Freeport High School Nordic Ski Team 20012 – 2013 Season
Coaches
Joel Hinshaw
Phone: 688-4250
Email: joelhinshaw@yahoo.com
home
jhinshaw@llbean.com work USED ONLY 8am –
4pm Mon – Friday
Heather Zimmerman
Phone: 207 381-7723
Doug Martin
Phone 207 749-5801
If you have any questions or concerns during the season,
feel free to email or call me.
Philosophy
Our season will be guided by four basic principles:
- To
teach intermediate/advanced skiers the skills of classic and skating
techniques for competitive Nordic skiing within a fun and enthusiastic
environment.
- To
help high school skiers develop confidence in their own abilities and
realize their competitive potential within a team-oriented environment.
- To be
able to maintain your own equipment, especially tune and wax your skis for
training and racing.
- This
program will hopefully take you to collegiate or citizen racing after high
school and hopefully contribute to a lifetime of skiing enjoyment and a
genuine love of the outdoors.
Communication
Communication will be done through the ski team Blog.
http://freeporthighschoolnordic.blogspot.com/
Skiers Goals
Personal ski goals are
to be turned in by the end of practice Friday, 30 November.
Goals will be
reviewed periodically throughout the season.
Team Roster
Depending on how
many skiers sign up, you will not be cut from the team if:
- Your actions show that you want to be
part of the team
- You are focused and attend practice.
- You have a positive and helpful attitude and work hard to achieve your goals and the team’s goals.
You will be cut from
the team if you do not attend practices and if your attitude is disruptive to
the team.
You only have 3
unexcused practices before you are cut.
If over 35 skiers
sign up for the team, I may have to make cuts due to coach/skier ratio.
Practices
Practice is
mandatory for all skiers unless the coach excuses you from a practice. Valid
excuses include schoolwork, other ski races, and health issues. Not valid
excuses include a date, going to a dance and non-school activities. If you miss
a practice you must talk with the coach in order to get an excused absence.
All skiers get 3 unexcused
absences!! A skier who has 4 unexcused absences will be dropped from the team.
You must make sure you communicate your plans to the coach
about getting to and going home from a practice or race. We do not want to
leave anyone, but that will happen if the coach does not know your plans.
If you are a member of a ski club that has practices during
the high school season you must work with the coach to plan what practice you
will attend. You cannot attend the high school and club practice in the same day.
Make sure you communicate your schedule to the coach so you do not get any
unexcused absences.
Practices do not occur everyday. You must be focused and
dedicated enough to practice on your own when you are given a workout to do at
home. To achieve certain goals you must do more than just the team workouts.
The coach will give you workouts over the weekends and
holidays, which you are expected to do. Get together with other teammates to
train together.
Dry-land
Dry-land practices will be held at the High School and
Pineland Center in New Gloucester. Our
tentative plan is to practice from 2:45 to 5:00 3 days per most weeks (mostly
Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday) and 9 to 11 Saturday and some Sundays. We’ll update
the schedule as we go along and communicate via the Blog. We may travel to snow
on Saturdays until we have snow in the Freeport area.
On Snow (Which will hopefully come soon!)
As soon as it’s possible, we’ll move to on snow practices at
Pineland Farms.
The bus will pick us up at the High School at 2:45 and
drop us back at the High School about 5 – 5:30. The bus will not wait so if
you miss the bus you miss practice.
What Skiers Should Expect At Practice
Dry-land Practice starts at 2:45. On snow practice will
start about 3:15 when the bus arrives at Pineland.
Dry-land - general aerobic training / Strength calisthenics
exercises / Balance training
On snow – warm-up ski on own, technique exercises then ski
workout
We will have a team meeting at the end of each practice
Some days we will have an equipment or waxing clinic.
Periodically review individual goals and progress.
Video analysis of your own skiing and watching instructional
videos.
Cancellations will be announced at school if school is let
out early.
Races
This year the WMC races are at Twin Brook, Pineland Center,
Black Mountain, Lake Region, and Fryeburg.
We will also go to several Saturday races at Sugarloaf,
Telstar HS, Black Mt. and Portland
It is very important to know the schedule and when the bus
will leave. Students cannot drive to any race, so do not miss the bus.
Wednesday races will leave before school is out so you must let your teachers
know when you have to leave before that day.
Be polite but firm on the time you need to leave, as the bus cannot
wait. You can always call the Athletic director for help.
Parents must notify the coach before they take their kid
home after a race. Please do not take off without notifying the coach since we
do not want to leave anyone or wait for someone who is already gone.
The WMC season races are mandatory for all skiers. In the
past we have had skiers want to miss a WMC race in preparation for other races
and this is not acceptable. To be on the team you must race with the team.
There are a few Saturday races that all skiers can race, but
some Saturday races we will have to limit the number of racers. The coach will
discuss each race the week before.
The team will be staying for results at weekend and
championship races. Part of racing is supporting all skiers, teams and race
organizers and supporting Freeport skiers who earn a podium spot. We will use the time waiting for the results
for more skiing and training.
December Holiday and Holiday Camp
The Holiday Camp will be in Jackson, NH this year. The
camp is highly recommended but not mandatory.
The Holiday Camp is a time for the team to spend 2 or 3 full
days of quality and quantity training. With the short training season we need
to get in as many days as possible. There will be races and clinics from guest
instructors and more time to get into waxing skis.
We also have practice during the December holiday that is a
normal part of the season and are mandatory for all team members. If you will
not be in town during the holiday then you must talk to the coach prior to
leaving, so you can get a workout schedule.
State Meet/Varsity letter Selection Criteria
We are only able to enter a limited number of athletes in
the State Meet and one of the questions every year is “how will these skiers be
picked?” While it’s my hope to send the
fastest team possible, selection will be based on the following criteria:
- Results
in meets leading up to the States
- Practice
attendance, behavior and work ethic
- If 2 or more athletes have the same results and attendance/work ethics then the upper classman will be picked.
Those skiers making the State meet team will make up the
varsity team and earn a varsity letter. I also hold the option to hand out a
varsity letter to any upper classman who does not make the state meet but does
show varsity team qualities during the season.
Equipment
It’s been said that skiing is a lifetime sport because it
can take that long to pay for the equipment.
Luckily, high school skiers can excel with basic – and reasonably
affordable – gear:
Is used equipment good
for racing? Well-cared-for used
equipment can be a godsend. If you can
find gear through swaps and exchanges, great, though make sure the used
equipment is sized right for you. There are a lot of good deals at “swap sales”
but if the skis do not fit you correctly they are worthless. Just make sure that the boot and bindings
“match.”, SNS or NNN. No 3-pin boots
and bindings will be allowed. If that is all you have and you are serious
about being on the team then we will help you find other equipment.
Skis – At the high
school level you should have 2 pairs of skis. Specific classic and skate skis
are much better than “combi” skis and will save you time tuning and waxing.
Though, if finances warrant then you certainly can use a pair of “combi” race
skis for both skate and classic, though you will be doing a lot more waxing.
Boots – “Combi” or
“pursuit” boots (they’re the same thing) are your best choice if you want to
save money on ski equipment. These boots
will work well for both the classic and skate disciplines. Though as you
improve you may prefer having separate classic and skate boots Again, please make sure that your bindings
and boots are on the same standard (SNS or NNN).
Poles – Your skier
will need two sets of poles for the season, one pair for skate and the
other for classic. Most ski shops can
help you pick the right size or use the following chart that is taken from the
Akers website:
Skier Height
|
Classic
Pole Length
|
Skating
Pole Length
|
4'5"
|
110
|
120
|
4'7"
|
115
|
125
|
4'9"
|
120
|
130
|
4'11"
|
125
|
135
|
5"1"
|
125
|
140
|
5'3"
|
130
|
145
|
5'5"
|
135
|
150
|
5'7"
|
140
|
155
|
5'9"
|
145
|
155
|
5'11"
|
150
|
160
|
Skiers will be expected to have their classic poles at most
dry-land practices. We’ll be using them
for ski bounding.
Retailers - There are three decent
Nordic retailers in the area: L.L. Bean, Boulder Nordic SPorts in Portland and Gorham Bike/Ski in Portland. I strongly encourage you to
find out when these retailer’s have their “team nights” which are scheduled
before the season starts. It is a great way to get discounts on new equipment.
Swap sales can be a good place to get equipment only if you
know what to look for and how to determine size.
Please ask me if you have questions on sizing skis or poles.
Clothing and Accessories
You need to be warm,
dry and comfortable in all kinds of weather since we will be practicing in sun,
rain, snow and everything in-between. To this point, I reserve the right
to send a skier home from practice if I believe they’re not dressed
appropriately. We will be outside for
Dry land training and may get wet and cold so make sure you have the correct
clothing.
A basic clothing and gear check list includes:
- Wind-pants. This can either be basic wind pants with
long underwear or “Swix” type pants with a nylon facing.
- Windbreaker
or equal. Fleece insulation
layer. Many athletes also bring an
extra turtleneck or t-shirt to change into after practice.
- Socks. I’m a big fan of thin polypro “liners”
and “Smartwool” type outer socks.
Dry feet are warm feet. Warm
feet are happy feet.
- A
warm, insulated jacket for before and after practice.
- Please
avoid cotton. Synthetic
fleeces, polypro and other man-made materials are much more effective at
keeping skiers warm & dry.
- Water
bottle. Athletes get dehydrated in
the winter faster than in the summer.
And given all the germs floating around during a typical winter
season, I would prefer that kids not share their water bottles.
- Ski
Bag. While not a necessity, a ski
bag is something that I strongly recommend. It’s a place to keep extra clothes at
practice, makes getting on and off the bus easier and helps protect skis.
- Everyone should have ski straps, even if you have a ski bag!!
Ski Room rules and Waxing
You can’t be a skier
without knowing how to wax. One of the team goals is to ensure all athletes are
able to prepare their skis for training and racing. This includes glide waxing,
kick waxing and ski cleaning/prep. We will have several waxing clinics early in
the season and everyone is expected to attend. As part of a team, experienced
skiers are expected to help out with novice waxers when needed.
Most glide waxes fall into 4 categories: Full Fluorocarbon
(Cera F), High Fluorocarbon (HF), Low Fluorocarbon (LF) and Hydrocarbon (CH).
80% of our skiing will be done on CH and LF waxes. For a couple key races the
top skiers will have a choice of using HF or Cera F wax, depending on weather
and snow conditions.
4 Teams will use this ski room so it must be kept neat and
organized. Keep all bags and skis in the corners and away from the ski
tuning/waxing areas. You are responsible for all waxing equipment and it must
be put away when you are finished. The wax we have at the beginning of the
season is all we will have so do not waste it or you may not have wax for the
state meet. Even though alpine and Nordic are one team please remind alpine the
wax is for Nordic only, we do not have enough wax for alpine to use it too.
Racing waxes and tuning equipment are not to be used for
practice days. If wax and tuning supplies are not taken care of then they will
be locked up till practice.
Team Jackets and Nordic Tops
Team Jackets, race suits and tops will be signed out to the
top 20 skiers who do not have their own. You are responsible for these items
all season. If I see a suit, top or jacket lying around or left in the ski room
you will get it back twice. If it is left around more than twice you will lose
the privilege of having a team jacket. You are responsible for replacing the
jacket if there is excessive wear and tear.
It is required that you wear the team race suit or
Nordic top at all school races.
Transportation
A bus will be
provided for weekly practices to Pineland Center. Juniors and seniors may drive
themselves to practice. If you drive to Pineland then you are expected to
return to the High School for the end of practice and team meeting. If you miss
the team meeting and end of practice you have an unexcused practice day. If you
drive toPineland and are there before the team then you must behave professionally.
Any reports of misbehavior will be grounds to remove your privilege to drive to
practice.
There is no bus for
Saturday and Holiday practices, we will meet at the designated ski center for
practice. Though if a Saturday practice is not in the Freeport area we will
have a bus.
Everyone must ride the bus for weekly and Saturday races and
Saturday practices at Black Mountain, unless you are getting a ride from your
parents and you have given me a note from them ahead of time. No HS skier is
allowed to drive themselves to the races. If you do drive to the race you will
not race that day. On race days you may ride home with your parents if they
sign a release form prior to leaving the race site.
What to
bring to practice
Dry-land
Hat
Gloves
Light jacket/Rain
jacket
Running shoes
Classic poles or old
poles slightly shorter
On-snow
Running shoes
Ski boots
It is best to have
both sets of skis at school. We may have to change ski technique depending on
snow conditions.
Both sets of poles
Ski straps!!! Even if
you have a ski bag please strap your skis to keep them in good condition and to
keep kick wax away from other items in the bag
Hat
Gloves
Warm overcoat for
waiting for bus or if it gets cold during practice
Large
portions of this information have been “borrowed” shamelessly from a number of
websites and coaching guides including the New England Nordic Ski Association,
Yarmouth Ski Team and Anchorage Alaska Ski programs.
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