A beautiful sunny day with temperatures in the 40’s greeted 110 kids from around Aroostook County on Saturday at the annual Aroostook Youth Ski Festival. Caribou’s Northern Skiers Club in conjunction with Cary Medical Center and Maine Winter Sports Center hosted this year’s event, which included games, activities, relays and a terrain park that kept participants busy for hours.
The goal of the festival is to provide kids, ages 5 to 14, a chance to celebrate cross-country skiing, and introduce a variety of ways to have fun on skis. The event, which focuses on a non-competitive format, allows kids to move from activity to activity with a group of their peers. These groups are lead by skiers comprised of older kids, adults, and athletes from around the county.
With recent warm temperatures organizers had to get creative to produce a venue filled with fun. Soderberg Construction of Caribou graciously donated use of equipment, man-power, hay bails and a truck load of snow to create the main attraction – a terrain park filled with jumps, rollers, banked corners, and a slalom course.
The Northern Skiers Club wishes to thank all of the wonderful volunteers and sponsors of the festival. Thanks to the work of many, the youth of Aroostook County were provided a tremendous day of fun on cross-country skis.
NOTICE: During competition days (Monday 8th, Wednesday 10th, Friday 12th, Saturday 13th, the access road and parking lots at the Nordic Heritage Center will be closed to all vehicles except those with parking permits given by the JO Organizing Committee.
Security will be at the entrance to the access road and will be checking for that permit which should be laid on the dash of the vehicle in plain sight. Any vehicle that does not have a permit, will be asked to turn around and use the shuttle buses (schedule) that will be running from the Aroostook Centre Mall.
Competition trails will be closed to recreational skiers during this time. However, the Gallagher Loop will remain open all week and is the best place to recreational ski from March 6th-13th.
Please assist us, do not come to the venue in a personal vehicle if you don't have a permit. Thank you for helping to make this event a success! Come and check out the races!
3rd Annual Aroostook Women’s XC Ski Day...
Presque Isle, ME
On Sunday, February 7th, over 150 motivated women of all fitness levels gathered at the Nordic Heritage Center to show their support for the Battered Women’s Project, the Nordic Heritage Sport Club, and the Limestone Ski Club in memory of Linda Page. The third annual Aroostook Women’s XC Ski Day offered a full day of activities that enhance women's lifestyles while giving back to the community. Ski clinics and tours, Snowshoeing tours, Yoga, Pilates and even a nutrition activity taught by Bonnie Wood of UMPI helped give motivation and encouragement to all who attended. Enthusiastic volunteers from NHSC, UMPI, and MWSC coaches and athletes lead the women throughout the day. Massage sessions were also a treat given by Stephanie Caverhill and Tracy Spooner of Northern Massage and Wellness Center, Diana Higgins-Sadler from Well Spring Health Center, and Leslie Smith of Wellspring Health Center.
Cafe Sorpreso catered a delicious healthy lunch including homemade soups, salads and fresh bread. After a bit of recharging, door prizes were given to lucky winners. Generous prizes came from Country Collectibles, The Hampton Inn, Morning Star Art & Framing, Wilder's Jewelry Store, Pampered Chef, Jewelry by Kimberly Kennedy, New England Outdoor Center, Great Beginnings, Echoes Magazine, The Braden Theatre, and Duska Kingsbury for Mary Kay.
A portion of the proceeds will also be going to the Nordic Heritage Sport Club, the non-profit group that runs the Nordic Heritage Center. The day wouldn’t have been possible without the generous support of sponsors like TAMC, Coca-Cola, MMG, Katahdin Trust Company, UMPI, Terry & Barb Chalou, French Construction, Kitchen and Bath Shop, United Insurance, and Lynox Welding Supply.
Many thanks to all the volunteers that helped make the 3rd Annual Aroostook Women's Ski Day a big success and we look forward to seeing more new faces next year.
Just a heads up - with the club meeting on tap for tonight, folks normally looking to get out and ski with others at the Tuesday night fitness night, should plan on showing up early and getting their ski in before 7:00 PM. Conditions should be good for freestyle or classic, though most folks will probably be on their skate skis. Hope to see you out there!
REMINDER
Tonight is our monthly club meeting - 7 PM at the Nordic Heritage Center. Board of Trustees meets at 5:30 PM, and all members are welcome to also attend this meeting.
AROOSTOOK YOUTH SKI FESTIVAL
This Saturday, March 6th at the Caribou Ski trails! Check out the news feed about this amazing event open to kids ages 5 through 14.
AROOSTOOK CUP UPDATE
The Nordic Heritage Sports Club had a few new members join the competition at this past weekend’s Aroostook Cup race at the Aroostook Wildlife Refuge, in Limestone. The 21km classic race left the Nordic Heritage Clup in 2nd place in Aroostook Cup club standings. The final race in the Aroostook Cup series is Sunday, March 14th at the Nordic Heritage Center. For details check out upcoming info about the Himie Towle Memorial XC Ski Frolic.
For more info: http://www.fourseasonstrail.org/Aroostook_Cup__.html
UPDATE FROM WEEKEND CLUB EVENTS
The club hosted its second Full Moon Potluck of the season this past Friday night at the lodge. Despite the moon being well hidden by driving wind and snow, club members enjoyed delicious food and drink, as well as a warm fire in the great room. The final Full Moon Potluck of the season is Friday, March 26th. Stay tuned for details.
JUNIOR OLYMPICS
The 2010 USSA Junior Olympics of Cross-Country Skiing starts this coming weekend! Check out the link on our home page for more info. Don’t miss out on this exciting week of competition.
VOLUNTEERS FOR SPECIAL OLYMPICS
The Nordic Heritage Sports Center will be the site for this winter’s Special Olympics on Wednesday, March 30th. Volunteers are needed for this wonderful event. If you’re interested please contact Mike Smith at mikes@mainewsc.org.
22nd Annual C-ME Ski Event
2/28/10
Aroostook Wildlife Refuge – Limestone, ME
With temperatures hovering around the 40-degree mark, and the threat of rain showers, the 22nd annual C-ME Ski Event took place this past Saturday, February 27th, at the Aroostook Wildlife Refuge in Limestone. Jointly sponsored by the Friends of The Aroostook Wildlife Refuge and the Limestone Ski Club, the C-ME Ski drew a strong gathering of citizen skiers from the surrounding area.
While junior skiers raced a 2km loop, youth skiers raced a 7km course, and adult participants took three laps around the same course for a 21km classic race. On the women’s side Snowy Mtn Ski Club skier Sarah Dominick took the win with Patty Hebert and Bonnie Cyr of the 10th Mtn Ski Club following suit in second and third place.
Fred Bailey of the Nordic Heritage Sports Club won the men’s field, barely edging past Northern Skiers club member Joey Bard. Rounding out the top three was Adam Fisette also of the Nordic Heritage Sports Club. For a complete list of results and Aroostook Cup Point standings visit http://www.fourseasonstrail.org/Aroostook_Cup__.html. The final race in the 2010 Aroostook Cup series is the annual Himie Towle Memorial XC Ski Frolic, which takes place on Sunday, March 14th at the Nordic Heritage Center in Presque Isle.
Despite the mild temperatures recently, our ski trails are in remarkably good shape. That being said, the club could really use a hand from anyone skiing the trails this weekend. If you are skiing the Fort Fairfield loop please stop and pick up twigs and sticks along the way. The Presque Isle loop is clearer, though if you spot any debris please help remove that as well. Your assistance is overwhelmingly appreciated by the Club and the JO Organizers. Thanks and enjoy your ski!
Within just a few days teams will begin arriving for the 2010 USSA XC Junior Olympics. 200 volunteers, many of which are club members, are actively working to ensure the success of this event, which will see the largest number of athletes of any event we have ever hosted. Right now we have approximately 383 registered athletes and 90 coaches from across the United States registered. The Organizing Committee wants the club to be aware of several things:
1. Mother nature has not cooperated in quite the manner in which we had hoped, so we will be beginning the process of moving some snow this evening to fill in thin spots on some trails. If you will be at the NHC either tonight or tomorrow evening (Thursday or Friday), please be aware that you may encounter one or more tracked skid steers moving snow from around the lodge and also out onto a couple of trail sections of the Fort Fairfield loops. Please use caution if you will be skiing in these locations.
2. We need volunteers to assist with the snow relocation on Friday evening. Please show up with a shovel, and we will show you where we need a bit of help. Things will get underway about 6:00 PM.
3. Except for a few locations, the trails are in great shape, and will remain open to all users until the end of next week. On Friday of next week (March 5th) the competition trails will be closed to public skiing, and set up for the competition, unofficial and official training. The remainder of the courses at the venue will be available to public skiing as always. During competition days, the non-competition trails will also be open for public skiing, but you will need to take the shuttle bus from the Aroostook Centre Mall on these days to get to and from the venue.
4. Please use extreme caution in the stadium areas immediately around the building and in the field adjacent to the left (southerly) side of the parking lot which will be the mass start area. Foot traffic in these areas will compress the snow into ice, which will significantly complicate the grooming operations, and adversely affect the quality of the snow.
5. If you are not working as a volunteer for this event, you can still do your part by showing up and being a spectator.
6. More information about the junior Olympics can be found on our website, www.juniorolympics2010.org
Thanks to all club members for their support and understanding as we embark on this important event.
Team New England Dominates Classic Races at 2010 Junior Olympics
The Sun Shines on the Aroostook Youth Ski Festival
