Winona SkiSparks Club

Welcome to the Winona Youth Ski League!

MYSL is a volunteer organization that teaches kids 4 years of age through 6th grade the basics of Nordic sking.  The season is 7-8 weeks long and meets once a week starting in January and going through the end of February. (No practice the week of the Birkie Ski race due to coaches being out of town-- Feb 23).

Schedule and location

We will meet on Thursdays from 4-5:15pm at the St. Mary's trails beginning on January 4th, 2023.

We will meet on lower campus on the field by Yons.  (same place as last year)  I will contact Campus Security to have the gate open on the service road around 3:00pm so you don't have to drive through upper campus. **Do not plan on this, this is not consistently done!**

Registration

Registration will be online at mysl.org  Registration fee is $40.  Rental will be $20 per skier, also paid online.  Please supply the email address of the person that needs to know cancelation/announcements information, you can add additional email address.  Contact info@myxc.org if you need help with this. 

Age groups may fill up and close for registration. 

Announcements

Announcements will be relayed via email (please supply the email address of the person that needs to know current announcements/cancelation information when registering)

Weather and cancellation policy

Practice will be canceled on any days that school is not in session/canceled due to weather closings or the air temp is below O degrees Farenheit. Check weatherchannel.com at 2pm, parent discretion is always advised.  I will try to send out an email before 2:30pm.  Sessions may be shortened due to cold weather.

Equipment

Equipment for both MYSL and Skiwerx programs have primarily been purchased with grant money from the Morrie Miller Foundation as well as supplemented with rental fees.

Equipment will be handed out at Adventure Bike and Ski date TBD.  Please mark your calendars. Do NOT come early.  Children should come to equipment distribution to try on boots and be fitted for skis and older kids will have poles. Equipment will be collected at Adventure at a date TBD. If you are not at that session you will need to make arrangements to return equipment in a timely manner.

 It is strongly recommended that parents wanting to help their child during the lessons be on skis. The groomers spend lots of volunteer time and energy grooming the trails and we don't want to give them extra work by erasing boot footprints.  This especially goes for the youngest groups.

Take care of equipment.  Only ski on snow, DO NOT ski in parking lots or across bike paths.  Misuse of equipment will not be tolerated.  i.e.) skiing over man made jumps, skiing down the sled hill, or skiing off trail.

Any broken equipment by misuse will need to be purchased by the renter for replacement.

 Volunteering

MYSL is a volunteer-run organization. The more volunteers, the more groups we can have!  We have lots of interested kids, let me know if you can lead (coach) a group. 

Parents are encouraged to attend practice and learn with the kids, while on skis.

Parking and other fees

Parking is free in designated lots, but limited in Yons.  Trail fees are on a volunteer basis, we recommend contributing to the trail fund to help defray the costs of grooming and trail maintence, all done by volunteers!  The groomers actually do special grooming for us to make our play areas. You can send a check to Winona Ski Club PO box 263 Winona, MN 55987 for trail grooming.

Miscellaneous

1.  Bathrooms are not easily accessible from the trail. Yons is a college dorm that houses music practice rooms, their bathrooms are not for public use.  Please make sure children have taken care of bathroom needs before practice.  Coaches CANNOT leave the group to take someone to the bathroom, parents can.  The Brother Jerome Center (lower level in the new dorm) has a warming area and bathrooms on upper campus for use.

2.  Clothing:  hats and mittens are required.  Snow pants and mittens that resist water are best.  We also recommend wool socks to keep feet warm and maybe long underware.  You may also want to try hand/feet warmers, found at Fleet Farm.  Sole sports on 2nd St. carries children wool socks!

3.  Please be ON TIME!!!  We will be getting going right away.  We do not want kids standing around getting cold while waiting for group members to arrive.

4.  Winonanordic.com is the ski club website, add to your favorites and find info on programming and the ski club banquet (yearly fundraiser).

5.  Also, "like" winonanordic on facebook to get updates on what's happening in the ski community.

RACING

Mysl does sponser youth races, mostly in the Twin Cities.  You will recieve this information in the SnowNotes newsletter that will be sent out by MYSL.  There is a children's race added to the SMU Invite in late January.  More info to follow.

Contact info

Erin Holey

erinholey@gmail.com

507-458-3822