Upcoming Events
11/14/2020
Save the date! The details may change a bit, but we will have a great 2020 Ski Swap!
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Lake Elmo SUNDAY Youth Ski Club
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Location
1515 Keats Ave N
55042
Lake Elmo
, MN
Phone:
651-430-8370
See map: Google Maps
Minnesota
Venue Name:
Lake Elmo Regional Park
Registration:
Full
Meets:
Sunday
:
2:00-3:30pm
Starts:
January 5, 2020 - 2:00pm
Rentals:
Club Rentals - closed
Membership:
$50
Ski Pass:
MN Ski Pass for skiers 16 and over
Other (Equipment Options):
Club online rentals: Classic $45
Leader:
Heather Carlson or Ami Schakel ,
:
612-396-5603
Email:
11/18/19 Update on Registration:
Just a quick note that our Sunday Lake Elmo Park Reserve club is full. Please consider the Saturday morning option at Lake Elmo Park Reserve or another nearby club on Sundays. Battle Creek, Willow River, and Tamarack are some great second choice clubs. You can put your name on the Lake Elmo Sunday waiting list here and we will contact you if room becomes available.
10/8/19 Update on Rentals:
Hello Skiers! I wanted to post an update that all rentals for the Sunday Lake Elmo Ski MYSL Group have been spoken for. Thankfully, there are other options to participate in cross-country skiing with MYSL this year:
Option 1: We'd love to have you in our Sunday group! A great way to get used skis is to attend the MYSL Ski Swap (near Fort Snelling) on November 16th. Feel free to send me an email if you would like more infomation about this event. lake_elmo@mysl.org
Option 2: The Battle Creek SkiSparks Club, Willow River SkiSparks Club, Tamarack SkiSparks Club, and Lebanon Hills SkiSparks Club are also options that have ski rentals available. Check out their club pages for more information.
Option 4: In the past, some vendors have offered discounted ski packages (usually around 10% off) for our group members. Please email me if this is something you are interested in and I will look into whether those options exist this year. lake_elmo@mysl.org
Thank you!
Heather Carlson
Welcome to the Sunday Lake Elmo MYSL Club 2019-2020!
We are excited to add a Saturday club this year to our Lake Elmo location. If you are interested in that day instead of Sunday, please navigate back to our new Lake Elmo Saturday club page.
Registration:
Registration will open October 7th. We will post a link to the registration page once registration is open. Ski rental registration will also open at that time. Note that there are a limited number of ski sets to rent, so please register early.
Ski rentals:
The skis provided for rental are waxless, fishscale skis. These skis go home with you for the season and you are able to take them out and practice at other times. Levels 5 and 6 utilize skate skis and these are not available for rental.
If you had hoped to rent skis and rentals are closed, you could consider checking out our Saturday club. They will also have some ski sets available to rent.
If you would prefer to purchase used skis, the MyXChange Ski Swap and Expo will be held Saturday, November 16, 2019, at Northern Star Council Base Camp near Fort Snelling.
Location, Dates, and Time:
Lake Elmo Sunday MYSL will meet 8 Sundays from 2:00-3:30pm from Sunday, January 5, 2020 through Sunday, March 1, 2020. We will not meet over the Birkebeiner weekend (February 23).
We will meet at the Chalet in Lake Elmo Park Reserve, which is the first right turn into a parking lot about 1/2 mile after you pass the park entrance building. You will need to purchase a vehicle permit ($7 Daily/$30 Annual/$20 for a second vehicle annual) before entering the park.
Plan to arrive a bit earlier to help your child/ren get their equipment on.
Levels and age guidelines are as follows:
For children who are new to MYSL: Assign the child to the lowest skill level that spans their age as of January 1. If a child has skied at least 10 times, consider advancing them one skill level.
For returning skiers: Please use the recommendation you received from last year’s coaches. We will be using the first couple of meetings to assess if kids should move to a different level.
More about skill levels here: http://mysl.org/skill-levels. Questions about levels? Contact us at lake_elmo@mysl.org
Classic ski lessons:
Level I: Ages 4-7 (parents ski or walk along with the child). Note: Level one lessons are often closer to an hour, especially if temperatures are low.
Level 2: Ages 6-8 (parents check in occasionally)
Levels 3-6: Do not require parent check-ins, but children are expected to respect and follow their coaches instructions while on the trail. Safety is a top priority while out in winter conditions.
Level 3: Ages 7-10
Level 4: Ages 8-12
Skate ski lessons:
Skate skiers must purchase their own used or new equipment. Our club does not have skate ski rental equipment available.
Level 5: Ages 9-13
Level 6: Ages 11-14
Weather and cancellation policy:
We will not ski if the air temperature is below -10˚ F or the wind chill is below -30˚ F, or at the leader’s discretion. Cancellations will be posted on this Web page under “Announcements” and e-mailed to registered members of the club.
Children should be dressed in layers. A moisture wicking under layer, an insulating layer, and a wind proof layer are typically appropriate. Wool socks such as Smartwool are great for wicking moisture and keeping the kids toes warm. Please use your discretion noting your child’s activity level and the outside temperature/wind chill. Often a winter jacket and snow pants or a snowsuit are too warm once the child gets skiing unless they are young and in the beginner group.
Volunteering:
This is an all volunteer run club. The success and affordability of this program comes directly from your contributions of time, energy, and talent.
We are thrilled to have many returning coaches this year, but would love to have extra adults out on the trails with the kids as assistant coaches or sweepers. You may even choose to get out with a level that is different from the level your child is signed up for. It’s a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon in the winter!
Snacks:
We do ask that families sign up to help with snacks during the season. The kids work really hard on their skis and love coming back to the chalet to warm up and build community with other families in the program.
Donating:
If you have any skis, poles, or boots you no longer use, please consider donating them to the Lake Elmo MYSL Club. We would add them to our rental fleet or if they are not NNN bindings with fish scales we will bring them to the swap and use the funds to purchase new rental skis. We are especially in need of skis for the older kids. MYSL is a 501c3 organization, so please let us know if you would like paperwork for tax purposes.
**Note on Adult Lessons -
We are unable to offer adult lessons through Endurance United at the same time as our MYSL lessons this year. Endurance United does offer lessons at various times throughout the week, so visit their webpage if you are interested. If you have a child who is 9 or older, MYSL’s next step ski program (EU Skiwerx) will meet Tuesdays and Thursdays this year (see Endurance United’s webpage for more details). There is an adult program that meets at the same time and location (Battle Creek/Hyland) on Thursday nights as the kids.
Volunteer Leaders: Heather Carlson & Ami Schakel lake_elmo@mysl.org
Parent email sent 1/26/19:
Hello MYSL families!
I've been watching the weather and the temps don't appear to be dropping below our threshold, so we are willing to meet up with those who would like to experience another kind of winter (or any time of the year) fun.
The plan for tomorrow will be to meet at Lake Elmo at 2:00 to go orienteering. There are 3 permanent courses at Lake Elmo. The distances are 1.55, 2.76, and 4.0 km. I learned how to lead the beginner course yesterday and it was a blast. You will be able to choose which course you'd like to go on when we meet at Lake Elmo. Here's an overview of information:
- There are maps at the visitor center that can be purchased for $4.00. Our club already has 6, which should be sufficient, but if you wanted a map of your own this is an option.
- A compass is not necessary for the beginner route. However, if you own a compass this would be a great time to bring it out.
- We think this is a great opportunity for the whole family to be active. We would love to have parent participation. It's a great way to get to know the other families in our club. If you have experience with orienteering, please let me know. We'd love to have you share your knowledge!
- Dress warm! I was dressed in my snow pants, warm mittens, neck gator, hat, wool socks, and snowboots yesterday and felt very comfortable even though the air temperature was -6. You can add the hand or foot warmers if you'd like.
Volunteer Opportunities:
-If there is a person (or two) who would like to volunteer to prepare our snack while we are out, it would be very helpful.
If you have any questions, please let me know. I am enjoying watching these tiny flakes of snow fall this morning. C'mon snow!!!
Parent email sent 1/17/19:
Hello Parents of Lake Elmo MYSL skiers!
The conditions have not improved at Lake Elmo, so we will again be heading to Elm Creek this weekend. A huge thank you to all of the coaches who are making this an option for our club!!!
I’ve heard a lot of positive feedback from last weekend, which is wonderful. We are hoping for another great weekend, but there will be a couple differences:
1) This weekend will be the coldest we’ve had this year. As a result, we will be meeting at 2:55 outside at the back (trail side) of the chalet to keep the kids warm as long as possible. This is the same meeting place as last week. Our total time outside will likely be reduced due to the temperatures. Please understand even a 45 minute session on a cold day is a beneficial ski session. Below I’ve pasted our winter gear guidelines to help your kids stay warm.
2) This weekend will be busier. Elm Creek’s club of 100 kids meets from 2:00-4:00. They will likely reduce their club time outside as well, but it may feel more crowded this weekend.
Again we will have families bring their own snack. If this is your first time coming to Elm Creek or you need a refresher about how the day will go, please refer to the email sent 1/11/19, which is also posted on our club’s MYSL website. If you have any questions, let me know!
**Parents who are enrolled in the Learn to Ski class, you will be meeting this weekend. I do not have a list of parents who are enrolled in this class. If you could connect with me, we can make sure that your kids have a place to hang out if they are done with their session before your session ends.
We hope to see you on Sunday!
Heather Carlson - Lake Elmo MYSL Club Coordinator
Winter Gear Guidelines:
Cold feet and hands are the most common issue. Use this checklist for success:
• Dry boots: Boots need to be dried out near a heat source between uses. They can’t stay in the car or garage.
• Wool socks: No poly blends, no cotton. Really. I mean it.
• Dry socks: A dry pair of socks needs to be put on right before you put on your boots. This makes a big difference.
• No updrafts: Cold hands can often mean your body is too cool. Make sure jackets are not too big and billowy. To stop drafts, stuff jackets into pants, tighten drawstrings or wear a drink belt.
• Put on a hat (and a neck gator): We all know we lose a lot of heat through our heads. But making sure your ears and neck are covered is just as important. Buffs, muffs, or neck warmers are almost essential. Having the ability to cover your face up to your eyes makes a difference. The trapped warm air from breathing really helps keep the cheeks and nose warm.
• Good gloves: Good ski gloves/mittens are an investment and can be found at ski retailers, but they are worth it. Keeping track of these should be in your job description. These should not be your child's school playground mittens.
• Hand/Foot warmers: These are oxygen activated and you can “turn them off” by putting them in an airtight container (such as a jam jar). You can get about three uses out of each pack.
• Calories: A skier that is low on calories will have a hard time staying warm. Bringing back up snacks and drinks is always a good idea.
Parent email sent 1/11/19:
Hello Lake Elmo MYSL families!
The email below is the same as the one I previously sent from Gmail, but this time it is coming from the MYSL site. This will be the way I distribute emails going forward. If you notice any significant differences between the two, please let me know so we can work out any issues. I also wanted to add that there is not a fee for parking when we head to Elm Creek.
Thanks!
Heather
Are you ready for an adventure to Elm Creek this weekend? If not, we totally understand and hope to have some snow by the 20th. This weekend there will be 100 fewer kids on the trails since Elm Creeks MYSL club has the weekend off, so it’s a great time to learn how this place works! Let’s run through how this will work for you and your family!
Leaving your house - I was told by other coordinators to plan to leave EARLY allowing plenty of time to get situated before the start of the lesson. One of the other MYSL clubs had families that made it to their club meeting 40 minutes late last week due to the number of people getting on the shuttles. To get to the shuttle parking, you keep going past the chalet until you reach shuttle parking (there will be signs). I believe there is a sign as you enter that it says parking is a mile away. It felt like a longer drive to me, but you’ll see the parking spaces when you get there!!!
Checking in - I will have a large poster board that says “Lake Elmo MYSL” on it. At 2:45 the coaches and I will be heading to the back side of the chalet (where the trails are) to have skiers check in. Please be ready to meet your coach there at that time. This will be the same location the coaches bring the kids when we are finished skiing (around 4:30). Since you will hopefully have some wait time if you get there early, I’d suggest bringing some easy family games to play while we wait. Some games that work fairly well for travel could be UNO, crazy 8s, old maid, spot it, etc. Our family has even played Rock, Paper, Scissors and “I Spy” when I left our entertainment bag in the car.
On the trails -
- Level 1 parents are allowed to walk on a side trail to get to Elm Creek’s stadium area. Our Level 1 coaches will show you where to walk when we head out. If your child needs to walk down the initial hill, be SURE they do not walk in the trails made for classic skiers. They need to be to the left of those trails as much as possible. After arriving in the practice area, parents will need to stand off to the side this time, unless they are on skis. There should be no foot traffic in the practicing area.
- Kids that are new to skiing this year will want to stick with Level 2 (if they have not practiced going down hills) or Level 3 this time. Those skiing at a Level 4 level should be able to handle their speed going down steeper hills and should be familiar with climbing steeper hills as well.
- Kids will need to be paying extra close attention to their surroundings. There are some areas where skiers are skiing both ways and kids will need to be looking both ways before they cross. There was additional information on Trail Etiquette in the most recent SnowNotes. Please let me know if you did not receive this email.
- For higher levels, please let your kids know that with the steeper hills they will be going down hills one-by-one at the direction of their coaches and will need to start slow.
- Please remind your child that it will be really important to be an extra good listener for their coach. There will be so much more going on than at our peaceful Lake Elmo. It should be a great experience, but it will definitely be different :)
Checking out - Coaches will bring the kids back to the chalet close to 4:30. Please note that your child may return with a different coach if they were not comfortable with the hills that their group would be tackling. Coaches will check in with their group of skiers before advancing to steeper hills. If a skier does not wish to go with the group, their coaches will personally connect with the coach in the level below to make sure the skier is accounted for.
As a reminder, those 12 and older will need a trail pass ($9) this Sunday. Please consider grabbing this online since the line can be EXTREMELY long due to downhill skiing, snowboarding, and tubing.
Please let me know if you have questions about this!
Thank you!
Heather
Update as of 12/2/18:
Our Lake Elmo Adult "Learn to Ski" class through Endurance United is full. Endurance United does offer other classes at different times during the week. See their website for more details.
Update as of 11/8/18:
Lake Elmo SkiSparks is full. Thank you to our dedicated coaches, and some new coaches who said YES to volunteering, we were able to expand our club by 20 more skiers. We are now at our permitting capacity. We encourage you to register for one of our other SkiSparks clubs if your first choice is full. SkiSparks clubs are more alike than different. All use the same curriculum and coaching philosophy. Additionally, all clubs in the Twin Cities metro area have been assigned a back-up location at a facility with snowmaking (Hyland, Elm Creek, Wirth or Edina).
We have worked hard throughout the spring, summer and fall to open new clubs close to our most popular locations so every child has the opportunity to ski with SkiSparks at a location near them. In fact, this year we have SIX new metro clubs, many with equipment rental options! Our new clubs are all led by experienced skiers with a passion for teaching kids how to ski. Families now have even more options to ski with friends, in a location convenient for you.
Please check our Find A Club page for a list of all our clubs around the region. Below are some suggestions for a great second choice:
Lake Elmo SkiSparks alternatives:
- Tamarack (White Bear Lake)
- Willow River (Hudson, WI)
- Battle Creek (St. Paul)
- Como (St. Paul)
- Lebanon Hills (Eagan)
- Irondale (New Brighton)
Welcome to the Lake Elmo MYSL Club 2018-2019!
We are looking forward to another wonderful winter of skiing! Please read through the information below to get a better understanding of our club.
Registration
Registration will open around October 9th. We will post a link to the registration page once registration is open. Ski rental registration will also open at that time.
**Note: MyXChange Ski Swap and Expo will be held Saturday, November 17, 2018, Basecamp at Fort Snelling.
New this year! We will offer adult lessons in cooperation with Endurance United! Sessions are designed for new skiers. Join the experienced EU staff for five sessions to quickly improve your skiing. At the end of the 5 sessions, we invite you to ski along with your kids in their group and support the lead coaches. Each session will have a coach dedicated to skate skiing and classic skiing. These sessions take place at the same place and time the kids are skiing (what could be more convenient than that?). Register through Endurance United.
Location, Dates, and Time
Lake Elmo MYSL will meet 8 Sundays from 2:00-3:30pm from Sunday, December 30, 2018 through Sunday, February 17, 2019.
We will meet at the Chalet in Lake Elmo Park Reserve, which is the first right turn into a parking lot about 1/2 mile after you pass the park entrance building. You will need to purchase a vehicle permit ($7 Daily/$30 Annual/$20 for a second vehicle annual) before entering the park.
Plan to arrive a bit earlier to help your child/ren get their equipment on.
**If you are renting skis, we will be be fitting kids for the right size at the Lake Elmo Chalet on November 11th. The exact time is yet to be determined but likely around 3:00.
Levels and age guidelines are as follows
For children who are new to MYSL: Assign the child to the lowest skill level that spans their age as of January 1. If a child has skied at least 10 times, consider advancing them one skill level.
For returning skiers: If you are questioning your child’s ski level, please contact us at lake_elmo@mysl.org for a recommendation based on last year’s sessions. It is common for kids to repeat skill levels, so returning families need to choose a skill based on last season’s performance, but still staying within the age ranges. Coaches will re-assess at the first club session as well.
Classic ski lessons expectations:
Level I: Ages 4-7 (parents ski along with the child)
Level 2: Ages 6-8 (parents check in occasionally)
Levels 3-6: Do not require parent check-ins, but children are expected to respect and follow their coaches instructions while on the trail. Safety is a top priority while out in winter conditions.
Level 3: Ages 7-10
Level 4: Ages 8-12
Skate ski lessons : Skate skiers must purchase their own used or new equipment, our club does not have skate ski rental equipment
Level 5: Ages 9-13
Level 6: Ages 11-14
More about skill levels here: http://mysl.org/skill-levels. Questions about levels? Contact us at lake_elmo@mysl.org
Weather and cancellation policy
We will not ski if the air temperature is below -10˚ F or the wind chill is below -30˚ F, or at the leader’s discretion. Cancellations will be posted on this Web page under “Announcements” and e-mailed to registered members of the club.
Children should be dressed in layers. A moisture wicking under layer, an insulating layer, and a wind proof layer are typically appropriate. Wool socks such as Smartwool are great for wicking moisture and keeping the kids toes warm. Please use your discretion noting your child’s activity level and the outside temperature/wind chill. Often a winter jacket and snow pants or a snowsuit are too warm once the child gets skiing unless they are young and in the beginner group.
Volunteering
This is an all volunteer run club. The success and affordability of this program comes directly from your contributions of time, energy, and talent. By registering for this club, you are committing to the club’s success and are agreeing to volunteer.
We are currently seeking to fill 3-4 Coach and Assistant Coach positions. If you have any classic or skate ski experience, you can be a coach! We can offer coach training and will support you through your first year of coaching. Please email us if you have an interest in coaching and we can discuss the options with you to find the best fit/level for you to coach or assistant coach this year.
Donating
If you have any skis, poles, or boots you no longer use, please consider donating them to the Lake Elmo MYSL Club. We would add them to our rental fleet or if they are not NNN bindings with fish scales we will bring them to the swap and use the funds to purchase new rental skis. We are especially in need of skis for the older kids. MYSL is a 501c3 organization, so please let us know if you would like paperwork for tax purposes.
Volunteer Leaders: Heather Carlson & Ami Schakel lake_elmo@mysl.org
Important upcoming dates for the 2018-2019 Season
-Ski rental fitting Sunday, November 11, 2018, Lake Elmo Chalet
-MyXChange (Ski Swap + Expo): Saturday, November 17, 2018, Basecamp at Fort Snelling
-MYSL Coaches Training (Elm Creek Park): December
-Nordic Opener: Saturday, December 8, Elm Creek
-Club meetings begin: Sunday, December 30, Lake Elmo
-Birkie Weekend: February 21-23
-Midwest Junior Champs and Festival: March 2-3, Theodore Wirth Park