Dear Nordic skiing community,
The respirators that many of us own to keep us safe while waxing skis, like the one in the attached photo, are now of great use to our healthcare industry, which is in desperate need of personal protective equipment (PPE). Just as these respirators keep us safe while waxing skis, they can now help keep our frontline healthcare workers healthy as they battle COVID-19.
I have been in contact with two PPE coordinators at two Boston hospitals. They are both accepting used respirators similar to the one in the below photo. I expect that many other hospitals are accepting other models of air-purifying, half-face respirators as well. I encourage you to reach out to your local hospital to gauge their interest and need.
If you have a respirator and are willing to donate it, see this spreadsheet. It details instructions for donating to two Boston hospitals, as well as instructions on how to find other hospitals, across the nation, that would be happy to accept your respirator. (See the “How to Donate” tab at the bottom of the Google Sheet. This spells out the basic how-tos.)
Additionally, please mark your donation down on the spreadsheet so that we can track the Nordic ski community’s contribution to this crisis.
Let’s spread the news and amass as many donations as possible, as quickly as possible! Please share with your teammates, coaches, clubs, Nordic centers, and anyone else who you think could be of help.
I recently relocated to St. George, Utah, where I’m working as a community health worker. I’m enjoying the beautiful outdoors out here, but I am missing New England’s colder winters! I hope all are staying active, healthy, and sane through this crazy time.
Best,
Jacob Meyerson
Harvard Skiing Alumnus
Cambridge Sports Union Alumnus
Concord-Carlisle High School Ski Team Alumnus
Above: the image of a respirator that I sent to 2 Boston Hospitals. They will accept similar respirators as well.
Keep Skiing Alive April Fund Drive! Please help sustain NENSA into the future and celebrate our 25 years! #NENSA25in20
Dear NENSA Members and Community ~
It’s April and NENSA is starting to plan for next season. We want to be able to continue our mission of implementing educational, recreational, and competitive programs at all levels to sustain a vital and active cross-country skiing community throughout New England, but also be nimble, willing and able to adjust, as needed in this coming year. April is also the time for our annual fund drive ~ this year we want to both celebrate our 25th year, as well as be conscious of all that is going on right now. We are asking each member to give $25 in celebration and in honor of our 25th year. #NENSA25IN20
NENSA is committed to making sure that cross country skiing here in New England continues to thrive and grow while encouraging our next generation to enjoy the outdoors and sport we all love so dearly. We are lucky to have had a great foundation of leadership and programming these past 25 years, and it is our goal to continue to bring that to our members in the next quarter century too!
This past season our NENSA programming has been thriving and growing! Our competitive pipeline is alive and well with New England skiers garnering podiums from Junior Nationals, World Juniors and on the World Cup. Our Youth, Introductory, Popular/Citizen Races & Club competitions and Rollerski programs have all expanded and grown this past year. Your financial support is critical to the continued success of all our NENSA programs!
Our end goal is to have a NENSA 25th Anniversary Celebration sometime this fall ~ we hope you will keep that idea in mind as we move through the next few months and plan ways (virtually for now) to celebrate our wonderful New England Ski Community!
For now, NENSA April Fund Drive success depends on every member giving what they can. This year NENSA is asking each member of our ski community to give $25 in honor of our 25 years. We hope you will join us in making this goal happen. THANK YOU!
Click HERE if you are a NENSA member to give to NENSA
Click HERE if you are a guest supporter to give to NENSA
Of course, you can always mail a donation check into our NENSA office at: 49 Pineland Drive, New Gloucester, ME 04260
** Commemorative gift hat with $250 donation or above **
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A message from Carol Van Dyke, NENSA Board President
Dear NENSA Members and Community,
As we are being whiplashed to change our routines and way of life during this global crisis, I hope you are staying safe at home and keeping your health. Or if you are in the front lines of providing medical care and essential services, a heartfelt and grateful thank you for all that you are doing.
Yesterday, like many states, Vermont Governor Phil Scott instituted a stringent Stay Home/Stay Safe order with only essential businesses like grocery stores and gas stations to be open. My hometown of Stowe, usually bustling with locals and tourists alike enjoying the finale of spring skiing is eerily quiet. Restaurants are in high gear to ramp up take-out, retail stores are closed and/or upping online sales and service. Though there is no lawful penalty for leaving your home, the governor stated people are only allowed out for procuring groceries, medications, gas AND for outdoor health pursuits like walking and CROSS COUNTRY SKIING.
The governor endorsed what is NENSA’s mission: to sustain a vital and active cross-country skiing community throughout New England. And that is what we want to keep on doing. With the bombardment of 24/7 negative and anxiety-provoking news, the hour or so each day when I get outside is a joyful and calming respite. I encounter other people sharing that pursuit and socially connect from a respectful 6 feet away.
So how does NENSA plan ahead for the next year with so much uncertainty? Well we are still making plans to offer our programs and events but with full awareness that we need to be nimble and ready to adapt to changes both at home, nationally, and at the global level. In the coming weeks, the staff will be creating fun challenges and video messages for the NENSA community to engage in. And as with every non-profit: membership dues, fundraising and sponsorships are how the organization survives, so there will be communications asking you to renew your membership and to participate in our annual fund drive.
Why NENSA? The year 2020 marks our 25th anniversary since first incorporating in 1995. The growth, influence and impact the organization has had over the past two and half decades is remarkable: from the success of developing Olympians, Super Tour racers, and college standouts to nurturing beginning skiers to overseeing the popular Citizen and Marathon series.
NENSA for me is hope for the future when I see BKLers mature into amazing adults with solid core values. NENSA for me is the relationships I have developed with mentors and heroes. NENSA for me is the conduit that I can use to provide what I have learned to teach others. NENSA for me is the privilege of working with our supremely creative and smart staff people. NENSA for me provides incentive to do the best I can with my ski interests because there are other people there to share commitment and support. As we commemorate the past 25 years, let us celebrate what the pursuit of cross country skiing means to all of us.
Carol Hillman Van Dyke
NENSA Board President
U.S. Junior Nationals Sprint Day Recap for Team New England
Wednesday March 11th dawned bright and sunny in California, and our New England Team athletes were excited and ready for SPRINT DAY! Our age group coaches were calming nerves and going over last minute race strategies as our wax techs were making some super fast skis for our team. At the end of the day, Team New England won the sprint day, and we had some really great results and two new National Champions (Nina Seeman of SMS and Trey Jones of GMVS!), as well as 13 All American’s (top 10) and 21 of our NE athletes finished in the top 20 that day. Congrats to all our racers! Top 20 Results here below. Full sets of results on www.xcjuniornationals.com And, PHOTOS from the official JN Event Photographer can be found HERE.
U16 women: 3rd place Sofia Scirica, CSU juniors, 7th place Ava Thurston, MNC, 12th place Evie Walton, CSU juniors, and 16th place Emma Charles, Mt. Blue High School
U16 men: 1st place and National Championship to Trey Jones, GMVS, 2nd place Fin Bailey, SMS, 9th place Cormac Leahy, Craftsbury Nordic, 11th place Clint Macy, Dublin XC, and 20th place Nate Livingood, Gould.
U18 women: 1st place and National Championship to Nina Seeman, SMS, 7th place Quincy Massey-Bierman, Craftsbury Nordic, 13th place Adrienne Remick, Craftsbury Nordic, and 21st place, Camille Bolduc, Craftsbury Nordic (after a disappointing fall in the semis).
U18 men: 2nd place to Will Koch, SMS, 9th place to Finn Sweet, Craftsbury Nordic, 13th place to Jack Christner, Frost Mountain Nordic, and 18th place to Jack Young, Craftsbury Nordic.
U20 women: 2nd place to Abigail Streinz, Craftsbury Nordic, 4th place to Rose Clayton, MNC, 6th place to Ingrid Miller, independent, and 7th place to Laura Appleby, CSU juniors. Fun note: all 4 of our NE U20 women placed in the top 7!!
U20 men: 20th place Bjorn Westervelt, Craftsbury Nordic
Events of this past week ~ a message from NENSA
Dear NENSA Community ~
This past week has been a tumultuous one to say the least. We lost a great friend and colleague, Jim Rodrigues a week ago. Jim was a dear friend to so many here in New England, and beyond. He worked for NENSA for many years as an Event Organizer, as well as an FIS Technical Delegate official, Chief of Competition, trail designer, coach, mentor and friend to so many of us. Outside of skiing, Jim was a master builder of rock. I am grateful to have one of his stone birdbaths in my yard. So much disbelief and sadness in his sudden passing. He will be sorely missed. Here is a link to his obituary: https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/ledgertranscript/obituary.aspx?n=james-rodrigues&pid=195706942
NENSA plans to have a proper celebration of Jim and his life, as soon as we are able to gather again as a large community.
This past week also brought unique challenges and hardships to many of our junior athletes, as organizers across the country had to cancel several major competitions in light of the COVID-19 Pandemic. EHS Championships was cancelled outright, our New England JN Team was sent home from Truckee, CA, after only two of our four races, and our EISA NCAA teams were sent home after only one day of racing. Not to mention the cancelation of the WC in Minneapolis. These are huge disappointments for our athletes who have trained hard all year to get to this point in the season. The resilience shown by everyone involved has been truly remarkable. Everyone in the NENSA community has a lot to be proud of!
I hope everyone takes this time to prioritize family, their own health, and the health of everyone in our communities. Please practice social distancing, and follow the recommendations of the CDC and the community in which you live. We all need to be a part of the solution to flatten the curve. We have an amazing ski community, and we will ski again, but for now we must all hunker down and get beyond this virus.
Our staff looks forward to sharing the accomplishments of our New England athletes these past few weeks, and we will highlight them in the upcoming edition of KickZone. We also look forward to celebrating the life and many accomplishments of Jim Rodrigues with a gathering once it is safe to do so. Jim told friends that when it was his time to go, he wanted a party instead of a funeral – complete with a Mariachi Band – so please let us know if you know of one here on the East Coast!
Be well everyone –
Best,
Amie
Amie W. Smith
Executive Director | New England Nordic Ski Association
[email protected]