Christmas Week Update

Star Trail on Whiteface 12/20/14      Jake Sporn Photography

Brian Gardiner - 1st place - Skier Men 14 & over

James Ward - 3rd place - Skier Boys 10-13

Some of the Freeride crew hanging on Riva Ridge

The first USASA Adirondack Railjam of the season took place on Saturday, December 20th -the Deck the Rails Railjam.  We had great showing from the NYSEF crew with tons of podiums.  Alumnus, Alex Higgins-Lopez took the top honors in Open Skier Men,  Anthony Russo - 2nd in 14 & over Snowboard Men, Brian Gardiner, Gavin Fritz, & Avery Higgins-Lopez went 1-2-3 in Skier Men 14 & over, Maddie Prichard took 1st in Skier Girls 10-13, Alex Page & Rodger Jakubowski went 1-2 in Snowboard Boys 10-13, and Bryant Ward, Elias Ford, & James Ward went 1-2-3 in Skier Boys 10-13.

A big thanks goes out to the Whiteface Terrain Park crew and Whiteface Mountain for the awesome set-up right outside the NYSEF Training Center.

Aside from the competition, our free riders took advantage of great conditions and kicked off the Holidays with some great training.  Though a few schools were still in session through Tuesday and some warmer temps have settled in for a few days we expect the Freeride crew to be out in full force following Christmas.

Remember, in addition to the weekends we will have training Friday 12/26, Tuesday 12/30, Wednesday 12/31, and Friday 1/2/15.  

Also, we will be having an all-program Pot Luck on New Year's Eve Wednesday 12/31.  Sign-up at the front desk and let us know what you're able to bring.

And lastly, I've added a couple more dates to the Volunteer Spot links to the right side of the blog.  we've got a ton of spots open for our USSA Mogul event - Whiteface Bumps & Jumps - plus more USASA events.  Click on the link, choose your spot, and work off that work deposit or earn lift vouchers for future use.

In the meantime, have a Happy Holiday!

The Holidays Are Upon Us!

This weekend marks the start of the holidays and some bonus training days for the Freeride crew during the week.  I know not everyone is out of school to begin the week, but for those who are, you can join us starting Tuesday the 23rd for a regular training day, as well as Wednesday and Friday.   Christmas day is an off day, but feel free to get some free riding and skiing in on your own.  The following week we will also be meeting Tues, Wed, & Friday with New Year's Day off.  Coaches will be asking about your holiday training plans this weekend so if you know your schedule please share it so we can plan our staffing.

There are only a few goal sheets that haven't been turned in yet.  Please make sure to get these done and handed in to your coach as soon as possible.  We need your input to help you reach your goals.

Saturday the 20th is the first USASA comp of the season, the Deck the Rails Railjam, taking place right outside NYSEF.  All athletes must be members of the USASA.  You can save $5 on registration by taking care of it online ( here ).  Cost is $20 online - Registration/check-in is in the NYSEF Training Center from 11-12, practice starting at noon, comp start at 1pm.

I have started posting volunteer opportunities on the NYSEF Freeride blog - here .  Scroll down the page to the blog and you'll see the green & white buttons to the left with links to the Volunteer Spot website.  Click on the event you wish to work and look through the job descriptions for the position you want. The descriptions contain duties, start times and approximate end times.  I will continue to add more over the next few days.

The weather is looking good for the weekend - mid to upper 20's and mostly sunny - though no new snow in the forecast.  The mogul coaches built a kicker and plan to ski in some bumps in the morning, I spent time shoveling and raking out the pump track for the cross racers, and the park crew is creating a new layout for Deck the Rails which will be open to all when the comp is done. Lots going on!

We're all looking forward to another great weekend and a busy holiday break!

Weekend #2 - A Beautiful Day in the Neighboorhood

Thanks to Mother Nature we're experiencing some great early season conditions here at Whiteface.  The freeride program has gotten off to a great start, the kids are coming up with some great goals, and the coaches are challenging their athletes right from the start.  You may not be able to tell that from the following pictures but they're definitely having fun.

Opening Weekend for 2015 Season

Hello Freeride parents and athletes,

The time has come for another season of shredding, schralping, and schussing down the slopes at Whiteface and beyond!  Hopefully everyone has been taking advantage of the early season conditions, finding their legs, and preparing to work - and play - towards the personal goals set for this season and for years to come.

For the first time I can remember, we will be starting the season with a full weekend of training, starting bright and early this coming Saturday, December 6th.  Athletes should be at the NYSEF Training Center and geared up no later than 8:15am, at which point we will assemble as a group, just uphill of the main deck entrance ramp.  (For those of you new to the program, please check in at the front desk, inside the building, when you arrive so that I can orient you. Also, check the link for more info - here)  After the groups have been divided and everyone is headed uphill, I will be having an informational meeting with parents inside the training center at approximately 8:45am - exact location to be announced.  Again, for those of you new to the program, the freeride office - (snowboard and freestyle ski) - is directly across from the main desk.  Our office doubles as our coaches locker room so we do ask that if you would like to talk to a coach or myself, especially at the start of the day, please check in with Linda at the front desk, or, if unavailable, knock first.  The dry erase and bulletin boards just outside the office will have current information on training groups, coaches info, schedules, and results throughout the season so please feel free to check them out.  

In our meeting I will be going over a lot of information including daily protocol, competition schedules, competition tracks, athlete expectations, volunteer opportunities, and a whole lot more.  One thing that I would like you to do prior to this weekend is talk to your athletes about their goals and really get them thinking about what they want out of this season and their skiing or riding "career".  Our training program is based on competition, and whether it's casual, local events or the national or international level it's up to your son or daughter to determine.  We are here to help them achieve their goals, but to do that we must get them to start with communicating their desires to us.  We will be handing out goal sheets which will be asking them to outline their short, medium, & long term goals.  Help us get the ball rolling so we can make the most out of the next few months.  In the end, we hope to teach our athletes to set and reach for their goals, competitive or otherwise, and to take steps every day to achieve them.

General goal guidelines:

Short  - Short-term goals can be as simple as getting the most out of each run or each drill, and of course are based on each athlete's ability.  For some it could be making solid turns from top to bottom and for others, it could be learning to get air, ski/ride switch(backwards), staying in control through the bumps, maintain proper form through the cross course, land a trick or make a grab, etc.  Continued focus on short-term goals leads to improved performance and a higher level of control.  

Medium -  These should be over a slightly longer time frame and could consist of improving a combination of skills such as putting together a competition run, linking tricks, increasing speed on a course, maybe entering a comp or shooting for a successful result.  (It's important to note that many of our events are judged and final results are not always a perfect measure of success.  Success in this case may be better based on individual performance in relation to prior training and competition.)

Long - In this case, we consider long-term to be season-long.  The goals here may be based on reaching a certain skill level in a discipline, reaching a regional or national championship (or getting on the podium), or it could be completing a checklist of individual achievements such as mastering a list of tricks.

Of course, many of our athletes may say their long-term goal is to be in the Olympics or the X-Games, and that's great, but to get there you must take one step at a time and make each day count.

If you ever have any questions or concerns please feel free to contact me.  In the meantime, have a great week and we'll see you Saturday.

Sincerely,

Mike