A chill has descended on Wintergreen, and the staff at the resort is cranking up the Snow Power! Our new and returning instructors already got a taste of the chill, attending the November “Dry Land Training” just after an ice storm coated Wintergreen’s trees, signs and sidewalks. And then, a pre-winter snow got us on the slopes and training in early December!
Wintergreen Adaptive Sports’ season is here!
We’ve got so much on tap this year that it’s hard to know where to start. Our volunteers are in shape for the season, our staff has "The Hut" ready for students and guests, and our calendar is filled with amazing events.
After two weekends of on-snow training, and under the able guidance of Andrew Crane (plus amazing staff and veteran instructors like Haley Bates in the pic below), all our volunteers are trained up and ready for lessons!
Summer efforts pay off in winter
Over the summer, we purchased some new mono-ski equipment to ensure we can get students out the door and onto the snow as quickly as possible. We tuned up the bi-skis. We organized all our adaptive gear and equipment.
We have lots of new volunteers, including a crop from the University of Virginia Alpine Ski and Snowboard Team, and we’re introducing them to the array of specialized equipment that allows our amazing students to have a blast on the mountain.
And we’re hoping to make this a weekly newsletter, to keep you up to date on all the awesomeness that is Wintergreen Adaptive Sports!
Student Spotlight:
In each newsletter, we'll feature a Wintergreen Adaptive Sports student, and what he or she likes best about the program. Since we've not yet hit the snow for this season, we'll roll out an easy one for the person who is writing this feature. Mike Mather is a volunteer instructor and WAS' media-relations and marketing director, and he's the one putting together this newsletter. And this is his son, Owen!
Owen Mather is now 15, but hit the slopes the first time with WAS when he was just 5. He has cerebral palsy, and when Mike and his wife were exploring what activities they could do with Owen and their other sons (Owen is a triplet), they made an appointment with WAS.
Owen had so much fun that first day that Mike became a volunteer, and has now served 10 years with WAS. Last year, instructing became a family affair, with Jack Mather (Owen's brother and Mike's son), joining WAS as a junior instructor. Owen loves to go fast with his dad, and loves to do 360s in the bi-ski.
Caroline's Corner:
"It's that time of the year when my office needs padded walls!
Of our 98 volunteers, 73 had submitted their schedules by the end of November. (There are still 25 outstanding…you know who you are…ahem!!!)
Once I got all those schedules entered on the master list, I was ready to address the queue of 50+ student applications. In just a few days, I have reserved over 100 lessons. Next, I’ll register all the student’s ski and snowboard rentals on Wintergreen’s rental website.
I got through those piles, I’m ready for more and my head is still above water!
So, to get signed up for a lesson, go to our website, wintergreenadaptivesports.org and fill out the online student application. Be sure to specify what date you want to ski and if you want AM or PM lessons. Then you’ll be on my radar, and shortly after that, out on the snow!" -- Caroline, the Scheduling Fairy
Ziegler's zingers:
"I am very excited to get our 22nd Winter Season started at WAS. I especially love Saturday mornings during the winter when the “hut” will be filled to the brim with students of all ages. Some will be new to the program, anxious and excited to get out and play in the snow, while others will be returning students, many of whom we’ve worked with for years. If they’re children they probably will have grown quite a bit since the previous March, it is always great to see them and get caught up with what they’ve been doing over the summer. The energy in the building is amazing.
With the excitement that comes with the beginning of the season it may be easy to forget that getting that first lesson out every winter is the result of eight months of work by our dedicated staff and volunteers. Working at fundraisers, writing grants, specifying and ordering new equipment, preparing existing equipment, tidying up the hut, processing student/volunteer applications, visiting schools and conducting pre-season training are just some of the things our folks have been up to get ready for snow.
I want to thank everyone who has worked so hard to get us prepared for what I hope will be the snowiest winter we have had in years and look forward to seeing you on the snow!" -- Board President Chris Ziegler
The Crane Chronicles:
"As I watch it snow, I’m reminded that we do have winter in Virginia, which allows Wintergreen Adaptive Sports to operate. We kick off the season with dry land training. This is an indoor training, which focuses on welcoming new volunteers and juniors and mingling with returning staff. We have name games, speakers, equipment introduction and, of course, food. The past two seasons we’ve offered lunch and you know everyone is more social with a good bowl of soup and Caroline’s corn bread.
We then offer two weekends of on snow training before the lessons begin. Teaching adaptive skiing has many areas to learn when it comes to teaching lessons: there’s disability awareness, teaching knowledge, and all the equipment available to assist the athletes to a successful and safe lesson. This may seem daunting, but we’re blessed to have staff who are physical therapists, occupational therapists, nurses, and a combined 50-60 years of teaching experience which makes these weekend so successful.
So, after three days of pre-season training we are ready to start offering lessons. And this is only a start, during the season as time allows, we offer clinics mid-week and on weekends. Volunteers also have an opportunity to continue training through Professional Ski Instructors of America (PSIA) or American Association of Snowboard Instructors (AASI). I’m happy to report we have 20 -30 certified instructors, but the best tool a volunteers can have is a smile, empathy and the ability to have fun." -- Andew Crane, WAS staff development director