Feb 17 and 21

Isak V2s the big hill Sunday at Mt. Spokane

Julia tearing up the hill at Mt. Spokane Saturday

Congratulations to the Mt. Spokane Racers.  Julia, Gavin, Isak, and Uhuru raced in challenging conditions on a hilly course with the best racers in the northwest.  All racers found skiers at their level and raced courageously.   Uhuru was named to the PNSA (Pacific Northwest Ski Association) team to compete at the Junior Nationals in Wisconsin March 4-13th.  And Isak was only 21 seconds behind one of the qualifying boys on Sunday!  Congratulations to all!

This week we will ski:

Wednesday: TANEUM SNOPARK  SKATING.  Depart EHS 3:20, ski 4-5:15, return to EHS 5:45   Driving directions: Drive to Exit 101, turn South on Thorp Highway, then in 1/2 mile turn R on Thorp Cemetary Road.  Drive road until it ends at a snowpark, about 8 miles.

Sunday: Jente Loppet at Hyak SnoPark 9:15.  This is a great race that is for women only.  Except that they have a co-ed race for 17 and under (2.5k).  This event is quite a bit more low key than the JNQ weekends, so is a great way to "get your feet wet" with racing.  Older skiers who want to go farther can opt for the 5k or 10k versions.  Information and registration is here- it is cheaper to preregister.

Please arrive at 9:15 to get race numbers- we'll warmup together on the course leaving the snopark at 9:30.  After the race there is scenic skiing along the Iron Horse trail.  We'll do some games and sightseeing.  For those who don't want to race but want to do the ski after, meet at 11:30 at the snowpark.  We'll ski until about 1 or 1:30.  (Racers will probably go in for awards at some point.)

Thursday- Mineral Springs for older skiers. Please RSVP.  We'll return by 6.

Looking ahead...March 5 and 6th is the Spring Fling Relays and Ozbaldy 10k/50k.  This is a weekend of fun put on by us and Seattle's Momentum Northwest.  The idea is to host a fun event for youth from all over the region.  We expect skiers from Leavenworth, Plain, Momentum, and Ellensburg.  We want to provide a fun weekend that will welcome all skiers and get them psyched for skiing.  And to give out some prizes!  Information is here.

Enjoying great skiing at Elk Heights Wednesday

Cate skating at Elk Heights Wednesday.

Feb 10th and Spokane Weekend

Congratulations to the Stampede Racers: Uhuru 1st overall (including boys) Saturday 2k, 2nd female 5k Sunday.  Isak Larson 3rd male and 3rd overall Sunday.  Gavin 3rd place U14 5k.  Audrey 1st U18 female 15k Sunday.  Great skiing!

Chase with a big smile skiing up Ozbaldy Saturday

Wednesday Elk Heights Skating 3:45-5:00. Meet at EHS at 3:20 for rides (or Elk Heights at 3:45).  Rides return to EHS at 5:30.  We will shuttle kids past the road section to the start of the grooming.  Groomer worked on Elk Heights Tuesday night/Wednesday morning.
We're going to try something different- we scouted it out  last week and it was excellent.  It's a snowmobile snopark, but it is not heavily used on weekdays.  Drive Manastash Road until it ends at a snowpark- 13 miles from town.  There are lots of folks driving- so parents please email me if your child needs a ride.  Rides will return to town between 5:30-5:45.

Spokane Weekend.  Gavin, Isak, Julia and Uhuru are racing in Spokane.  Wish them well.  No practice with Carey and Jeff this weekend, but we encourage the rest of you to take advantage of the great snow and ski your hearts out this three day weekend.

For older skiers: Thursday Afternoon: Mineral Springs.  Please RSVP.

Looking ahead: February 21st is the Jente Loppet.  They have races for women and all youth under 18 (with options for 2, 4, and 8 km).  It's a fun course at the Hyak sno-park.  Lots of Ellensburg skiers have done the race and enjoyed it in past years.

Feb 3rd and 6th

Congratulations to Isak and Uhuru who raced at Soldier Hollow, Utah.  They did awesome!  And congratulations to the adventurous folks who explored the Viking loop for the first time today.

Feb 3rd: Classic West Ellensburg.  We had lots of fun and a quite competitive game of capture the flag last week!  Let's do it again while we still can.

Feb 6th: 10AM Kids skating race at Cabin Creek.  All kids ages 18 and under welcome.  Please arrive 9AM to register.  We are expecting teams from Momentum and Plain to join us.

For those not inclined to race: noon-2PM ski practice- skating.

For the older skiers:

Thursday, after school- Mineral Springs Skating- RSVP- Depart from EHS 3:15, return 6PM.

Sunday, Cabin Creek, Kongsberger Stampede- 5k Skating race.  There are great awards and draw prizes.  See kongsbergers.org for more information.

Jan 27 and Jan 31st

Lydia and Uhuru battling to the finish in the Methow.

Jan 27th Classic in West Ellensburg 3:30-4:45 Let's enjoy classic skiing in town while we still can.  This will be one of the last times we can ski in town!

Jan 31st Skating 10AM-noon at Cabin Creek.

Wish Uhuru and Isak good luck as they travel to Utah to race the Super Qualifier this weekend!

Looking ahead:

Feb 6th Kids skate race at Cabin Creek and/or Practice in the afternoon

Feb 7th Kongsberger Stampede Race- skating race 5k.  This is a great option for the older kids.

Feb 12th-14th Mt Spokane Weekend.  We are staying at Bear Creek Lodge.  There are only 1-2 rooms left, so if you want to stay there, call now (just google them).  There are races, but also many kilometers of great skiing.

Jan 20 and Weekend

The winter keeps coming with even more snow!  Congratulations to our Methow Racers: Gwynnie, Isak, Gavin, Jed and Uhuru.  They did awesome and had a great time. Uhuru has pretty much ensured her spot at Junior Nationals after only the first two weekends of racing!

This week:

Wednesday Elk Heights SKATING: Nick will groom Elk Heights Tuesday in preparation for our Wednesday practice.  Meet at EHS at 3:30 or at Elk Heights at 3:50.  We will ski till 5, play, load and get back to EHS at 5:30.

Thursday Mineral Springs SKATING: for the older kids, we have an option for a 2 hour ski.  Meet at EHS at 3:20 and bring a headlamp.

Sunday, Jan 24- Carey and Jeff will be in the Methow for the pursuit race.  We hope you will go to Cabin Creek, Elk Heights or Lake Easton to keep enjoying this wonderful winter.

Spokane Weekend Feb 12-14: We will go for the Junior Qualifier Race Finale at Mt. Spokane.  One neat feature of this race is the Washington High School Championships- we tally places of high school boys and girls (including 8th graders)- one each from the U16 and U18/20 categories.  We need some more racers to fill out a squad! We are staying at Bear Creek Lodge- Hashimoto's have the suite which can sleep 7- so we can take some extra kids.  Famillies planning to go together should get a room.  Rooms are filling quickly- so if you are interested call ahead.  509-238-9114.  They have a website where you can view the room options.

Jan 13 and Methow

Congratulations to the racers at the Saturday Kids Race and the Sunday 7.5 km race: Julia, Isak, Uhuru, Audrey!

Audrey at the start!

Uhuru sprints for home.  Look at that power!

Isak showing great double pole across the finish.

Schedule for the week:
Wednesday:  3:30-4:45 Classic at West Ellensburg (corner of 2nd and Lincoln).  We will make a call between West Ellensburg and Elk Heights based on conditions. It would be nice to get the skate gear out at Elk Heights and also nice to ski in town.  So it will be great either way.  Check this page Tuesday evening for the latest.

Methow Weekend: We will attend the Race of the Methow Saturday and Sunday.  Information on the race is here.  Note that there is a biathlon race Monday for those interested- novices are welcome.  We can help with waxing before the event.  It would be good to get skis ready before we leave.   If you are interested in going, contact me or Mark Larson- there might be room.

If you are not going to the Methow: Go skiing if you can!  Even though we are not doing an organized practice, it will be a great weekend to enjoy winter.

Tuesday and Thursday: Uhuru and Jeff will ski Elk Heights Tuesday and Mineral Springs Thursday after school.  Please RSVP to Jeff if you want to join.  We have seats for several.  Headlamps will be necessary Thursday.

January 6th and 9th

Winter!  Winter! Winter!  After what seems like years... winter is here.  Oh, wait, it has been years...

The schedule for the week:

Wednesday: West Ellensburg Park 3:30-4:30 Classic.  Let's enjoy the skiing in town while we can!

Saturday: Youth classic race at Cabin Creek 9:15AM and/or noon lesson.  You are welcome to come for the morning, the afternoon, or both.  Our itinerary is:

9:15AM Arrive, register (no charge), ski the course.
10AM  Race start
11AM Awards, hot chocolate and treats in the cabin.
Noon-2PM Ski again!  Classic skiing for all.

Bonus skis: Elk Heights Tuesday and Thursday.  RSVP if you want to train at Elk Heights Tuesday and/or Thursday.  We will probably be leaving EHS at 3:30 and returning about 5:30 on those days.

Sunday Jan 10th:Gunnar Hagen 7.5km race at Cabin Creek.  The more experienced crew might want to join in this one.  Details at Kongsbergers.org.  We can help you get skis waxed.  No practice on Sunda Jan 10th due to race.