2019-2020 Ski team General Information

Freeport/Brunswick High School Nordic Ski Team 20019 – 2020 Season

 

Coach

 

Head Coach           Joel Hinshaw

Phone                     207 688-4250

Work email            jhinshaw@llbean.com

Home email           joelhinshaw@yahoo.com

 

Assistant Coach     Elysha Dyer

Phone                     207 522-9737

Email                     elysha.dyer@gmail.com

 

Brunswick

Head Coach           Jessica Marion

Email                      jmarion@brunswick.k12.me.us

 

If you have any questions or concerns during the season, feel free to email or call any coach.

 

 

Philosophy

Our season will be guided by four basic principles:

 

1. To teach skiers the skills of classic and skating techniques for competitive Nordic skiing within a fun and enthusiastic environment. 

 

2. To help high school skiers develop confidence in their own abilities and realize their competitive potential within a team-oriented environment.

 

3. To be able to maintain your own equipment, especially tune and wax your skis for training and racing.

 

4. 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

Skiers are required to come up with 2 personal skiing goals. Goals will be discussed Friday Dec 6. At that time the team will come up with team goals to add to your individual goals. Goals will be posted in the ski room.

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:

1. Your actions show that you want to be part of the team
2. You are focused and attend practice.
3. 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.

 

 

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.

 

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 4 days per wek most weeks (Tuesday through Friday) and 9 to 11 Saturdays. 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 2:30 and drop us back at the High School about 5. 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 3:00 when the bus arrives at Pineland.

Dry-land - general aerobic training / Strength calisthenics exercises / Balance training

On snow – warm-up, 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

 

Joining the Nordic team means you will commit to the season’s race schedule. Races will be on Wednesday through January, except for the week of Martin Luther King vacation day. That week the race will be on Monday.

We will also go to 3 Saturday races at Telstar and Maranacook high school and Black Mountain in Rumford.

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.

 

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.   

 

Please let any of the coaches know if you want to race other races that are not part of the high school schedule. NENSA has a schedule of elite races that several of you may want to try. There are also many community races that may fit in your ski calendar, schedule can be found on NENSA.

 

 

December Holiday and Holiday Camp

 

The Holiday Camp will be in Fort Kent, December 27 – 30. 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.

If you will not be in town during the holiday then you 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:

 

1. Results in meets leading up to the States
2. Practice attendance, behavior and work ethic
3. 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. Combi skis will make it much harder to learn good technique. Though, if finances warrant having one pair of skis then get a good fitting classic ski and we can work on getting you a pair of skate skis to borrow or have.

 

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. This is just a guideline and can be modified depending on your ability.

 

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 several Nordic retailers in the area: L.L. Bean, Boulder Nordic Sport, Pineland Farms, Gorham Bike/Ski, Carter’s and Akers. Most of these retailers provide a discount on equipment or have a “team nights” which are scheduled before the season starts.

Swap sales can be a good place to get equipment only if you know what to look for and how to determine size. The swap sales have started for the season. Most towns in the area have their own swap sale, Freeport, Falmouth, Cumberland, Yarmouth and Brunswick all have a sale. Ask the retail sales reps at those sales for help picking the right equipment.  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 include:

 

• 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). Starting this year all coaches have agreed to limit waxing to CH or LF waxes. The decision is due 3 main reasons, health, environment and costs. If you are waxing your skis at home, you CANNOT wax with HF or pure fluoros.

 

Alpine and Nordic will share the 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 and the wax tables and floors cleaned when you are finished.

 

 

Team Race Suits

 

You are responsible for your team race suit. If you lose or damage your suit you are responsible for replacing it.

At the end of the season you are responsible for returning the same number suit that you got at the beginning.

It is required that you wear the team race suit at all school races.

 

Transportation

 

A bus will be provided for weekly practices to Pineland Center. Athletes with a driver’s license can drive themselves to practice. If you drive to practice and arrive 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 away from the Freeport area, 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.