Justin Beckwith

During the first week of August a collection of 20 athletes and coaches gathered in Waitsfield, Vermont for the Eastern / Central edition of the U16 National Camp.  The U16 Camp concept was created by Rick Kapala and is seen as a crucial component of the U.S. Ski Team Pathway.  The program is typically the first opportunity to bring together athletes from across the country, along with U.S. Ski Team staff, and coach representatives from each region for a rich training and educational experience.  After a hiatus due to Covid, the National camp was split into two individual camps for 2022, one for West / Alaska and one for the Eastern / Central divisions.

The Eastern / Central camp was built in affiliation with the Green Mountain Valley School (GMVS), New England Nordic Ski Association (NENSA) and Central Cross Country Skiing (CXC).  A special thanks to National Nordic Foundation (NNF) who provides financial support for this and many other Nordic development projects.

The design of the camp allowed for two days on the GMVS campus and surrounding training venues with just the U16 athletes, but over the course of the week the GMVS campus became a hotbed of cross country activity.  During the second half of the week, GMVS hosted its own summer training camp in conjunction with athletes from the Sportoberschule, in Mals, Italy.  This allowed for some training overlap, including an uphill run event at Mad River Glen.  This additional collaboration during the second half of the week provided the unique experience of interacting with a broad spectrum of coaches and athletes from throughout the world.

Adding to this awesome experience, a rollerski time trial, the App Gap Challenge (West) brought together  some very special visitors including the SMST2 Team, Team Birkie and the U.S. Ski Team!

Camp Results

Camp consisted of two training sessions per day and three tests (rollerski time trial, strength test, uphill run).  A few of the favorite workouts included traversing the Green Mountain ridge line from west to east, agility at Sugarbush (including several ramps and team relays), the App Gap Challenge and a river run down the Mad River.  Evenings were spent with educational talks, socialization and on the final night a bonfire in the woods with smores.

In the middle of camp the U16’s were able to utilize both of the rollerski tracks in Lake Placid, New York.  Some of these very trails will be utilized for Junior Nationals in the coming years. Kris Seymour delivered an inspiring talk and tour of the extraordinary and recently renovated multi-sport facilities at Mt. VanHoevenberg.

Development camps continue to illustrate just how strong the cross country skiing culture in the United States is becoming.  There is no doubt the success of this camp was built on the shoulders of years of hard work by Bryan Fish, Rick Kapala and all of the programs that support skiers across the nation.  NENSA is proud to have been a part of this project and we can’t wait to see where these skiers (and coaches) journeys take them.  A special thank you to Colin Rodgers and the GMVS staff for hosting this experience.  It takes and army and we have a strong one!

#skilikeanamerican

 

NENSA is pleased to announce Ford Sayre as the 2022 NENSA Club of the Year.  Like NENSA, the driving force of their mission statement involves, “a life-long passion for skiing.”  Their cross country ski program is one of the most developed in New England – with options for Bill Koch, highly competitive juniors, and a Nordic Club for High School and adult skiers.  For many decades you would be hard pressed to attend a major event in the East without seeing skiers donning the blue and green of the Ford Sayre uniform (although their newest suit is a sharp dual-tone blue).

During the 2021-2022 season Ford Sayre scored the fifth most points in the NENSA Club Cup with participants in 15 of the 27 events that were scored!

With just a quick look at Ford Sayre’s website you can feel the deep history and support of the organization.  “Ford K. Sayre Memorial Ski Council serves skiers and children of the Upper Connecticut River Valley region of New Hampshire and Vermont. The Council traces its beginnings to Ford and Peggy Sayre, skiing pioneers who began offering skiing lessons to children in 1936. Since that time, the program has expanded to serve over 500 children every year, of all abilities and interests.”

“The Council currently offers Alpine, Nordic, and Ski Jumping and Ski Mo instructional programs.”

Each program offers year round training and event calendars, robust volunteerism, accessible venues, awesome coaches and opportunities for scholarship.

Hilary McNamee started working with Ford Sayre in 2011 and became the Head Nordic Coach in 2019.

“What’s most amazing to me is that it’s largely a volunteer-supported organization: There are only 2 full time employees and more than 130 parent and community volunteers supporting practices, staffing the board and running community events on and off the snow for our 350+ skiers. And that’s just our Nordic program — our Alpine, Jumping and SkiMo branches are thriving too!

Since we are on the border, we serve both New Hampshire and Vermont skiers. Which is neat for our Junior coaches who get exposure to both ski scenes. That being said, the early days of the pandemic were really challenging for us because our VT skiers couldn’t come to Oak Hill due to travel restrictions. But our community was committed to finding a way to unite — so, up to the hills of Norwich we went and we had a BALL!

That’s also the season we saw a huge jump in our numbers — this past season we had a 100 skier increase in K-8th over pre-pandemic. And I chalk that up to the commitment and passion of the community of volunteers: Families who joined because indoor activities were limited felt so welcomed that now they’re hooked! If you’re ever in Hanover on a winter Monday, it’s pretty magical to see 120 K-2nd graders flying around on Garipay Field!

Our Junior racing program places equal emphasis on personal and athletic development. It’s a lot of extra work, but we’re committed to traveling, lodging and cooking as a team at Eastern Cup weekends. It’s a great environment for team bonding and personal development — learning to cook, sharing pre-race jitters and post-race war stories, and all the subtleties of group-living. Traveling together also helps keep races accessible to skiers whose families can’t take them to every race weekend. It’s all so good and so special for kids to have this kind of experience with a group of similarly driven peers, independent of their parents.”

Lou Bregou, Ford Sayre Council Chair

“Ford Sayre is honored to be named the 2022 NENSA Club of the Year.  We have an 85 year tradition of building ski communities and instruction on snow that is only possible due to our awesome coaches and hundreds of volunteers.  NENSA is a wonderful partner that helps us achieve our mission to share the joy of nordic skiing at all ages and levels in our community.”

 

Jay Davis, BKL Head Coach

“I have coached K-12 Ford Sayre skiers over the last 24 years, and have been a close observer of the wonderful growth of both Ford Sayre and NENSA.  There is such a special commitment of NE clubs to developing a love of skiing in skiers of all ages.”

Tricia Groff, K-2nd Head Coach

“The Ford Sayre program is an integral piece of the Upper Valley lifestyle and I feel incredibly lucky to be a part of it. The entire community comes together to bring magic to this program and it transforms winter into the most wonderful season of the year for many area children.”

The Eastern Regional Camp (REG) is always a highlight of the summer for coaches and athletes alike.  This years gathering was special as it was hosted over the Fourth of July — featured an open rollerski race, real snow to ski on, and an incredibly focused group of athletes and coaches.  We are so lucky to have the resource of the Craftsbury Outdoor Center and owe a huge thank you to Anna Schulz for her vision and organization.  While one component of the camp includes testing that can place athletes further on the US Ski Team pathway — the driving message was that this was a purposeful training camp with opportunities to work with new coaches and get to know athletes from other areas.

The first full day of camp included an open rollerski race that expanded the experience of a typical physical test.  Not only were the REG athletes competing amongst themselves, but there were other skiers in the field.  This included Elite skiers from the Green Racing Project and SMS T2 as well as local juniors and masters skiers.  The course featured two bicycle ramps, one right out of the start and another in the stadium that skiers navigated each lap.  While this wasn’t an agility race (or cross country cross “XCX”) the added benefit of the ramps challenges the the racers, while providing a fun component for skiers and spectators alike!  You can read more about the event, including results on Fasterskier.

There is probably no better recovery session for a rollerski race than playing on real snow!  It takes some serious planning and resources (hats off again to Craftsbury) to pull something like this off — but it’s a 10 out of 10 recommendation — and a lifetime memory for the athletes!

Day two started with an uphill run test that is used by the Craftsbury Green Racing Project.  The course is a little longer than usual REG tests at two miles and features more undulating terrain.  The camaraderie of the athletes was apparent from start to finish and again the focus was on making your own best effort.

For many years we have included an agility test as part of camp — however this year agility was incorporated as an educational and recovery session.  Camp was split into four groups with each group having 15 minutes to play and learn from each other while the others skied easy on the rest of the loop.  The course featured ramps, different cadenced slaloms, under gates, some grass skiing and two inflatable Cabot animals.  Several coaches found this session especially rewarding as the skiers naturally shared techniques and identified areas for future work.  Despite all the obstacles there wasn’t a skinned knee during any rollerski session — it really is impressive how comfortable our skiers have become throughout the last decade.  #skilikeanamerican is alive and well in the East!

 

That evening the athletes were treated to a nutrition talk with Megan Chacosky focusing on energy systems and the next day they had a workshop where Chacosky showed them how to create their own energy drinks.

As we look back on the 2022 Eastern Regional Camp we can be proud of the work that was done and the lessons we all learned.  A purposeful delegation of coaching roles provided increased collaboration and made for thoughtfully planned sessions.  Read on below to learn about the many athlete take-aways.  NENSA would like to thank all of the coaches who supported camp and we look forward to the RDG Camp happening at Craftsbury at the end of the month as well as the Eastern / Central U16 Camp at the beginning of August at the Green Mountain School.  We are also very fortunate for the support of the National Nordic Foundation and the US Ski Team.  The culture of cross country skiing is so strong right now.

Full Testing Results.

In just two years Cate Brams has become a fixture of the New England coaching community.  In 202o, after  racing for Middlebury College and the Sun Valley Gold Team, she returned home to Boston to help lead the Eastern Mass Cross Country (EMXC) program.  In May of 2021, she was hired as the clubs first full time Head Coach.  Her youthful energy and extensive racing experience, along with the knowledge of growing up in the Eastern Mass Bill Koch and CSU Junior Program (now known as EMXC) made her a perfect fit for the job.

Not only is she a beloved coach for EMXC, but she has jumped headfirst into NENSA programming, including regional camps, coaching at Junior Nationals and leading Coaches Education clinics.  We are indeed lucky to have such engaged coaches like Brams — made in part by increasingly sophisticated clubs — that provide awesome development opportunities for cross country skiing here in the East.  Read on below for accolades from her athletes, peers and coworkers!

EMXC summer coach and incoming UVM assistant coach Brandon Herhusky:

“This past year has been my first opportunity to work alongside Cate Brams in the coaching world. I feel very privileged to have worked with some of the best coaches in the country as either an athlete or a fellow coach; and despite Cate being a younger coach she easily ranks as one of the best I’ve ever worked with. Cate is constantly in pursuit of perfecting her craft as a coach. Whether talking about waxing, technique, or training philosophy I can always count on Cate to bring something new that she’s learned or thought about to the conversation. In her day to day running of EMXC she continually strikes an incredible balance of being very detailed oriented with everything she does having a purpose, while also having the ability to quickly adapt on the fly for the many individual athlete’s needs she manages. 

Seeing the respect that all of Cate’s athletes have for her is truly the testament of her as a coach. She coaches one of the largest clubs in New England and every single athlete from age 13 to 20 absolutely worships the ground she walks on. She creates an environment in which everyone can succeed while growing a passion for the outdoors and developing lifelong healthy habits through cross-country skiing.”

Mansfield Nordic Club Executive Director and Head Coach Adam Terko:

“After working with her in the wax room for a number of championship events ranging from US Nationals to JNs, I can confidently say that some of my most productive, fun, and memorable days at a wax bench have been with Cate. She’s an awesome communicator, whether it’s making stressful wax decisions, helping athletes find their best selves on race day, or humorously roasting me over something I’m wearing, saying, or doing. Cate’s ability to seamlessly and quickly transition between coach, wax tech, friend, mentor, and leader is something that allows her and her team to thrive in any situation.” 

NENSA Executive Director and former volunteer coach with CSU juniors Amie Smith:

“Cate Brams is a phenomenal Head Coach and leader for the EMXC juniors team.  She stepped into that roll several years ago with grace and maturity beyond her years.  Cate has both the perspective as a former CSU junior athlete herself, but also the skills and knowledge to bring her athletes both a calming balance while also challenging them to be their best.  Cate has also been invaluable as a volunteer coach and wax tech for New England Junior National team and at our REG Camp.”

EMXC Junior Sofia Scirica:

“Cate is an incredible coach who cares so much about her athletes and helping them succeed in skiing and beyond. Her energy and humor make her an amazing coach to work with and the entire team benefits from her leadership and dedication, as well as her coolness 🙂 It is extremely difficult to get thirty 14 to 18 year olds to focus on training, but Cate manages to do it while also making sure that we are having fun as we improve. 

From May to March, Cate works tirelessly to ensure that the entire team has all of the resources they need to feel confident going into the starting gate. It is incredibly impressive how hard to she works to give every athlete what they need to do their best. There’s no way to summarize everything that Cate does for the team because I can’t even begin to understand all of the work she does to make our team run smoothly, but if you want to see how dedicated Cate is, look no further than the wax bench at an Eastern Cup.  From waking up long before the sunrise to test dozens of waxes to staying and cheering until the last athlete of the day has completed their race, Cate is always ready to support the athletes in every way she can. Her pre race pep-talks and post race debriefs are consistently one of the things that I look forward to most on race days. 

Not only does Cate take the time to talk with her athletes about warmups and race strategy, but also our mental health. She cares so genuinely about how we are doing, and she recognizes that mental health is a crucial aspect of the sport. Having a coach that really cares about how her athletes are doing makes a huge difference in her athletes’ performance and their overall mental well-being. 

I feel so lucky to have been able to learn from her coaching the last few years and I am so grateful for all of the support that she has given me and the team. Cate is one of those amazing coaches who cares so deeply about her athletes and team, and I can’t think of anyone more deserving of Coach of the Year!”

 

NENSA is proud to offer seven competitive rollerski races this summer and fall.  This is the fifth season NENSA has offered rollerski racing to complement winter programming and create year round events.  When we design each years schedule we aim to complement high level racing experiences for elite athletes with something for all comers — this year we are excited to again offer three hill climb events.  In conjunction with the racing we have also expanded our Learn to Rollerski clinic offerings.

NENSA is thrilled to announce that Supporting Sponsor, Cabot Cheese, will be supplying Podium Cheese for Juniors, Open and Masters throughout the Series.  You will also notice some new inflatable animals that will make the journey with NENSA across the Eastern region!

Top competitors in the individual events will use our matched fleet of Swenor Rollerskis, which create a level playing field and provide, The Ultimate Ski Feeling.

There will certainly be developments and updates to the Series in the coming weeks, so start planning and we look forward to seeing you out there!

The racing action starts in Craftsbury, Vermont on July 3rd with the Lost Nation Roll.  This individual freestyle race has three options with a 5.6km for U16, 11.2km for open skiers and a 7.5km intermediate option.  The race is being held in conjunction with the Eastern Regional Elite Group Camp (REG) and the basis of the field will include 42 of the top juniors from throughout the East.  Green Racing Project and SMST2 athletes are also slated to be in attendance.  While the competition will be worthy of spectating the addition of an intermediate race and a Learn to Rollerski clinic in the afternoon make this event complete.

Lost Nation Registration here.

In late August we will return to Rollins State Park for the first hillclimb of the series.  The Rollins Roll is a beautiful 5.6km hill climb up Kearsarge Mountain outside Warner, New Hampshire.  The race starts at 8am before the park is open and registration is limited to 75 people.  Please note that skiers should plan on carpooling and ideally have a driver drop them at bib pickup / warm up area before proceeding to park at the summit.  This is the first of three hill climbs (placement for best 2 of 3 finishes) for our Masters Climbing Award presented by Allagash Brewing Company.

Rollins Roll Registration

On September 18th we return to the Ethan Allen Rollerski Track in Jericho, Vermont for the FreeFall interval start freestyle race.  This is typically one of our best attended events of the series with a wonderful closed loop.  Many junior clubs and college programs are usually in attendance.  Please note the event is hosted on a military base and speed limits must be strictly adhered to.

FreeFall Registration (to open soon)

Last year NENSA hosted two sprint competitions on the newest rollerski track in the East.  Mt. VanHoevenberg went through world class renovations in the past two years with a new trail system including a sporty rollerski track.  This track allowed for the first open heat competitions on rollerskis in the East.  After qualification racers compete in a head to head format in heats of four.  To add to the spice NENSA’s rollerski ramps are utilized strategically on the course.  Final formats, including an intermediate race option will be announced soon.

Keys to the Castle Registration (to open soon)

Perhaps the most storied of the races in the series, NENSA began collaborating with the New York Ski Educational Foundation (NYSEF) in 2018 to host this awesome five mile climb.  While USST and USBA athletes have been highlighted over the years, it’s also historically the most well attended masters event.  The 2022 C2C race will be the second event of the Allagash Brewing Masters Climbing Award.  In 2021 the format was switched from mass start to wave start to spread out skiers on the road and provide more exciting racing.  We are also exploring a shortened race for juniors and adaptive athletes.

Climb to the Castle Registration (to open soon)

On Sunday morning October 23rd NENSA will be hosting the third edition of the first Rollerski Cross Country Cross event (XCX) in the world.  This exciting summer version of Cross Country Cross (XCX) builds on aspects of both sprinting and agility.  The event will take place at Pineland Farms in New Gloucester, Maine.  The course will be set on a 400 meter loop including multiple ramps (Bicycle(s), Speed Whoop, and Step Down Jump) and other agility components including a figure 8, one-legged balance, grass skiing, and several turning features including a slalom.  Skiers should be prepared for a course under 2 minutes in length with sections of open skiing including a finish straight.

The Maine Event Registration (to open soon)

NENSA and the Berkshire Nordic Ski Club are excited to welcome you back to Mount Greylock, Massachusetts for this iconic rollerski race.  This classic hill climb will be interval start with options for a 3 mile and 8 mile course with spectacular finish at the summit of the highest point in Massachusetts.  The toll road will be closed for the season during this event.  This is the final event of the Series and the Allagash Masters Champions will be crowned at awards.

Mt. Greylock Hill Climb Registration (to open soon)

Over the past few weeks Divisional Leaders have been meeting to discuss 2023 Junior Nationals to be hosted in Fairbanks, Alaska.  The venue and organization at Birch Hill Recreation Area are second to none and the experience of traveling to interior Alaska is formative.  In an effort to reduce expense, due to high fuel costs and limited lodging options, for large groups this national working group made the decision to run a condensed schedule for the 2023 Junior Nationals.  The event will include three individual races over four days and there will be no relay.  NENSA will make every effort to keep expenses to a minimum while as always, running a high quality trip.  That said, even with the condensed schedule we anticipate the trip cost to be higher than typical years.

Further NENSA has secured a block of tickets an Alaska Air from Boston to Fairbanks with one stop > March 10th am – March 17 early am.  These tickets are locked in at $1056.  We are encouraging all athletes to use this fare as booking tickets at typical times (February) could be cost prohibitive and limit participation.  Auto qualifiers from Senior Nationals will be required to purchase their own fares and are encouraged to do so asap after their trip to Houghton.  NENSA will be poling intents of athletes to attend 2023 JN’s throughout the season so we know what names we will put on tickets as soon as possible.  These tickets will be purchased on February 7th with the ability to change the names on the tickets.

We understand your concerns about the cost of this trip and want to be transparent with you from the start.  If you have any questions please reach out to [email protected].

#25KinMay was designed to bring skiers together when they couldn’t be.  After three years it has morphed into an inspiration to get out and start the training year, and enjoy the activity of rollerskiing.  Since the spring of 2020 over 400 skiers have officially logged over 22,000km of activity — but participation runs deeper and perhaps the most fun is seeing people having fun sharing their early adventures.  During this time NENSA has created more robust year round programming — seeing rollerskiers on the road in New England is becoming more common and we are proud of helping build that culture.

2022 saw participants from nine states and perhaps the “most epic” entry was from Emily Follet of Maine who skied up to the legendary Holmenkollbakken (Holmenkol Ski Jump) in Norway.  Many skiers linked up with old friends or new and we had some big group skis.

Officially in the “Keeping up with Beckwith” category we had five skiers that covered over 250 kilometers.  Huge props to: Erin Mahon-Moore, Scott Edwards, Fred Call, Bob Witkowski and Jay Hole.  We hope we see you at one of the three hill climbs during this summers rollerski races to put all that base fitness to work!

Today we announced our prize winners on social media.

Prize Time!
(Brought to you by @sharepastimes @drinkbivo @alpinepromos @swix_sport @enjoywinter)

Fresh NENSA Trucker Hats:
Speedy Repeater – Tait Harvey, NonStop Nordic
Rockstar – Emily Follet, Greely High School
KUWB – Fred Call, Bethel Outing Club
BKL/My Own Pace – Scott Betournay, St. Paul’s School

BivoDuo Waterbottle – courtesy of Pastimes:
– Ava Rothe, Blackwater/Hopkinton
– Scott Edwards, @charitymiles
– Katie Hill, Mansfield Nordic Club
– Anna Balcerak, Buffalo, NY (Polish Ski Club – TNB Wesola)

Bliz Breeze:
– Viera Proulx, Freedom Trails Nordic

Swix Drink Belt:
– Jeff Dusek, Freedom Trails Nordic
– Mack Greenberg, GMVS

NENSA will contact participants with prize delivery and thank you note.

Our rollerski programs continue to grow and we love offering more ways to better support and engage skiers of all skill and experience levels.  Stay tuned for our upcoming Rollerski Race Series release coming mid-June and be sure to check out our Learn to Rollerski page which we will be updating with opportunities as we finalize the summer schedule.

You can also look forward to the Roy-llerski, a memorial rollerski event for Roy Varney of Maine in July.

Summerlike weather has inspired lots of folks to join the fun of #25kinmay for the third year in a row.  This challenge was originally a way for our community to be together when they couldn’t due the pandemic.  Luckily the immediacy of a virtual challenge is not as pressing these days — yet the catchy nature of “K’s” in “May” might just be here to stay!  It’s also a way to get folks stoked for another year of rollerski races and Learn to Rollerski clinics — which will be rolled out at the end of this month.  If you take a look at our calendar you will see the summer is already full of opportunities to plug into in-person cross country skiing events.

Read on to learn more about few highlighted programs:

Eastern Regional Camp (REG)

Forty two athletes have confirmed their attendance at the Eastern Regional Camp to be held at Craftsbury July 2-7.  This U.S. Ski & Snowboard development project hosted in conjunction with NENSA and Mid Atlantic and will be supported by US Ski Team coaches Greta Anderson and Matt Whitcomb.  We are also excited to be hosting the Lost Nation Roll (an open rollerski race) as a part of this camp.

Confirmed Athletes:
Men: Ellis Slover, Micah Bruner, Tyler Watt, Benjamin Jenkin, Gordon Fagan, Anders Linseisen, Tabor Greenberg, Quinn McDermott, Sam Gallaudet, Jack Lange, Luke Rizio, Braden Bellizzi, Caden Cote, Fin Bailey, Janne Koch, Wyatt Teaford, Tzevi Schwartz, Andrew Scanio, Lucas Palcsik, Joe Graziadei, Elvis McIntosh
Women: Emma Page, Anika Leahy, Virginia Cobb, Amelia Circosta, Clara Lake, Emelia Jordan, Sofia Scirica, Cat Stow, Evelyn Walton, Hattie Barker, Emma Charles, Sophia Kelting, Aggie Macy, Julia Thurston, Ava Thurston, Quincy Massey-Bierman, Catherine Anzellotti, Isabelle Serrano, Francesca Kitch, Maggie McGee, Liza Bell

Regional Development Group (RDG) Camp:
RDG is a NENSA project that provides New England’s developing junior skiers with the opportunity to come together for several days of training, learning, and camaraderie. In addition to providing the obvious benefit of gathering motivated athletes in a shared setting, we strive to offer high-level coaching at excellent training venues as a means of introducing athletes to the next level of training and racing. RDG camp is meant to complement the longstanding Regional Elite Group (REG) camp and expand the number of athletes invited to attend summer regional development opportunities.

Athletes are selected to attend RDG based on the NENSA U18/U20 ranking list; NENSA U16 ranking list; New England Eastern High School Championship overall results, and New England U16 Championship overall results.

This camp will also take place at the Craftsbury Outdoor Center from July 29-31.  Initial invitations were sent on May 16th – and a second round of invitations will be sent on Friday, May 20th based on acceptances.

U16 National Camp:
This U.S. Ski & Snowboard development camp is being redesigned post pandemic.  There will now be two camps: one in the West and one in partnership with the Central and Eastern divisions.  The top eight U16’s on the Junior Ranking lists (8 male and 8 female) will be invited to this project when the final details are confirmed by the US Ski Team.  The hope is to host the camp at the end of July or beginning of August and it will be supported by Bryan Fish, USSS Cross Country Development Director.  The proposed location is Lake Placid, NY with a backup of Marquette, Michigan.  NENSA is hopeful the dates and location will be confirmed the week of May 23rd.

NENSA Rollerski Clinic at Gould Academy: June 11
Join NENSA and Gould Academy for the second annual Bethel-area rollerski clinic! All clinic participants will use NENSA’s Swenor Rollerskis, but remember to bring your own boots, poles, and helmet! We can accommodate SNS and Prolink/NNN bindings. Following the clinic, participants and their families are encouraged to explore the surrounding trails on foot or bike.

NENSA Learn to Rollerski Clinic at The Lost Nation Roll: July 3
Geared towards folks who have on-snow ski experience but little to no rollerski experience. Rollerskis provided. Bring your own helmet, boots, and ski poles!

U.S. Ski & Snowboard L100 Practicum and NENSA Technique Clinic: July 7
This is the first opportunity of the summer for coaches to gain USSS L100 certification.  We will also have a general registration for folks not seeking certification.

 

 

NENSA’s first Virtual Rollerski Event is back for the 3rd year!

SUBMIT YOUR ENTRIES HERE

Back by popular demand, this is the event that gets people thinking about rolling every spring.  We want to shift the paradigm of rollerski from being just a training mechanism — reach out to friends or connect with new ones to plan an adventure.  Ever see a road that was just calling for a ski?  Or maybe there is a bike path that you had always wanted to check out.  We want you to challenge yourself and utilize rollerskis as a fun tool and build the social energy of our summertime programs.  We love the stories we’ve shared for the past two years!

#25KinMay is free  – simply get out there and report your ski (or ski walking or biking) data to us here.  The event is for everyone and based primarily on participation.  There will be raffle prizes and awards for fast times, exceptional routes and reporting.  The number one rule remains: BE SAFE out there.  Skiers must select terrain suitable for their skill level.

//Rollerski Safety Rules//

NENSA’s mission is to provide excitement to our broader cross country skiing community and continue the momentum of NENSA’s Rollerski Programming.   We look forward to unveiling our 2022 Rollerski Race Series this month and visiting clubs throughout the East this summer!

Recruit friends to join you – use #25KinMay for motivation to get rolling!

As part of the Challenge we encourage you to develop your network on the Pastimes app (https://www.pastimes.io/). Download the app, join the NENSA Group, or create your own.

Entries can be submitted at any point between May 1st and May 31st.  NENSA will display and showcase activities throughout the challenge — videos and pictures are encouraged with each event submission as well as tagging @nensa_nordic and #25KinMay on your own socials.  Skiers can enter multiple times.

Again there is no cost for #25KinMay
but we are encouraging membership by continuing the promotion we started last year
ALL NENSA MEMBERSHIP
in May is $25 ! ! ! 

As an added bonus each entry will receive one raffle ticket (two tickets if you have renewed your 2022 NENSA membership) towards a growing prize pool. Membership renewal HERE.

Our 2022 categories will be:

Rockstar: For folks who want to ski the full 25km in one go.  Participants will be listed by pace per K.

Speedy Repeater: For someone who wants to break up 25km into more manageable pieces. We’ll track your K’s through the month.

My Own Pace or “Let’s Walk”: This is the touring class or for folks who might not be comfortable on rollerskis and want to ski walk (or bike).

BKL: rollerski (ski walk or bike) 10k in May whether in one go or split up into multiple segments

Keep Up With Beckwith: This category is geared towards masters skiers to keep pace with our Competitive Program Director as he challenges himself to 250km of skiing throughout the month

SUBMIT YOUR ENTRIES HERE

Be creative and share your story.  The training season has begun – Let’s Have Fun!!

#25KinMay

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Questions: [email protected]

Every spring NENSA nominates an Elite and Development Team to honor the achievements of New England athletes.  The winter of 2021-2022 featured the return of open sanctioned U.S. Ski & Snowboard racing in the East.  Races were highly competitive and well attended, with 2885 racer starts in eight Eastern Cup and Super Tour events.  NENSA is proud to celebrate the athletic accomplishments of this winter by introducing the 2022 Elite and Development Team nominations and give you some updates looking towards summer.  The basis for Elite and Development Team naming is the U.S. Ski & Snowboard National Ranking List – which includes all sanctioned races held throughout the last twelve months.

2022 Elite Team
2022 Development Team

The criteria set forth to name the NENSA Elite and Development Team represent a pathway to regional, national and international success.  The number of athletes named to these teams each year demonstrates the depth of the Eastern region in cross country skiing.  Athletes named to these teams are invited to regional training camps and rollerski races, and part of a broader team that continues to excel at all levels.  Further Elite Team / Development Team information.

The Eastern Regional Camp (REG) will take place at the Craftsbury Outdoor Center July 2-7th, which will include an open rollerski race on July 3rd.  The camp will accommodate 40, U16 through U20 skiers and be supported by coaches from throughout the East.  The first nominations come from the above lists and the first round of invitations has been sent to athletes and coaches.  On July 7th we will host our first Level 100 Cross Country Coach Certification Program with U.S. Ski Team representation.

As many skiers begin their 2022 training season next week we are excited and hopeful that skiers of all abilities will join us to share their first rollerski experiences in the third edition of #25KinMay.  While there is always friendly competition – whether that be in distance skied or by a measure of speed – the intention is for skiers of all abilities to engage with others in the broader skiing community and get out there, have FUN, and share their stories, pictures and videos.

NENSA is again scheduling a Rollerski Race Series that will provide opportunities in Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York and Vermont starting with the Lost Nation Roll in Craftsbury July 3rd and ending with the Mt. Greylock Hill Climb on November 6th.  The full calendar will be released in May.  Races will utilize NENSA’s fleet of Swenor Rollerski made possible by Enjoy Winter.  This fleet will be used not only for races but also for coaches education and club visits.  There are many summer camps on our calendar already — please reach out to the Competitive Program Director if you have camp opportunities or have interest in NENSA bringing rollerski programming to your club.

It’s always an exciting time of year after a break from competition and now preparation for the upcoming training year begins.  Congratulations to athletes named to the Elite and Development teams and we look forward to seeing you at the many camps and events happening throughout the East this summer.