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The snow guns were blasting during training tonight. It felt like Winter again. I want to thank our coaches for getting the season off to such a good start. Our athletes are making big improvements every day. I also want to thank the athletes for your focus, effort and determination. Great job. Keep up the good work on the hill.
Storing Valuables During Practice Everyone has a phone. Most of you probably have a wallet. Some have car keys. Do NOT store anything of value in your ski bag. Unfortunately, the thieves who stole from racers last season are still in operation this season. They like to rummage through our bags while we are out on the hill and take what does not belong to them. Bring your valuables on the hill with you or chip in with several other teammates and rent a locker each night. But do not leave anything that someone might want to steal in your bag in the chalet. I would like to suggest that the team move to the South end of the chalet for booting up... the end closer to the restrooms. It is worth a try. Are You Leaving Practice With Your Equipment? We have had a couple of incidents in which an athlete has walked off with the wrong set of poles or other gear. Be sure that the skis and poles you grab during or at the end of practice are your own. If you haven’t put your name and phone number on all of your gear and clothing, do so today. MAST Supplemental Training We will be offering six supplemental training sessions this year. All sessions will be held at Wild Mt and the first one is the Saturday after Thanksgiving--Saturday, November 30. We will have two more on Dec. 7 and Dec 14, and three more in January and February. We load the bus at 2:30 at Washburn High School (49th and Pleasant) and will return to Washburn by 10:30pm. Wild offers longer runs for training (32 seconds vs 16 seconds at Hyland for the better racers) and it is the site of our Section IV Championship every year. These supplemental training sessions give you the opportunity to test and improve your skills on more challenging terrain and boost your confidence on our section championship race venue. Plus, they are very fun nights for all involved. The cost is $55 and includes training, coaching, lift ticket, and transportation. You will want to bring a sack supper or money to purchase supper. I will open registration for each supplemental training session on the Sunday immediately preceding the session. These sessions are open to all MAST skiers. For more information and to register for the first supplemental training session on Nov 30, click here: Supplemental Training Announcing the 14th Annual Giants Ridge Camp Registration for the MAST Giants Ridge Camp is now open. All MAST athletes are invited to attend. We work hard, improve exponentially, and have a ton of fun in the process. The camp runs from 6am on Monday, December 30 through Thursday, January 2. Four days of skiing on some of the best race runs in Minnesota. The very runs we will be skiing all four days are the same runs on which the Minnesota State High School Alpine Championships are held (Innsbrook and Helsinski). For details about the camp and how to register, click here: Giants Ridge Camp 2020. If you are unable to attend camp or if the camp fills before you can sign up, know that we will be offering training at Hyland over some if not all of the dates of the camp. Registration is on a first come, first served basis. No one is officially registered until the camp fee is paid. If for some reason you cannot pay the camp fee in full at this time, please contact me at 612-275-8392. PLEASE pay for the Giants Ridge Camp by CHECK if you can. Here is why. I recognize how expensive skiing is for our families. I want our athletes to have the chance to attend a camp if they wish, so I work hard to keep the price as low as possible. As you can see, this year's camp is priced to the dollar. There is no wriggle room on the budget. The $491 fee we are charging covers meals, lift tickets, transportation, lane fees and lodging. It covers these expenses to the dollar. It does not cover the 3.39% fee that your credit card company charges MAST when you pay by credit card. I could have included this charge in the camp fee, but I am sensitive to the families on the team for whom this is already a difficult camp to fund. If all 70 camp spots are paid with a credit card, MAST has a $1,165 hit to our camp budget off the top. That is a lot of money for us. So, when you are checking out for camp, please check that you will pay by check. I understand that some of you find it really convenient or even necessary to pay by credit card . So, if you really want to pay by credit card, please consider mailing a check in the amount of $16.94 (3.39% plus a 30 cent transaction fee charged by SportsSignUp) to Mpls Alpine/ 4800 Harriet Ave/Mpls/55419. For supplemental training, we did include the cost of paying by credit card in the $55 fee. You are welcome to pay for Supplemental Training sessions by credit card or check. Hoigaards Tent Sale Volunteers and Account Credits MAST has not yet received payment from Hoigaards for the work our families performed at the Hoigaards Tent Sale, but have received a report from Hoigaards indicating how many hours each of our MAST volunteers supplied. So rather than wait for the check to arrive, we have issued account credits to all MAST Hoigaard Tent Sale volunteers. These credits can be used to help pay for part or all of a supplemental training session or Giants Ridge Camp or even the banquet in March. When you register for a MAST event in SportsSignUp, you will be given the opportunity to pay for part or all of the event using your account credits. You received via email a spreadsheet listing all the Hoigaards tent sale volunteers and the number of hours volunteered and the amount of money credited to your SportSignUp account. Please contact me if you detect any inaccuracies. MAST Individual Fundraiser: Urban Ventures (UV) Coffee Sales All MAST athletes are invited to participate in our Individual Fundraiser with Urban Ventures Coffee. Download the Fundraiser Information Page and the Fundraiser Order Form. Go door to door, reach out to family and friends and perfect strangers, hit up all those co-workers who always hit you up. Be sure to collect payment when the order is placed. Checks should be made payable to Mpls Alpine Ski Team. All the money you earn will be put into your SportsSignUp account for use during the season or next year—GR camp, supplemental training sessions, the banquet. Or save up credits to use next year to help cover your team fees. Collect orders and money from now until Wednesday, Dec. 4th. We prefer checks made payable to MAST, no credit cards. Turn in orders AND money at practice on Dec. 4th (or email to [email protected]). The orders will be ready for pick-up and delivery (by the athlete) on Dec. 14th. Don't forget to check our website frequently. See you on the hill. Mark Conway 612-275-8392 We had a good start to the season with three dryland training sessions at Washburn. Tonight we ski.
Training This Week and Next Tonight’s practice STARTS at 6:30pm and ENDS at 8:45pm. Be outside in front of the center chairlift at 6:30 with boots, skis, poles, helmet, and googles. We will leave the hill at 8:45. You will find the coaches and athletes changing into their boots upstairs and toward the north end of the chalet. Be sure that anything you leave in the chalet—a bag, shoes, winter boots, etc—has your name printed on it in permanent ink. AND... put your name on your skis and poles as well along with your phone number. AND... when you go home at night, make sure the skis and poles you are taking home are YOUR skis and poles. Remember, race skis and poles look the same. And with 100s of racers using Hyland every night, it is easy to grab someone else’s equipment. We will also ski on Saturday. Again, be ready to ski at 8:45am. We will head for the chalet at 11:30PM. Hyland’s plan is to close Monday and Tuesday next week, so we will hold dryland training again on the Washburn Stadium Field from 4:30-6PM both afternoons. We will ski Wednesday-Friday from 6:30-8:45PM and Saturday from 7:45AM-10:30AM. Tuning Clinic THIS Sunday, November 17 @ 7PM. Parents and athletes: Do you need to learn how to tune your skis? Co-Captain Luke Conway will lead a tuning clinic on Sunday, Nov 17th at the home of Nate and Jen Crawford. Address: 4928 Harriet Ave South. The tuning clinic will be in the Crawford’s garage, which will be heated—wear warm clothing nonetheless. Please attend if you need a refresher or do not know how to tune at all. Tuned skis are a NECESSITY of ski racing. Thank you to Nate and Jen for hosting. Training and Race Calendar A TENTATIVE training and race calendar is attached. I apologize for the delay. I have been waiting for Hyland to publish the lane assignments for the first two months of the season. Yesterday afternoon I received our lane assignments from Hyland. As I suspected, we were not able to get as many lanes as we requested at the times I requested. Last night, I submitted a second request for additional lanes at either the 3-5PM time slot or the 7-9PM time slot. The calendar I am sending to you INCLUDES those additional lane requests. So, depending on whether some or all of those requests are granted, this calendar may or may not change. I realize that only our high school athletes have a shot at taking advantage of the 3:30PM training session. We will just have to make the most of it. Drive safely, shuttle over, and boot up as quickly as you can. I will have the course(s) set by the time you get on the hill so you will be able to progress through your warm-up and train soon after. Note that some of the training sessions are designated as Varsity or JV. These are suggestions. If your car-pool or your needs align better with a different practice time, then come to the other training session. The coaches just want you on the hill. Raise Money For Yourself: Urban Ventures (UV) Coffee Sales All MAST athletes are invited to participate in our Individual Fundraiser with Urban Ventures Coffee. Download the Fundraiser Information Page and the Fundraiser Order Form. Go door to door, reach out to family and friends and perfect strangers, hit up all those co-workers who always hit you up. Be sure to collect payment when the order is placed. Checks should be made payable to Mpls Alpine Ski Team. All the money you earn will be put into your SportsSignUp account for use during the season or next year—GR camp, supplemental training sessions, the banquet. Or save up credits to use next year to help cover your team fees. Collect orders and money from now until Wednesday, Dec. 4th. We prefer checks made payable to MAST, no credit cards. Turn in orders AND money at practice on Dec. 4th (or email to [email protected]). The orders will be ready for pick-up and delivery (by the athlete) on Dec. 14th. More To Come... Look for an additional email from me this weekend. I will be sending you several documents that I want both PARENTS and ATHLETES to read and discuss together. Topics include: MAST Safety Rules MAST Skiing and Racing Etiquette and Protocols MAST Expectations of Athletes As you know, our team is large and it is impossible to gather everyone in one spot to deliver these messages, so I am trusting that our athletes have received a good education and can read several pages of very important information—about your role as an athlete on this team, about the flow of our practices and races, about what you can do to keep yourself safe in this sport, about how you can become the best athlete you can be by living a healthy lifestyle. Yes, it will cover a lot of information. It will be single-spaced. It will require that you engage your attention span over a sustained period of time. It will not be fun, entertaining, or quick. But it is VERY important information. It is ON YOU to read it, understand it, internalize it. See you on the hill this evening. Mark Conway 612-275-8392 Hyland is covered in white and opens tomorrow. I was told early in the week that Hyland would open for the weekend and then close again to make more snow during the week. I suspect that IF that is STILL their plan that they will re-open on Friday to 15th. Stay tuned. Be flexible. Be prepared to ski this week just in case Hyland stays open after this weekend.
MAST Parent Party and Race For The Golden Ski—Are You Signed Up? Sunday, November 10th from 3:00-6:00. Race for the coveted 'Golden Ski' is at 5:00 We'll have chili and all the fixins, cocoa, beer, wine, cider, and sodas.
Season Pass Picture Night and Pick Up All MAST athletes should come to Hyland on Monday, November 11 between 6:30 and 7:30PM to pick up your Hyland Season Pass. If you are under 18 years of age, you need to have your parents sign the attached Three Rivers Park District Waiver. If your parents are attending this event, they can sign it at Hyland. But if you are coming on your own or with a different family, please download, print, and have your parents sign this waiver and bring it with you. Individual Fundraiser Is Officially Open: Urban Ventures (UV) Coffee Sales All MAST athletes are invited to participate in our Individual Fundraiser with Urban Ventures Coffee. Download the Fundraiser Information Page and the Fundraiser Order Form. Go door to door, reach out to family and friends and perfect strangers, hit up all those co-workers who always hit you up. Be sure to collect payment when the order is placed. Checks should be made payable to Mpls Alpine Ski Team. All the money you earn will be put into your SportsSignUp account for use during the season or next year—GR camp, supplemental training sessions, the banquet. Or save up credits to use next year to help cover your team fees. WHY? Good Profit - Earn profit for each item the athlete sells. Help pay for supplemental training, Giants Ridge Camp, etc. The money from the sale benefits the INDIVIDUAL athlete, not the team. Good Coffee – Urban Ventures coffee is responsibly sourced, sustainably grown and roasted daily in Northeast Minneapolis in small batches. The roaster trades directly with coffee growers and brokers, ensuring integrity. Good Cause – Percentage of sales donated by the roaster directly to Urban Ventures for after-school mentoring and sports programs in the Central & Phillips neighborhoods. Good for Everyone – Who doesn’t drink coffee, tea or hot cocoa? Makes a great gift for the holiday season. WHAT WE’RE SELLING
HOW IT WORKS
MPS Registrations I know that the athletic directors are busy processing registration forms and clearing athletes for participation. I am keeping track of the athletes who are cleared to participate. Attached is the list of athletes who are CLEARED as of yesterday (Thursday evening). You will also see a list of athletes who have turned in some forms but are not fully cleared. See the notes provided by the ADs for information about what is missing. I have not heard from SW or Washburn today, so if your name is not on the attached list of cleared athletes, you may have been cleared today. If I hear from the ADs today or over the weekend, I will send a follow up email. If you haven’t gotten your forms into your Athletic Director, do so first thing Monday morning please. Thanks all... the fun is about to start. Mark Conway 612-275-8392 [email protected] Just a quick reminder that about 30 of you still need to take a Concussion Baseline Test.
Today is your last opportunity to do so with your alpine teammates. Tuesday, November 5, 2019 IMPACT Concussion Baseline Testing Southwest High School ONLY--Classroom E 107 Option 1: 3:15PM-4:15PM Option 2: 4:30PM-5:30PM Arrive no later than 10 minutes before the session start. The test takes approximately one hour to complete. Captains' Practice, 4:30-6:00 pm, Lynnhurst Park Thursday, November 7, 2019 Captains' Practice, 4:30-6:00 pm, Lynnhurst Park Sunday, November 10, 2019 MAST Parent Party, 3-6PM Hyland Hills Ski Jump Lodge 8325 E Bush Lake Rd in Bloomington SIGN UP HERE Hyland may be opening this weekend, but just for the weekend. They will likely close for the first part of the week to make more snow. Hopefully we will be skiing the following weekend as a team. For those of you who purchased a pass through MAST: if you would like to ski this weekend, you may pick up your pass at Hyland during normal business hours at Hyland. Your purchase will be listed under the Minneapolis Alpine Ski Team . You will need to give the clerk this piece of information or he/she will not be able to find you in the computer. All of you who paid for a season pass through MAST will be listed under the MAST account. Those of you who purchased a pass directly from Hyland will be listed under your family name, not in the MAST account. If you are under 18, a parent needs to sign the attached Waiver. You will need to submit this waiver when you pick up your pass--either on Monday or earlier. Don't forget to bring it along if a parent is not going to be present when you pick up the pass. Hopefully everyone has gotten their forms turned into your high school athletic director. If you have not done so, please get this done this week. See you all very soon. Mark 612-275-8392 We have concussion baseline testing TODAY and next week (Nov 5).
Today's testing is at both SW and Washburn. Testing at SW ONLY on Nov 5. Both sites have two testing sessions: 3:15 and 4:30. It would be helpful to arrive 10 minutes before the start of the session. Washburn: Enter Door 5 off the 49th street parking lot (the door near the dumpsters). Walk past the gyms and turn left and walk to the cafeteria. Southwest: Enter through The Link on 47th Street and proceed to Classroom E 107. Washburn's Athletic Trainer: Reggie Ronning Southwest's Athletic Trainer: Kelsey Gleichwacker For those who do not need to take the test this year or will be taking it next week at SW, you are invited to attend Captains' Practice today at Lynnhurst Park from 4:30-5:30. Hyland is making snow. See the attached picture from this morning. Thank you Coach Thorn for the update. I will be at Washburn. I don't think we will have a coach at SW but if you run into any problems, send me a text: 612-275-8392. Thanks, Mark Winter has officially arrived. Wild Mt opens tonight. An October ski area opening is a rare phenomenon. Take a moment to reflect on this moment in Minnesota skiing history. Mark this date in your diary. If you can actually get out to Wild for some skiing between now and Thursday, you will be able to tell your grandkids all about it someday.
So... let’s make sure we are ready to go on November 11....just in case these temps continue and Hyland can get the snow down quickly. MPS Athletics Registration If you have not turned in your athletic forms to your high school athletic director, do so this week. Here is a link to print the forms: Washburn Forms Forms For All Other High Schools Roster and Car Pools If you have visited our website recently, you will see that registration is now closed. You received via email a roster with contact information for each athlete and his or her family. Please respect this information. It should only be used to communicate within the team for MAST purposes only. The most immediate purpose would be to form carpools. If you are a returning MAST skier and have room in your existing carpool for another skier, please feel free to reach out to someone new on the team who might live close by. We need to help out each other so our skiers can get on the snow. Another idea for use? Veterans, you could invite a rookie MAST skier and parent over to your home for a tutorial on ski tuning. Captains’ Practices I am told that Captains’ Practices will be held at Lynnhurst Park from 4:30-6PM starting today. Here are the dates.
Sprongo This weekend, I sent an invitation through Sprongo to our new teammates to become members of the Minneapolis Alpine Ski Team Sprongo site. Sprongo is the video sharing service we use to host video clips of your skiing. The clips are only viewable by MAST skiers and families. A few of you already set up your personal account in Sprongo. Most of you have not. I will be sending an invitation again tonight just in case you deleted the first one. The invitation was sent to the email address that was requested and listed for the athlete in the SportsSignUp registration process. Please check that email account for the invitation to join Sprongo. If you are a returning MAST skier who does not have a Sprongo account set up for yourself, let me know and I will send you an invitation to join as well. Some Dos:
Two Do Nots:
Concussion Baseline Testing Here are the dates, times and locations for taking the concussion baseline tests before the season starts. Wednesday, October 30 @ Southwest and Washburn Option I: 3:15PM Option 2: 4:30PM Room: TBA Tuesday, November 5 at Southwest Option I: 3:15PM Option 2: 4:30PM Room: TBA Anyone who is new to MAST or who did not take the baseline test last year MUST take the test this year. I realize that these dates and times might conflict with Captains’ Practices, so you might have to miss one session. See the attached roster of athletes who took the test last year and do not need to take it this year. Everyone NOT on this list needs to take a concussion baseline test. MAST Parent Party and Race For The Golden Ski Sunday, November 10th from 3:00-6:00. Race for the coveted 'Golden Ski' is at 5:00 We'll have chili and all the fixins, cocoa, beer, wine, cider, and sodas.
Season Pass Picture Night and Pick Up All MAST athletes should come to Hyland on Monday, November 11 between 6:30 and 7:30PM to pick up your Hyland Season Pass. If you are under 18 years of age, you need to have your parents sign the attached Three Rivers Park District Waiver. If your parents are attending this event, they can sign it at Hyland. But if you are coming on your own or with a different family, please download, print, and have your parents sign this waiver and bring it with you. Dryland Official practices begin on Tuesday, November 12, 4:30-6PM at Washburn HS. Dryland continues Monday-Friday until we get on snow at Hyland. Meanwhile: Get your equipment ready. Try on and wear your boots around the house (only on the carpet of course.). Sharpen and wax your skis. Get your ski clothes organized. Make sure you know where everything is. We could be skiing on very short notice. Hyland can fully cover its runs with snow in 48 hours once the temps stay below freezing for extended periods of time. Looking forward for the season to begin. Mark Conway 612-275-8392 |
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