North Tahoe School, which only has about 300 kids in sixth, seventh, and eighth grades, had over 60 of them on the cross-country ski team last year. Why? It could be related to the fact that Tahoe Cross Country Ski Area is right out the back door of the school. Or it could be because, with only eight schools in the state that cross-country ski, including five around Lake Tahoe, cross-country skiing is a sport that makes sense for little North Tahoe School. It’s a sport they have a better chance of competing in than those ‘big city’ (like Truckee) sports like football and basketball. If you ask the kids, however, they will tell you the most important reason is that when you join the North Tahoe Cross-Country Ski Team, it’s not about the racing; it’s about having fun.
Whether they are skiing up the Gold Trail, playing in the powder after a big storm, or racing up hills just so they can turn around and jump over bumps on the way back down, being on the North Tahoe Cross-Country Team means hanging with your buds and having a great time. ‘They have fun while they are getting in shape,’ said Coach Mike McElravey. ‘We gently herd them along. There is no yelling and screaming allowed.’ The focus for the coaches is not on racing, but on devising ways to keep the kids skiing by keeping them interested. One key is that the students ski in groups that they put together themselves. One group might be a hard-charging cadre of racers pushing each other past their limits, while another group is composed of members who might burn more calories through conversation than skiing.
‘The most fun is when we get to ski slowly to a fun destination, like the meadow area on the Silver Trail, and then when we get there we build snowmen and start snowball fights,’ said racer Isabelle Schenone. ‘It’s the best when we can enjoy our beautiful scenery and just be kids enjoying life.’
Dylan Syben, on the other hand, says that for him, it’s about ‘getting off the starting line, the continual burn of racing, and the sight of the finish line. Who would not want to experience that?’ There is room for both of them. As Syben says, ‘The coaches create a fun environment for both less serious and more serious racers.’
On race day all the coaches, even from different schools, work together to wax and prepare the kids skis. ‘We really don’t care how fast anybody is. Nobody on the team puts anybody down for going too slow,’ McElravey said. ‘The slow are encouraged as much as the fast skiers. They fall into creeks, get lost, and none of it matters.’ At a race last year at Kirkwood, McElravey remembers that he was puzzled why one skier finished much slower than she normally does. When he asked her why she said,’ ‘I stopped to help someone who fell down.’ To these kids, it’s really not about winning. It’s about participating.
In fact, for some of the kids, before they joined the team in sixth grade they had never even cross-country skied before.
The funny thing is, even without the emphasis on winning, many North Tahoe racers have performed magnificently in the California/Nevada Interscholastic Ski & Snowboard Federation (CNISSF).’ In 2009, team member Patrick McElravey won the CNISSF Championship Race, and the North Tahoe School was the overall season-long champion for boys. In 2011, Syben and Julien Bordes, both seventh graders, were ranked second and third overall for the season. Fellow racers Brandon Herhusky and Harrison Goss were in the top 15 for boys overall for the season, while Tara Gallant and Ingrid Roske were in the top 15 for girls.
Parent Emily Goss gives credit to McElravey for the success of the program. She remembers a post-race talk he gave several years ago. After briefly congratulating the top racers, he went on to say that what he really wanted to talk about was how proud he was of the last place finisher. ‘He was so vested in her willingness to be out there and participating and finishing,’ Goss says. ‘He makes a connection with these kids whatever their level of ability. It’s a fabulous program.’
North Tahoe has another thing going for it. Before reaching sixth grade, many of the North Tahoe School kids had also participated in Tahoe Cross Country’s Strider-Glider after-school program, where last year over 250 preschool through fifth graders skied one day a week. The Strider-Glider fifth graders frequently see the middle school team having a blast on the trails, and it has inspired many of them to join the team when they reach sixth grade.
Ingrid Roske, now a freshman at North Tahoe High School, has fond remembrances of her three years on the team. ‘I loved it. Everyone was friends. We all messed around a lot and played crazy games, but worked out hard at the same time.’
Twenty years from now, some school athletes will be lucky enough to remember their glorious exploits on a football field or on the basketball court, but for most, not only will the sports memories be long gone, but their participation in that sport will be as well. Who plays football at 40? These Nordic kids have won a love for a sport that will bring them incalculable joy for the rest of their lives. However they place in a race this winter, these kids have already won the prize.
~ Tim Hauserman teaches at Tahoe Cross-Country Ski Area and directs the Strider-Glider program. He tries to keep in shape so he won’t get passed by a fifth grader. Comment on this story below.
