LEARNING THE SLOPES

TAE KWON DO

The Detroit Mountain Alpine Racing Team celebrated a strong racing season in 2019, and hope for similar success in the 2020 competitive season, which started in January. (Submitted Photo)

Kids in Detroit Mountain’s fast-growing alpine racing program ‘live and breathe’ skiing

HEALTH BEAT | PAGE 13 BY VICKI GERDES | VGERDES@DLNEWSPAPERS.COM T he alpine ski racing program at Detroit Mountain Recreation Area is thriving. Now in its fifth year and open to local youth between the ages of 6 and 18, the program has grown from a membership of just 16 kids to more than 116, accor ding to Alpine Ski Racing Head Coach Jennifer Smith.

“We had about 16 to 18 kids that first year,” she recalled, adding that a lot of those early participants were the children of Detroit Mountain staff members. “The next year, we grew to about 40 kids, and it’s been steadily growing every year since.” Practices for the 2019-2020 season started Dec. 1.

“We have four different program le vels, which is new this year,” said Detroit Mountain Trails Boss Tony Schmitz, who is also the administrator for the alpine ski racing program. Those four levels are: Little Rippers, Rising Stars, Big Blue and Travel Team. The first two levels are for skiers who have strong basic skiing skills but have ne ver really raced before. They practice once a week, on Sunday afternoons. Skiers at both levels are encouraged to participate in scheduled home races, and the Rising Stars have an additional 2 or 3 race opportunities during the season.

Big Blue, meanwhile, is the core deve lopment program, offering practices on Thursday evenings and Sunday afternoons with a focus on developing fundamental racing skills using free skiing and technical drills. Participants get an introduction to both slalom- and giant slalom-style racing, and have opportunities to race 5 or 6 times over the course of the season.

The most advanced skiers are on the Travel Team, also known as the D-Team, which is designed for serious skiers who are looking for a more intensive training schedule, with practices held three times per week and 10 to 12 racing opportunities available. D-Team members take part in two different racing leagues: The North land Junior Race Series and the Midwest Snowsports Development League.

The race season runs from January through the first week of March. Detroit Mountain is hosting two races this sea son; other races will be held at Afton Alps, Lutsen, Giant’s Ridge, Mount Ski Gull, Mont du Lac, Powder Ridge and Wild Mountain.

The Detroit Mountain ski racing pro gram has proved so popular, Schmitz said, that all available slots for the current sea son, “are pretty much filled, at all levels.” “The kids in the program advance really quickly,” he added. “It’s exciting to see the progression, especially for the kids in their fourth year.”

Most of the kids in the ski racing pro gram are at Detroit Mountain, “just about every day we’re open,” he noted. “They just live and breathe it (downhill skiing).” SKIING continued on page 14

Smith said it was her passion for ski racing that first led her to approach the Detroit Mountain Recreation Area’s management team with the idea of starting a league, at the start of the Mountain’s se cond skiing season.

Some of the kids in the program “have absolutely fallen in love (with the sport) and can’t get enough of it,” she said. It’s open to kids of all abilities, “whether they just want a taste or they’re all in.”

There is a tuition fee involved in joining the team, and partici pants pay for their own equipment, season passes and/or lift tickets. Scholarship opportunities are available for those in need of a little financial assistance.

“We don’t want that (limited finances) to be the reason why they’re not out there,” Smith said. “We would move mountains to make sure these kids have the opportunity to be out there on the slopes.” For more information, visit www.detroitmountain.com.

The health benefits of skiing Skiing is a sport with lifelong health benefits, according to Detroit Mountain Alpine Ski Racing Head Coach Jennifer Smith — improved strength, balance, coordination, cardiovascular health and even mental health, to name just a few.

Kids who ski get all those benefits in their youth, and are also establishing a taste for a fun winter activity that could help keep them healthy for the rest of their lives.

“We have people out here at the Mountain skiing that are well into their 80s and 90s,” Smith said. “It’s one of those unique sports that you can continue doing for a very long time.”

The ski racing program also builds social and behavioral skills in kids, as they learn the importance of volunteerism, cooperation and teamwork. Aside from developing kids’ all-around skiing skills, the program helps kids build strong friendships with their teammates while improving their self confidence.

“It offers our kids the opportunity to belong to a team, but still compete as an individual,” Smith said — at the same time, however, winning is not the most important thing: The emphasis is on having fun.

“We tell the kids right from the get-go that we want them to love skiing, and we want it to be fun,” Smith said. “That’s our end goal … If we can get these kids to love being outside and love skiing, we know we’ve done a great job.”

“They’re really the ambassadors of the Mountain,” she added. “We want them out there helping others, being polite and kind to the other guests. You can just see it when they come into the lodge with those rosy cheeks. Some days are cold and brutal outside, but they still come in with bright smiles on their faces — and hot cocoa fixes a lot.”

Eleni and Marlo Schmitz celebrate with Kya Smith and Ruby Maki at the Detroit Mountain alpine ski races in January 2019. (Submitted Photo)

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