Greetings NENSA community,

As we approach the NENSA Annual Board Meeting this weekend in Hanover, NH, we have been assessing, reporting, and planning.

By any metric, we had a truly outstanding 2022-23 at NENSA! Our programming reach rose by over 1,000 skiers to 8,170 registrants. Our membership grew by over 11%. We expanded our Introductory offerings, served new audiences, and saw attendance that eclipsed any previous year at both Women’s Day (218) and the BKL Festival (667). The New England division, even with lengthy travel and conditions not typical of our region, defended the Alaska Cup in Fairbanks. This pinnacle achievement reflects so much more: the breadth of our base, the strength of our pipeline, the quality of our programming, and the collaboration in our community.

Stay tuned in the coming weeks as we roll out plans that are well underway for 2023-24: rollerski and Eastern Cup schedules, venue announcements for championship events, and new program announcements are being finalized and will appear here very shortly.

With the turn of the calendar to May, we officially launch the new ski year and look forward to all of the collaborating and congregating that involves. Thank you for all that you do to enrich NENSA through your engagement and participation in whatever form that takes. It truly does take a village and I’m glad you are part of ours.

In this week’s edition of KickZone

• Remembering Fred Fayette
• NENSA Seeks Youth & Introductory Program Director - application deadline this Saturday, May 6
• Welcoming Nominations for NENSA Annual Awards - through May 7
• Lessons Learned in Fairbanks
• Popular and Eastern Cup Bidding Open for 2023-2024 Season
• Scenes from the Community
• GMVS Summer Camp Registration
• SMS Summer Camp Registration
• Dublin XC Summer Camp Registration

All my best,

Heidi

Heidi Lange

Executive Director

New England Nordic Ski Association

heidi@nensa.net

www.nensa.net

Thank you!

Memberships directly support all of our year-round programming,

backing us in our mission to nurture and sustain an active cross country ski

community for all ages and levels throughout the East. 

Thank you for taking a minute to join or renew your NENSA membership,

and for the important support that it provides!

Please join me in thanking and supporting our wonderful NENSA Sponsors 

for their generous contributions and the ongoing impact that they have on NENSA programming and cross country skiing in New England!

Our New England ski community lost a loyal, dedicated, generous, and kind soul last week. Through his decades of commitment as a volunteer assistant coach at UVM, Fred Fayette touched the lives of so many. Our thoughts are with Fred's family, the UVM community, and countless others in the ski community who had the privilege of knowing him.

The New England Nordic Ski Association (NENSA) seeks a dynamic and outgoing person to be our next full time Youth & Introductory Program Director (Y&IPD). This role is responsible for NENSA’s youth programming including the New England Bill Koch League (BKL) and Festival, the Nordic Rocks school program, and Bill Koch League coach/leader education. This role is also responsible for Women’s XC Ski Day and additional Learn-to-Ski events and opportunities. The Y&IPD co-shares responsibility for Eastern U16 and High School Championships and all summer rollerski programming. An ideal candidate will be familiar with NENSA and the Northeast ski community, incredibly self-motivated, and able to work independently from home. This role requires strong, inspired leadership with a synergetic spirit to galvanize and work with our ski community.

Application deadline: Saturday, May 6

The NENSA staff is accepting nominations for folks in our New England ski community who fulfill the ideals of our Annual Awards. These awards honor the achievements and contributions of our members who work to support NENSA’s mission of sustaining a vibrant and active Nordic skiing community in New England. Click HERE to submit a nomination for any of the awards listed below. Nominations are being accepted through May 7.

• John Caldwell Award
• Coach of the Year
• Club of the Year
• Chummy Broomhall Award
• Bill Koch League Youth Leadership Award

Thank you to David Northcott for sharing his journey and the following poignant message

Following the Alaska trip, I was asked to put together a slideshow of my BKL to JN’s progression for a presentation to my local BKL group. In my time spent searching through old pictures and results, I thought it was cool to see how many of the people who raced in Fairbanks with me have been racing alongside me since first grade. Even more interestingly, many of these people, now some of the fastest in New England, have not always been dominant. This made me think about my Nationals experience and draw some connections...

THANK YOU TO OUR NENSA CONTRIBUTING SPONSORS

U.S. Ski & Snowboard works to provide a safe environment in which athletes can train and compete, free from abuse and inappropriate behavior. Please review U.S. Ski & Snowboard's Athlete Safety policies, the SafeSport Code, and the Minor Athlete Abuse Prevention Policies and join us in sustaining a culture of safety.

If you are an athlete who has experienced inappropriate behavior or know of an athlete who has experienced inappropriate behavior, report a concern:

The U.S. Center for SafeSport

Hotline:  833-587-7233

Report:  CLICK HERE

U.S. Ski & Snowboard

Report: CLICK HERE

We all are part of promoting a culture of safety through education, listening, and speaking up.

THANK YOU TO OUR NENSA SUPPORTING SPONSORS

July 25-30, 2023

Build training volume on foot and on rollerskis while exploring our local roads, mountains, trails, and rivers. Increase your strength in our world-class Racing Performance Center, and enjoy rejuvenating recovery sessions led by our experienced coaching staff. This year's camp will conclude with a race effort!

BKL Camp: Aug 7-10

Junior Camp: Aug 10-13

The SMS Nordic Program has combined sports science, a variety of proven training methods, a culture of athlete-driven excellence, and of course, FUN(!) to boast one of the most successful Nordic programs in the world. The program's unprecedented national and international success has produced 16 Olympians in the past seven Winter Olympics. Over 35 SMS Nordic athletes have made the U.S. World Junior Team, and 25 have made the U.S. National Team. Each Summer, SMS Nordic hosts two summer camps for young skiers filled on a first-come, first-served basis.

BKL Camp: Aug 9-11

High School Camp: Aug 9-12

Join us for a training camp that covers all aspects of dryland training for nordic skiing and will prepare you to be the best skier you can be next winter. Our camp has developed a reputation for its perfect balance of hard work and fun!

Dublin is the optimal setting for our nordic ski camp. Our quiet, paved roads provide great opportunities for rollerskiing, the Nordic Center has miles of single track for running and mountain biking, and the pristine Dublin Lake offers a great way to cool off after every workout. We’ll reside on the Dublin School campus where we will take advantage of the dining hall’s tasty meals, a fully equipped weight room, and an alpine ski slope that’s for the camp’s famous hill bounding workouts. Mount Monadnock is a quick jog from campus and provides an optimal venue for our distance hike at the conclusion of camp.

NNF Thanks US Ski Community for Successful 2022-23 Ski Season

April 21, 2023 | by Ben Theyerl

The National Nordic Foundation expresses its gratitude to the entire ski community for the sustained support that helped make the 2022-23 ski season a success for American athletes at home and on the world stage.

From those at the grassroots of the sport, and to those chasing World Championships and podiums, American skiers are working together. This winter was a testament to that, as more skiers, from more places in our community, reached higher goals than ever before. That relies upon an approach which empowers the creative and dynamic individuals in the ski community to bring their talents to the fore. It relies on our supporters. The generous donors who made our annual Drive for 25 the most successful ever, the coaches and athletes who lent their time, energy, and talents to chasing dreams at ski races around the world, and the people driving NNF and its partners. The never-before-seen results from American juniors on the world stage, competition that showed the robust investment in club skiing, and top-level success were all outward signs of a commitment from the US skiing to lifting up the dreams of American skiers and creating sustainable success. This ski season was another special one, and NNF is proud to have been powered by the community of supporters that made it so. Read more HERE

THANK YOU TO OUR NENSA OFFICIAL SUPPLIERS

New England Nordic Ski Association

P.O. Box 97

Lyme, NH 03768

Phone: 207-688-6503