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MAST UPDATE #1
Sunday, August 24, 2025 Dear MAST Athletes, Parents and Coaches: We are back! Welcome to the first official MAST Update of the 2025-26 season. We hope you’ve all enjoyed your summer. It certainly doesn’t feel like it overstayed its welcome this year, but does it ever? Nonetheless, we have exciting things to look forward to, the first of which is our annual State Fair Barn Cleanup Fundraiser! Details for it - and so much more are below. Please read through the entire Update for important and helpful info. If you are new to the team or just have general questions about MAST, check out our MAST Fact Sheet. ***If you are no longer on the team and/ or do not wish to receive these updates, you should be able to unsubscribe yourself by scrolling down to the end of the update. If you still can't make them stop coming, then shoot me an email. I. Monday, September 1, 5:30pm - State Fair Barn Cleanup Fundraiser for MAST The Minnesota State Fair is underway, which means that we will be gathering with your fellow MAST teammates and MAST parents in our annual fundraising event of cleaning out the State Fair Goat Barn! This is a great MAST tradition and our team has been fortunate to have the connection to the fairgrounds to raise good money that pays for our awesome coaches and all of the gates you break during the season! The more people we have, the quicker and more fun the event is. So even if you are a MAST newcomer, we can show you the ropes and help you meet new people. And our experienced shovelers can show you their best technique. What: State Fair Barn Cleanup Where: MN State Fair - 1785 Judson Avenue When: Monday, Sept. 1st at 5:30 pm Who: Anyone willing to work: athletes, siblings, parents, uncles, aunts, grandparents. How: Sign up by clicking on the Sign up Genius below. Sheep Barn Clean Up 2025 Bring: Work gloves, water bottle, mask (it gets smelly/dusty). Free tickets into the fair for all volunteers. Where to pick up free fair tickets: Hasler's House - 5051 Gladstone Ave, MPLS in plastic bin on front steps (even side street parking, opposite of house) When: Pick up tickets Wed. Aug 20th- Sun. Aug 31st. 8am-8pm. **Call or text Aaron Hasler with questions 612-669-9073 Thank you in advance if you’ve already signed up! We can’t wait to muck it up with you. II. Race Equipment and A Note On Purchasing New Equipment This Season Ski racing is an equipment intensive sport. Unfortunately, ski racing equipment is expensive. For this reason, many of our athletes look for used equipment to get them through the first years of their careers. We will write more extensively about equipment AND upcoming ski swaps, as well as MAST’s own online used equipment inventory, in future MAST Updates. For now, you can learn a lot about the equipment you need and how to size and select used equipment by reading through the pages we have posted on our website listed under the EQUIPMENT header. MAST Equipment Info Regarding NEW equipment: In recent years, ski shops have tended to run low on race skis and boots due to factors beyond the shops’ control. Therefore, it’s typically advisable that if you are planning to purchase new boots or skis this season, you DO SO SOONER THAN LATER. It is possible that ski shops will sell out of certain brands of race skis and boots before the season even begins. Shopping now and in September is better than October. October is better than November. You will not find lower prices by waiting to make your purchase. We are fortunate to have many good ski shops in the Twin Cities: Pierce Skate and Ski, Gear West, Joe’s, Hi-Tempo. Pierce Skate and Ski offers special pre-season pricing for racers. Just let them know you ski with MAST. Gear West also offers racer discounts. Other ski shops may also offer discounts to high school racers. Just ask. The staff at Pierce asks that you make an appointment in advance if you are purchasing skis and/or boots this Fall. A boot fitting appointment can take up to 90 minutes if done properly, so plan accordingly. If you need poles, tuning equipment, clothing, or protective gear, you are welcome to just walk-in. Here is the number to call if you would like to make an appointment with one of the many experienced sales staff at Pierce: 952-884-1990. Any of the Head Coaches is also willing to talk through your equipment needs with you. One other tip, download a clip of your best run from your Sprongo account when you go to buy new equipment. This will help the salesperson to better match the equipment to your skill level. Ski Swaps available for purchasing used ski equipment:
***Read before you go! MAST Buying Guide For Ski Equipment has a lot of detailed information about the equipment you need. The MAST Guide will help you understand how to size and select quality used (and new) equipment. Please note: You need SLALOM race skis and RACE boots. You do NOT want to use RECREATIONAL skis or boots. Why? Because they will not perform well in a slalom race course. The skis will be slow to turn. The boots won’t flex and help you create the kind of angles you need to progress as a racer. Some additional thoughts/recommendations on equipment.
III. SAVE THE DATES
IV. Rostering and Registration MAST Registration will open on-line on October 1. If you are new to MAST or have a new athlete in your family joining the team this season, please complete the NEW ATHLETE INQUIRY FORM that can be found on our website (link here also). Some of you have already done this, so thank you for taking that first step with MAST. This will help assess interest and start the process of building a roster, and gets you on our e-mailing list. V. Volunteering: Help us Continue to Improve and Get Involved: The strength of MAST is highly dependent on parental involvement. We are looking for parent volunteers to help full open positions within MAST. There are 9 different Task Groups, 7 of which are looking for new volunteers: Program Administration, Registration, Communication, Equipment Management, Marketing, Fundraising, and Race Management. Adults of younger racers are encouraged to join the listed Task Groups to give you the opportunity to train in before current volunteers leave with their graduating Senior. We also have volunteer slots for SignUP management, Banquet, Race Food organizing, and one-time tasks that will help Task Groups (keep track of completed waivers, put together team roster, etc). The MAST Board and Task Groups appreciate your willingness to volunteer and help make the 2025-2026 a great season. We really can’t do it without you! MAST Volunteer/Task Group Openings If you do not plan to return to ski with MAST this season, please let us know by reaching out to the Core/Parent Contacts listed below for your school. We'll share more details about registration once the school year begins. That’s a wrap for your first MAST Update of the season! Enjoy this final week of summer—we’re looking forward to seeing you on Labor Day at the Goat Barn! COACHES and SUPPORT TEAM, Mpls Alpine Ski Team (Jen Peterson - Communications) Key Contacts if you have questions (preferred to replying to this e-mail): CORE PARENTS for each school (for questions about registration, season schedule, etc): Washburn/Page Erik Addy [email protected] 952-270-0934 Southwest/Anthony Bill Bray [email protected] 507-301-7109 MAST-All Other Schools Owen Moldow [email protected] 612-730-4818 COACHES (for questions about ski equipment, sizing, skiing instruction and technique). Head Coach Southwest/Anthony Boys Joel Hedrick [email protected] 612-716-3186 Head Coach Southwest/Anthony Girls Paige Alampi [email protected] 612-718-1440 Head Coach Washburn/Page Boys Matthew Polland [email protected] 612-220-1010 Head Coach Washburn/Page Girls Eleanor Goodnow [email protected] 612-723- 9559 Head Coach MAST Boys (All other Schools) Daniel Polland [email protected] 612-558-0526 Head Coach MAST Girls (All other Schools) Daniel Polland [email protected] 612-558-0526 FOLLOW MAST: MAST Facebook MAST Instagram Comments are closed.
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