Italy sold out very quickly on June 20, our first sign-up night. The good news is that we were able to expand the trips significantly to accommodate many on the waiting lists. Jasper has 42 members registered and Pragelato has 39. Unfortunately at this time those still on the waiting lists will have to count on a cancellation to get a seat. For Pragelato, you will no longer find the Waitlist Button. We had to close off the waiting list because there were many names already and adding more would not be productive. The Jasper waiting list is still open so please add your name if interested.

FCFS vs Lottery

Some members who could not get onto Jasper or Pragelato, have suggested that we should change the way registration is done and switch from a First Come First Served (FCFS) system to a lottery method. We should let you know that a lottery method has been considered in the past although we have never actually tried it. The club felt that a lottery of pulling names out of a hat was fraught with as many difficulties as FCFS. Similarly issues of fairness would arise from a procedure of giving waitlisted members first priority for the next set of upcoming trips, i.e. a Front-Of-The-Line pass.

With online registration, we are aware that those with a fast internet connection have a slight advantage over those with a slower one. And those with fast fingers have a similar advantage. In the minutes after 8:00 PM, a few seconds delay might have made the difference between being successfully registered or being on the waiting list. But here’s the bottom line, there is only a limit to the number of members we can accommodate no matter which method we use. FCFS mirrors the old paper method where we had to line up in person. We feel that FCFS is still the fairest method but will evaluate the lottery again to see if it can offer something that is equally as fair.

Become a Trip Leader

Trip Leaders are very important volunteers for the club. This season we need 16 TLs to lead our charter and overnight bus trips. If you have been on a long trip, you’ve seen a TL in action. If you want to contribute to the club in this way, now is the time to consider it. If you feel it might be too much work for you alone, you can team up with a friend and share the task. Despite the work involved, it is a very rewarding experience and you’ll have fun doing it. You’ll get training, lots of support and a generous reimbursement for your efforts.

Here is what you need to do. Send an email to: Ephraim Fernandez, ephraim.fernandez@gmail.com requesting an application form. Complete the form and submit it by the deadline of Friday, August 30.

The 2020 long trips program is on the website, charters click here, overnight bus trips, click here. TLs for C1 Jasper, New Years and C2 Pragelato, Italy have already been chosen and announced. So there are a total of 6 charter and 8 overnight bus trips for which you can apply. You need to have led an overnight bus trip before you can lead a charter trip, so first-timers will be overnight bus TLs.

Selection is based on the following criteria:

Duration and extent of recent contributions as a volunteer to the club
Leadership skills
Previous trip experience
People skills
Business skills
Computer skills – Excel & Word
Special emphasis on Excel skills
Skiing experience

Every HPSC member is eligible to apply. Don’t delay, request your application now as the time is short.

Bill Bates

Director

2019-08-122019-08-12

Get SkiFit!

Cross-country skiing is one tough sport. We don’t need chairlifts to take us up hills! We’re sure that everyone is keeping active this summer doing all kinds of fun activities, such as running, cycling, hiking, and various water sports. All these are great cross training activities that will keep you in shape as we head towards fall and winter.

You can also add some cross-country skiing specific dryland training to your repertoire. Enter, ski walking/bounding. Heather, your XC director, has been playing around with this once a week in High Park. You look ridiculous, but it’s also a tough interval workout that will (hopefully) translate to more strength and power in your skiing.

HPSC members getting their ski walking on at SkiFit! Photo cred: Karen Evans.

Ski walking/bounding is moving up hills mimicking the classic ski stride, with or without poles. You want to do it with proper ski form – flexing at the ankles and keeping your hips forward. Walking keeps one foot on the ground at all times, while bounding gets you some air time. There are also plyometric exercises you can do to mimic skate skiing (essentially jumping side to side up the hill) and double poling (essentially bunny hopping uphill). There’s lots of resources online to consult if you’re interested in exploring this further. Proper form is important, so do some research before jumping in, and take it easy to start!

https://cxcacademy.wordpress.com/tag/bounding/

http://www.nordicskiracer.com/news.asp?NewsID=5684#.XRIjRetKiUk

http://www.xcottawa.ca/articles.php?id=2089

Balance is critical to good cross-country ski technique, for both classic and skate. Like anything, if you want to improve your balance, you need to practice. Try balancing on one leg while doing activities like TV watching. It sounds easy. Then close your eyes!

Balance is best done with your HPSC friends. Photo cred: Karen Evans.

Strength training should also be a part of everyone’s life. Strong core muscles (abdominals, glutes, hips etc.) mean a body less prone to injury. You don’t have to be a weightlifter! There’s lots you can do at home, such as planks/squats/lunges, and single leg strength work is great for both strengthening muscles and improving balance. There are lots of resources online to demonstrate proper form.

If you want to ease your way back into ski training with your ski friends, be sure to join our SkiFit sessions in High Park every Saturday morning starting in September. There’s an intensity level for everyone, followed by brunch at the Grenadier Café. We welcome all members no matter your ski preference. We will also be offering the popular CrossFit series again this year. Check out the events calendar for all the details!

John always comes up with fun activities to test your fitness, agility and balance! Photo cred: Stella Rossovskaia.

(Disclaimer: Before beginning any new exercise activities, you should consult the proper resources to ensure you are doing them safely. This article is merely meant to give you some suggestions for ski specific training).