Here is some often asked question that might help you prepare for you childs first race or camp that they will attend.

Q-1 Who will organise the kids, and who can I contact if I have a question?

Answer. The entire on snow questions should go to the coach, they will know the start times, when to be at the hill, what skies to bring, type of wax to use etc…
            All questions that regard the depart time, hotel, food prep, cost, these are question for the co-ordinator of each program, they will contact you before the event and update you with info as to what will be happening. (E- MAIL WILL HELP)

Q-2 Can I come and watch them race?

Answer. Yes this is a family affair, in fact for every three racers we send to a race we have to provide one volunteer to work the race, this is how we pull these events off. Now if you don’t ski not to fear there are jobs that need doing that don’t involve skiing and you can still help out. These events are all run by parents that were new - bees at one time and they love to meet people.

Q-3 What about accommodations, can I stay with my kids?

Answer. Yes, we need you to help chaperon the kids, making sure they get to bed on time, do there home work (Yes they are supposes to bring home work1-2 hours worth if possible) the coaches will be busy with ski tuning and meetings.

Q-4 What about food, my kid hates peanut butter?

Answer. That is not a problem because you will be helping to organise and cooking the food. You will have some input into the meal plan. Most meals are frozen and sent with the team to the race (don’t forget to take supper out in the morning to thaw or you maybe taking the team out for dinner that night). All our rooms have kitchens in them when possible. Just a note, do not send junk food for snacks, and make sure they have lots to drink. One other thing to add we try to break the meals up so you may have to only provide one aspect of the meal, like dinner, or snacks but this will be for all the racers, parents and coaches. Make sure that there is a lot; they often eat more at races.

Q-5 How can my child prepare for the race, what can we do?

Answer. Be organised and pack small do this well in advance. If possible make a list, you don’t want to forget equipment at home or in the hotel, I always ask the question in the van, do you have skis, boots ,poles, helmet, ski suit, the rest we can buy. Make sure the skis are tuned in advance, don’t wait until the last minute you may not have time. All the coaches will have a race schedule with what will happen on the hill as well as a plan for what time curfew is and when to get up and leave. This is all pre-planned. Coaches have to be at the team captains meeting to find out what is going on (this is when the race bibs are picked up, and races are paid for, as well as what is happening with the race, like start time , inspection etc…) this is usually done at the hill early in the morning. He cannot be late for this. So you see most of the event is pre-planned. Make sure you know where the hill is and how long of a drive it is and leave some extra time to stop at Tims for a coffee.

Q-6 What is a gate keeper and is it fun?

Answer. A gate keeper is what makes the race event, it is one of the many volunteer jobs that you may do at the race. It is also where we need most of our parents, you will be able to see your child race, as well as all the others, to some people, this is very special. The job is very easy to do and requires little training (most training is done at the hill, the morning of the race).You will be given some gates to look over and your job is to make sure the racer has passed by them correctly. Some hints to remember, dress warm, bring a pack with some extra clothing, a small piece of carpet to stand on(this will keep your feet warmer) request a flat part of the hill if your skiing skills are not up to the task and finally don’t drink to much coffee before you go out and bring your camera.

A final note these are just a few of the questions that I’m often asked but there are many more that you may have, feel free to ask me why, or when and even how we do that, that’s why we are here.