Ski Club hits the slopes this winter season

Despite the lack of snowfall in Wisconsin, ski club has made the best of the weather and prepares to hit the slopes in the new year. Ski club has had around five trips per year, weather allotting, where the group gets to spend time with friends skiing all over the state from Cascade near Madison to Nordic near Wild Rose.

Sophomore Chloe Zache is a fan of the longer trips ski club goes on because it gives her more time to explore the mountains and ski with her friends. “My favorite part of ski club are the long trips that we go on, we get to ski for eight hours at a time,” she said. “Ski club usually goes from December through March, depending on the weather. We go to Nordic and Cascade mountain as well as Little Switzerland and Big Snow Resort if we get the chance.”

photo courtesy of Hope Lowney

Juniors Hope Lowney and Audrey Carrick enjoy their ski trip at Nordic Mountain, flopped prostrate in the snow. The Ski Club advisor, John Mueller, has been pleased to see so many students are eager to be a part of the club.

These long trips give skiers more time to spend with friends and on the slopes. Junior Hope Lowney appreciates how the club helps to detoxify, relieve stress, and bringing people closer together. “Ski club is so fun for me because it’s a day away from school, home life, stress, and all the drama of everyday life,” she said. “It’s a day off your phone and just being able to enjoy the people around you.”

For others as well, ski club has been a good escape from school, despite being a school activity. Sophomore Jake Staerkel has enjoyed getting a whole day to spend with friends on the slopes while also obtaining freedom to try new tricks and not worry about school. “Ski club is fun because you basically get a whole day to do whatever you want with your friends at a ski hill and it doesn’t really feel like a school activity,” he said.

Ski club also gives students a chance to build off of skills they already have, while having fun with friends. Junior Levi Morris has always loved snowboarding and enjoys the chance to do it in ski club. “Snowboarding is my favorite thing to do, so any chance I get to go, I take it, because it’s the world to me,” he said. “Ski club is always a fun time because I can sleep or talk to people on the bus and I get to go boarding with people who I don’t get to go with normally.”

The positivity in the club has really encouraged others to get to know one an- other, and new friendships blossomed be- tween people who may have never met. Staerkel have felt this effect of new friend- ships and the freedom ski club gives him, as well as the long days out on the slopes. “Ski club impacted me by introducing me to new people who I hadn’t really hung out with before,” he said. “My favorite part of ski club is how much time and freedom we get.”

Similar to Staerkel, many other members have made new friendships that translate further than the slopes. Zache has also found new friends in the club and has felt ski club has made her a more open person. “Ski club is fun for me because I get to interact with other skiers and snow boarders and I just love meeting new people,” she said. “Ski club has really broadened my horizons.”

Aside from the component of friendship, many skiers have had fun trying to expand their arsenal of flips and new tricks. Junior John Weigand has had fun attempting new stunts while skiing. “I like ski club because I get to spend time with my friends and I like attempting back flips even though I can’t feasibly land them,” he said.

Through skiing and snowboarding, some have even found success beyond just ski club. Morris has gained a sponsorship through his talent and love of snow boarding. “Ski club is how I really got into snowboarding and now I have a sponsor because of it,” he said.

For some, skiing and snowboarding has been a part of their lives for a number of years. Lowney has been participating in ski club for over five years and has learned a lot from her time. “I’ve been doing ski club since 7th grade and it’s taught me commitment and honestly being able to just let go of stress and be very in tune to where I am,” she said. “The connection that skiing brings is always the best.”

Ski club has also had a positive impact on Zache as well as it made her not dread the frigid icebox that is Wisconsin winters. “Ski club has impacted me in a really positive way, I used to hate snow, but now winter is my favorite part of the year,” she said. “I started skiing about four years ago and I haven’t stopped.”

For ski club adviser and science teacher John Mueller, ski club is really what helped him get back into his love for skiing. “Being a ski club ad- visor got me back into skiing,” he said. “I skied as a kid but then I got out of it and when I got my first teaching job I saw that they had a ski club and it really got me skiing again.”

While ski club has given students the opportunity to go out and ski with their friends, Mueller believes that for students, now is the best time to learn as skiing gets much more difficult with age. “Now is the best time because as you get older it is harder to learn,” he said. “If you have any inkling about it, come out and see me and we will fix you up with rentals, a lesson, and have you give it a shot.”

by Joe Mayo

Published January 27th, 2020.

Oshkosh West Index, Volume 116 Issue 4