MAST Update #5, Thursday, October 13, 2022

MAST Update #5
Thursday, October 13, 2022

Dear MAST Athletes, Parents, Coaches, Friends:

The Mr. Paul’s Supper Club Pasta Dinner was a fantastic success! What a great turn out of MAST families, alumni, and friends. Delicious food. Beautiful environment. Truly a joy-filled event. Thank you to all of you who dined with us Monday night. Your support of MAST is deeply appreciated. And once again our MAST athletes shined. They did everything from cooking to serving to hosting to bussing to dishwashing. And those athletes who attended as patrons, I was very impressed with your genteel table manners. How nice to see families sharing a meal together.

Thank you to all of the athletes and parents who worked this wonderful gathering of food and merriment. Matt McConville has been working his tail off leading the team fundraising efforts over the last couple of years. Name a fundraiser and Matt has been cheerfully leading the way--from the Hoggard’s Tent Sale (back when we participated) to the State Fair Barn Cleanings to the Golf Tournament to Mr. Paul’s Supper Club. Thank you, Matt. And I want to offer a special word of thanks to Carrie Ehlers, Tommy Begnaud, and the staff of Mr. Paul’s Supper Club for their generous support of MAST. They donated all of the food and labor we enjoyed, as well as a very generous portion of the beverage sales. On behalf of the MAST community, THANK YOU!

I.  MAST Ski Swap and Tuning Clinic and Individual Fundraiser Kick-Off
Saturday, October 15, 2-5PM
Location: 4800 Harriet Ave
Equipment Check In: 1:00-2:00PM
Equipment Sale: 2:00-5:00PM
Equipment Pick Up/Cash Out: 5:00-6:00PM
Tuning Clinic: 3PM

MAST Ski Swap Instructions For Selling Your Old Equipment
If you have any equipment you would like to sell at the swap, you are encouraged to post this information on our website in advance. This includes skis, boots, shin guards, poles, gs suits, bibs, etc. Here is what to do.

Step One: Take one or more pictures of each item you would like to sell. Be sure to get as much detail in as possible, i.e., condition of the boot soles, model information, flex number, sizing, etc.

Step Two: Fill out the Equipment Sales Form on our website.https://www.mplsalpineski.org/mast-equipment-swap-sales-form.html
Step Three: Send the photos to Cyrus Vahhaji (cyguy@mac.com) and Mark Conway (markrobertconway58@gmail.com), along with a short message that you would like these photos on the website and that you have filled out the sales form for each item. If the item does not sell before the swap on Oct 15, then bring it to the swap to sell.

II. MAST Tuning Clinic: Saturday, October 15 at 3PM
(During the MAST Ski Swap)
All MAST athletes should be able to tune your skis (sharpen your edges and wax your bases). Parents are encouraged to also learn how to tune the skis so you can help your athlete do this properly without damaging the skis. Two brains are better than one.
Our tuning clinic will teach you the basics of tuning and will help you get started. Join us at 3PM on Oct 15th.

I suggest that you download, print, and bring the MAST Tuning Guide with you on Saturday. You can follow along and make notes. You will have a written record of what you learned.   https://www.mplsalpineski.org/ski-tuning.html

III. Athlete Individual Fundraiser Kick-Off
Every year we hold a fundraiser that strictly benefits the athlete. The MAST Individual Athlete Fundraiser will kick off on Sunday, October 30 with an online presentation. Once again, we will be selling fresh roasted coffee produced by Urban Ventures and several varieties of delicious salsa produce locally by MinneSalsa. For each item you sell, you will earn money in the form of Team Snap Account Credits that you can use to pay for supplemental training, lift tickets for away races, camp, banquet tickets, and apparel.

What: MAST Individual Fundraiser Kick-Off Meeting
When: Sunday, October 30. Time: TBD
Who: Athletes and Parents
How: Look for an invitation to join the meeting virtually in future MAST Updates.

IV.  Where Are Those Unused Sports Sign Up Account Credits?
I am not a thief. They still exist and you should be able to use them going forward. For those of you who had account credits remaining in your old Sports Sign Up account, I will be transferring those credits next week to your new Team Snap account. I wasn’t able to do this until you had registered with MAST through Team Snap. Hopefully the transition will go smoothly. So, if you haven’t registered for MAST yet, do so over the weekend so I can populate your account with old account credits.

V.  MAST Apparel Coming Soon
The captains and a few dedicated parents have been working hard to design the 2022-23 MAST Apparel. Look for an email next week with a link to our apparel store and instructions for placing your order. I believe the window for ordering will be rather short so that we can get the orders fulfilled in a timely way. So please act quickly once the apparel sale is announced.

VI.  MAST Registration Is Open
Registrations with MAST are sitting at around 83 athletes. Welcome Back to all our returning veterans and Welcome to MAST to all our new athletes. Go to the Fees and Registration Page on our website for step-by-step instructions for registering with MAST.

VII.  Registration with MPS Athletics Opens Next Week
I am told that you will be able to register with MPS for Alpine Skiing starting on Oct 17. You will be asked to pay a $75 MPS Activity Fee online. Please do so. MAST is NOT collecting MPS Activity Fees this year, so please pay MPS directly. 100% of all Activity Fee payments go to our team’s budget with MPS to pay coaches.
VII. Hyland Season Pass Payments
Just a reminder that everyone needs a season pass to Hyland.  If you still plan to purchase a season pass to Hyland through MAST, don't forget to place your order by sending a check in the amount of $474 made payable to Mpls Alpine to Hope White, 4945 Clinton Ave South, Mpls, MN 55419.  
I think that is all I have. Winter approaches slowly.  Hopefully you are preparing your body with vigorous exercise after school. Use the next month to build strength, endurance, balance, speed, and agility.
Be well.  Make good choices.

Mark Conway
612-275-8392
Markrobertconway58@gmail.com