Ironwood, MI and surrounding area
Team News
Ben
& Britta at the Jr. Olympics!
Ben & Britta left for Presque Isle, Maine on Wed. 3/3. The Midwest Jr. Olympic team traveled by bus to their destination. We await news from the kids.
In the mean time...Information I gleaned off the official website, www.juniorolympics2010.org.
The United States Ski Association allows a quota of 21 men and 21 women per division to compete at the JOs. Our division is the Great Lakes Division. Ben & Britta qualified by skiing the Grand View Challenge at Wolverine, the Keweenaw Nordic Festival in Houghton, and the Telemark SuperTour in Cable. Ben also competed in the SuperTour in Minneapolis and both kids competed in the Michigan state meet as well as the Jr. Birkie, for more racing experience.
The event will be held at the Nordic Heritage Center, which sounds like a pretty cool little place. It is managed and operated by the Nordic Heritage Sport Club, a non-profit corporation with a mission to re-establish skiing as a lifestyle in central Aroostook County. The club sponsors and coordinates community recreation programs for summer and winter sports and activities and hosts local, national and international competitive events for cross country skiing, biathlon and mountain biking competitions. They have a lighted ski loop and a 1K paved roller ski trail!
The town has 10,000 residents, a university and community college, and they are expecting upwards of 600 athletes to compete in the 2010 XC Junior Olympics. 300 volunteers will help pull off the event!
3/6/10
Hey, Jackie and Ken,
Ben and Britta arrived safely last night. I haven't heard what today has for them!
Hope all is well! We're leaving tonight to go to Milwaukee and visit family, then fly to Maine on Tuesday am.
LeaAnn
3/9/10
Hi Jackie,
I talked to Ben yesterday after the classic sprint race. He said they needed to finish 30 or up to advance to the quarter-finals. Ben came in 34th. He wasn’t too disappointed though since he did improve a lot from last year. Only one GLT member made the quarters but he was eliminated after that race. I don’t know how Britta placed, but Ben did say she didn’t make the quarters either.
Ben said to say “Hi” to everyone. When asked what Maine was like, he said “it’s just like home except for a lot of potato fields and huge windmills”.
Here are a couple of pics from yesterday.
Thank you,
Laura
3/10/10
Hello Jackie,
Here are a few pictures from the classic race day.
They did a great thing; it looked
like the schools bussed whole classes to the event to cheer. They also
had some sort of contest that could be entered by the kids if they got
enough autographs from the athletes, as you'll see a boy getting
Btitta's autograph right after the race. I'm sure it helped make the
racers feel even more special.
Neal
3/11/10
Hello, Jackie,
We are so very proud of Ben and Britta. Truly this is a very big pond with exceptional athletes. Today is a down day, and the kids will race tomorrow.
Yesterday, they skied a classic race, the J2 girls skied 5K, and the OJ guys did the loop 3 times for 15K. Neal and I skied that same track today on our skate skis. It was back and forth switchbacks on the mountain, and I snowplowed constantly to make the tight turns. I have no idea how they did it on their classic skis. The switchbacks made viewing fun, so we could see them on many points in the race.
The facilities here are beautiful, the kids are trying to get their homework done. And, we are taking Britta out for sea-food tonight. Otherwise, they eat with their team at the University of Maine-just a couple hundred yards from our hotel.
We'll see them race tomorrow and then fly out of here.
Overall, this little community, no bigger than ours, has done a magnificent job of hosting this event.
Greet the group-we hear the skiing is likely done there-it doesn't have many days left here, either.
LeaAnn
3/15/10
Hi Jackie,
Ben and Britta are safely home and Ben currently has “cracked the books”—it’s catch-up time. Ben had a great time at the JO’s. His goal was to improve from last year and he is happy that he met that goal. Of course, he’s already anxious to get on his roller skies and start training for next year.
Thanks,
Laura
Ben & Britta left for Presque Isle, Maine on Wed. 3/3. The Midwest Jr. Olympic team traveled by bus to their destination. We await news from the kids.
In the mean time...Information I gleaned off the official website, www.juniorolympics2010.org.
The United States Ski Association allows a quota of 21 men and 21 women per division to compete at the JOs. Our division is the Great Lakes Division. Ben & Britta qualified by skiing the Grand View Challenge at Wolverine, the Keweenaw Nordic Festival in Houghton, and the Telemark SuperTour in Cable. Ben also competed in the SuperTour in Minneapolis and both kids competed in the Michigan state meet as well as the Jr. Birkie, for more racing experience.
The event will be held at the Nordic Heritage Center, which sounds like a pretty cool little place. It is managed and operated by the Nordic Heritage Sport Club, a non-profit corporation with a mission to re-establish skiing as a lifestyle in central Aroostook County. The club sponsors and coordinates community recreation programs for summer and winter sports and activities and hosts local, national and international competitive events for cross country skiing, biathlon and mountain biking competitions. They have a lighted ski loop and a 1K paved roller ski trail!
The town has 10,000 residents, a university and community college, and they are expecting upwards of 600 athletes to compete in the 2010 XC Junior Olympics. 300 volunteers will help pull off the event!
3/6/10
Hey, Jackie and Ken,
Ben and Britta arrived safely last night. I haven't heard what today has for them!
Hope all is well! We're leaving tonight to go to Milwaukee and visit family, then fly to Maine on Tuesday am.
LeaAnn
3/9/10
Hi Jackie,
I talked to Ben yesterday after the classic sprint race. He said they needed to finish 30 or up to advance to the quarter-finals. Ben came in 34th. He wasn’t too disappointed though since he did improve a lot from last year. Only one GLT member made the quarters but he was eliminated after that race. I don’t know how Britta placed, but Ben did say she didn’t make the quarters either.
Ben said to say “Hi” to everyone. When asked what Maine was like, he said “it’s just like home except for a lot of potato fields and huge windmills”.
Here are a couple of pics from yesterday.
Thank you,
Laura
3/10/10Hello Jackie,
Here are a few pictures from the classic race day.
They did a great thing; it looked
like the schools bussed whole classes to the event to cheer. They also
had some sort of contest that could be entered by the kids if they got
enough autographs from the athletes, as you'll see a boy getting
Btitta's autograph right after the race. I'm sure it helped make the
racers feel even more special.Neal
3/11/10
Hello, Jackie,
We are so very proud of Ben and Britta. Truly this is a very big pond with exceptional athletes. Today is a down day, and the kids will race tomorrow.
Yesterday, they skied a classic race, the J2 girls skied 5K, and the OJ guys did the loop 3 times for 15K. Neal and I skied that same track today on our skate skis. It was back and forth switchbacks on the mountain, and I snowplowed constantly to make the tight turns. I have no idea how they did it on their classic skis. The switchbacks made viewing fun, so we could see them on many points in the race.
The facilities here are beautiful, the kids are trying to get their homework done. And, we are taking Britta out for sea-food tonight. Otherwise, they eat with their team at the University of Maine-just a couple hundred yards from our hotel.
We'll see them race tomorrow and then fly out of here.
Overall, this little community, no bigger than ours, has done a magnificent job of hosting this event.
Greet the group-we hear the skiing is likely done there-it doesn't have many days left here, either.
LeaAnn
3/15/10
Hi Jackie,
Ben and Britta are safely home and Ben currently has “cracked the books”—it’s catch-up time. Ben had a great time at the JO’s. His goal was to improve from last year and he is happy that he met that goal. Of course, he’s already anxious to get on his roller skies and start training for next year.
Thanks,
Laura
Kimball Inn & ABR Choose TG for Third Year!
HI Jackie,Kimball Inn again asked if they could donate their food at Taste of the Trails to a cause of our choice. We chose Team Gogebic and added our beverage donations, for a total of $344.
Thank you for all you and Ken do for the team and promoting Nordic skiing.
Eric and Angela
Proprieters, ABR Ski Trails
Team Gogebic Receives Stormy Kromer Grant for Second Year!
3/5/10 Jackie,
The Stormy Kromer Pursuit is able to make some donations to cross country ski efforts again this year. Our goal is to help make cross country skiing better in the area and specifically helping kids get familiar with the sport. You and Ken have done a great job of getting people of all ages involved and I would like to make another $200 donation to the Team Gogebic efforts. Thanks and I hope you're enjoying the season.
Kelly Klein
Race Director
Stormy Kromer Pursuit
10/21/09Jackie,
Thank you for your help in getting the photo of the Team Gogebic skier. I’m forwarding you the picture of our banners so you can see the photo. We used the new banners this week in Minneapolis and they looked great! Thanks again for your help,
Kelly Marczak
Marketing Department
Grand View Health System
Jackie's Summer Highlights
Here I am with TG supporter Dave Goodspeed in our TG hats at 13,200 feet on July 28th. Wind River Peak near Lander, WY.
Paavo!
Here I am with Sandy after our five-woman team, Team Powers, completed the marathon. Ken, Richie & Terry made a three-man team. Congrats to Geneva, Steve and Nicole for going the distance individually!
Here I am with Sandy after our five-woman team, Team Powers, completed the marathon. Ken, Richie & Terry made a three-man team. Congrats to Geneva, Steve and Nicole for going the distance individually!
"100%" on the Mt. Bikes
Here's Ken washing the mud off my nephews after introducing them to mt. biking during a thunder storm at our new place on the Telemark Trails in Cable, WI.
Here's Ken washing the mud off my nephews after introducing them to mt. biking during a thunder storm at our new place on the Telemark Trails in Cable, WI.
I've Been Watching You
I read in the paper that TG's kids Molly, Lily, and Faith
all won age group awards for reading in Bessemer Library's summer
reading program. Together the three girls read 130 books! Athletic and
brainy, what a combo!
Will's Summer Highlights
"I Ran 100 Miles!" (Really, he did!)
For those who may be interested….
This is the story of my 2009 Leadville Trail 100, the "Race Across the
Sky", "America's Highest 100", averaging over 10,000 feet in elevation
with over 32,000 vertical feet of climbing. The story really starts
years ago, but it doesn't get very interesting until the night before
the race at the mandatory meeting where the speaker informed the packed
gymnasium that less than half of us will finish the race under the 30
hour limit. For those who will, a finisher’s medal and a shiny silver
and gold belt buckle was awaiting them. Those finishing under 30 hours
would also receive a customized sweatshirt with their name and
finishing time printed on the sleeve. I thought to myself, I’ll be far
too modest to wear that sweatshirt.
The 4:00 AM start went well and the race continued to go fine for a full 2 miles. Then I had the bright idea of removing my hat. As you may imagine at that time of the morning, I had a head lamp over my hat, which went flying onto the ground and broke into pieces upon impact. With the pieces scattered on the ground and a stampede of over 500 runners who couldn't care less, I quickly grabbed up the pieces and continued running before realizing that I was short a battery. So I just ran on in the dark. Not a problem, until the course left the road and entered the rocky, rooty trail along Turquoise Lake. After stumbling through the dark for a good hour, somebody finally loaned me their back-up light. I entered the first aid station at mile 13.5 a good 15 minutes behind schedule, but in good spirits and my spirits grew even brighter when I saw my wife Marianne waiting for me with a big smile (it's incredible how powerful it is to see a friendly face (a very friendly face in this case) along the way!).
The next 26 miles were great. The sun came up and the mountains were glorious. The trail was fun, challenging and often breathtaking. I basically jogged the flats and down-hills and speed-walked the up-hills - or in this case the mountains, including the 11,000 foot Sugar Loaf Pass. I was drinking well and eating real food at the aid stations. It's funny though, I'm used to an aid station every couple miles, maybe every mile, in marathons. Today, there would be only two aid stations in the first (and last) 23.5 miles - a total of only 9 stations over 100 miles.
I felt great through mile 40 and my biggest fear was that there would be no good stories coming out of this cake-walk. I shouldn't have been so worried.
After mile 40, the course climbs up and over Hope Pass, topping out at 12,600 feet and back down to the 50 mile-turnaround - and then back up and over again. This 20 mile section took me over 8 hours to complete, kicking my butt every step of the way. At this time of day, the near-record temperatures were beginning to peak. As I went higher, the sun grew hotter and the oxygen grew scarcer. Back home, a Camel-back hydration system works great. Here, the need to use vital oxygen to suck water through a tube was nearly impossible for me. I had a choice: Oxygen or water. I went with straight Oxygen - no Hydrogen for me, thank you! At times, I reminded myself of a Mt. Everest climber, making one slow, unsteady and pathetic step at a time. In previous experiences, I've worked through things like long miles, high altitude, never-ending ups, quad-bashing downs, hot temperatures, direct sun and deep thirst. But the combination of all of the above must have created this Everest-like experience. Now I was having fun.
At mile 40, the "Grim Reaper" (the cut-off time runners must meet at every aid station) was nowhere to be seen. After climbing Hope Pass the first time and crawling to the 50 mile turn-around station, he was peeking around the corner. After climbing Hope Pass the second time and reaching the 60 mile aid station, he started to smile.
With 40 miles to go, I changed out of my wet shoes soaked by two river crossings, put on a head-lamp for the night (no hat this time!) and grabbed some soup to eat along the way. With friendlier conditions, I reverted back to the more efficient strategy of jogging the flats and down-hills and "speed"-walking the uphills as best I could. Thoughts of the Reaper disappeared along with the next 16 miles.
But the big guy came back with a vengeance at the second-to-last aid station with 23.5 miles to go. I may have pushed too hard in the previous section, I don't know, but at this point my quads tightened up, I had a hard time standing, let alone walking. My legs just didn't want to move. I sat down, which was a mistake as I then grew extremely cold. Luckily, Marianne was there with a jacket, gloves and winter hat, which I put on right away. And continued to shiver. Feeling the Grim Reaper crawling up my legs and clutching onto my back, I told Marianne that I didn't think I would be able to finish. This was a perfect moment for the classic "toughen-up creampuff" rebuttal. But she did even better, simply asking: "Do you want to finish?" I thought to myself: "Good point".
So me and my new friend the Reaper walked jerkily into the night, looking forward to another climbing of Sugar Loaf Pass. Shaking with cold under my hood and hat, my friend kept reminding me that most runners don't finish Leadville due to hypothermia. Thanks, Grim.
Like a young Forrest Gump shedding his leg braces, I slowly started to shed the tightness in my legs and began to walk somewhat normally, eventually regaining some semblance of "speed"-walking as I ascended Sugar Loaf Pass. I actually started to catch and pass other runners, which was a great surprise and made me feel even better. In the few flat sections towards the top, I even tested out some running steps. Good old Grim lost his grip on me, but continued to keep me in his sights.
The long, steep and rocky down-hill on the back-side of Sugar Loaf Pass was next. I couldn't decide which hurt worse on the downs: My quads, or my blisters. Every down-hill stride burned my quads, every rocky step burned my blisters. At times, I was glad it was dark and I was miles from civilization, otherwise people would be laughing at me as I landed on my right heel and my left toes in a feeble attempt to avoid my worst blisters.
A third pain started to develop along here, too: the very real thought of not finishing under 30 hours. For quite some time now, I was calculating my pace and my distance to go. Every way I calculated it, I knew it was going to be close. The thought of finishing over 30 hours, or worse, being pulled from the course, was the worst pain of all. I thought of the finisher’s medal I wouldn’t get, the silver and gold belt buckle I wouldn't get, and the customized sweatshirt printed with my name and finishing time that I wouldn't get. That helped motivate me to deal with the pain. But what really helped was thinking of people, all the people who supported me: Marianne, my kids and the rest of my family, all the Easy Strider's running group including Gary Engstrom - who said he would yell at me to keep me going, Neal and Teresa from Barr Camp, my trail running friends Jim Waters and Jim Engel, even my new college cross-country runners who I couldn't ask to dig deep if I couldn't dig deep myself.
I didn't want this race to come down to the end, where I knew ugly things can happen. I wanted to push through this second to last section as fast as I possibly could to give myself a buffer for the final push. My goal was to get to the 86.5 mile aid station with 5 hours to go to beat the 30 hour cut-off.
The distant and imagined pain of not finishing under 30 hours must have trumped the immediate and real pain of my sore legs and blistered feet, as I was able to descend the mountain and reach the final aid station 15 minutes ahead of this goal. Feeling great again, I filled my water bottle, grabbed some candy and hit the road running. Over the last 13.5 miles, sometimes I ran, sometimes I jogged, sometimes I shuffled, sometimes I walked. It didn't matter. The Reaper was back in the mountains antagonizing some other poor guy. The winner was already having a hearty breakfast after a good night's sleep. All I had to do was break 30 hours.
Marianne joined me for much of the last four mile uphill, which was a great boost. By now it was hot and sunny again. I wondered why they had to throw in a long uphill at the finish. But then I remembered all the other fun things this race threw at us: the elevation, the mountains, the rocks, the heat, the sun, the long night. And I thought, what’s one more little hill? And I reflected back to just a few hours earlier, when I was totally convinced that this moment wasn’t going to happen for me.
Finally we were running down the last emotional stretch, packed with a cheering crowd. Marianne peeled off and I found myself finishing on a red carpet and breaking the finishing tape. Then I got my finisher’s medal and my belt-buckle. And my sweatshirt printed with my finishing time of 28:41:16.
I think I’ll wear that sweatshirt after all.
The 4:00 AM start went well and the race continued to go fine for a full 2 miles. Then I had the bright idea of removing my hat. As you may imagine at that time of the morning, I had a head lamp over my hat, which went flying onto the ground and broke into pieces upon impact. With the pieces scattered on the ground and a stampede of over 500 runners who couldn't care less, I quickly grabbed up the pieces and continued running before realizing that I was short a battery. So I just ran on in the dark. Not a problem, until the course left the road and entered the rocky, rooty trail along Turquoise Lake. After stumbling through the dark for a good hour, somebody finally loaned me their back-up light. I entered the first aid station at mile 13.5 a good 15 minutes behind schedule, but in good spirits and my spirits grew even brighter when I saw my wife Marianne waiting for me with a big smile (it's incredible how powerful it is to see a friendly face (a very friendly face in this case) along the way!).
The next 26 miles were great. The sun came up and the mountains were glorious. The trail was fun, challenging and often breathtaking. I basically jogged the flats and down-hills and speed-walked the up-hills - or in this case the mountains, including the 11,000 foot Sugar Loaf Pass. I was drinking well and eating real food at the aid stations. It's funny though, I'm used to an aid station every couple miles, maybe every mile, in marathons. Today, there would be only two aid stations in the first (and last) 23.5 miles - a total of only 9 stations over 100 miles.
I felt great through mile 40 and my biggest fear was that there would be no good stories coming out of this cake-walk. I shouldn't have been so worried.
After mile 40, the course climbs up and over Hope Pass, topping out at 12,600 feet and back down to the 50 mile-turnaround - and then back up and over again. This 20 mile section took me over 8 hours to complete, kicking my butt every step of the way. At this time of day, the near-record temperatures were beginning to peak. As I went higher, the sun grew hotter and the oxygen grew scarcer. Back home, a Camel-back hydration system works great. Here, the need to use vital oxygen to suck water through a tube was nearly impossible for me. I had a choice: Oxygen or water. I went with straight Oxygen - no Hydrogen for me, thank you! At times, I reminded myself of a Mt. Everest climber, making one slow, unsteady and pathetic step at a time. In previous experiences, I've worked through things like long miles, high altitude, never-ending ups, quad-bashing downs, hot temperatures, direct sun and deep thirst. But the combination of all of the above must have created this Everest-like experience. Now I was having fun.
At mile 40, the "Grim Reaper" (the cut-off time runners must meet at every aid station) was nowhere to be seen. After climbing Hope Pass the first time and crawling to the 50 mile turn-around station, he was peeking around the corner. After climbing Hope Pass the second time and reaching the 60 mile aid station, he started to smile.
With 40 miles to go, I changed out of my wet shoes soaked by two river crossings, put on a head-lamp for the night (no hat this time!) and grabbed some soup to eat along the way. With friendlier conditions, I reverted back to the more efficient strategy of jogging the flats and down-hills and "speed"-walking the uphills as best I could. Thoughts of the Reaper disappeared along with the next 16 miles.
But the big guy came back with a vengeance at the second-to-last aid station with 23.5 miles to go. I may have pushed too hard in the previous section, I don't know, but at this point my quads tightened up, I had a hard time standing, let alone walking. My legs just didn't want to move. I sat down, which was a mistake as I then grew extremely cold. Luckily, Marianne was there with a jacket, gloves and winter hat, which I put on right away. And continued to shiver. Feeling the Grim Reaper crawling up my legs and clutching onto my back, I told Marianne that I didn't think I would be able to finish. This was a perfect moment for the classic "toughen-up creampuff" rebuttal. But she did even better, simply asking: "Do you want to finish?" I thought to myself: "Good point".
So me and my new friend the Reaper walked jerkily into the night, looking forward to another climbing of Sugar Loaf Pass. Shaking with cold under my hood and hat, my friend kept reminding me that most runners don't finish Leadville due to hypothermia. Thanks, Grim.
Like a young Forrest Gump shedding his leg braces, I slowly started to shed the tightness in my legs and began to walk somewhat normally, eventually regaining some semblance of "speed"-walking as I ascended Sugar Loaf Pass. I actually started to catch and pass other runners, which was a great surprise and made me feel even better. In the few flat sections towards the top, I even tested out some running steps. Good old Grim lost his grip on me, but continued to keep me in his sights.
The long, steep and rocky down-hill on the back-side of Sugar Loaf Pass was next. I couldn't decide which hurt worse on the downs: My quads, or my blisters. Every down-hill stride burned my quads, every rocky step burned my blisters. At times, I was glad it was dark and I was miles from civilization, otherwise people would be laughing at me as I landed on my right heel and my left toes in a feeble attempt to avoid my worst blisters.
A third pain started to develop along here, too: the very real thought of not finishing under 30 hours. For quite some time now, I was calculating my pace and my distance to go. Every way I calculated it, I knew it was going to be close. The thought of finishing over 30 hours, or worse, being pulled from the course, was the worst pain of all. I thought of the finisher’s medal I wouldn’t get, the silver and gold belt buckle I wouldn't get, and the customized sweatshirt printed with my name and finishing time that I wouldn't get. That helped motivate me to deal with the pain. But what really helped was thinking of people, all the people who supported me: Marianne, my kids and the rest of my family, all the Easy Strider's running group including Gary Engstrom - who said he would yell at me to keep me going, Neal and Teresa from Barr Camp, my trail running friends Jim Waters and Jim Engel, even my new college cross-country runners who I couldn't ask to dig deep if I couldn't dig deep myself.
I didn't want this race to come down to the end, where I knew ugly things can happen. I wanted to push through this second to last section as fast as I possibly could to give myself a buffer for the final push. My goal was to get to the 86.5 mile aid station with 5 hours to go to beat the 30 hour cut-off.
The distant and imagined pain of not finishing under 30 hours must have trumped the immediate and real pain of my sore legs and blistered feet, as I was able to descend the mountain and reach the final aid station 15 minutes ahead of this goal. Feeling great again, I filled my water bottle, grabbed some candy and hit the road running. Over the last 13.5 miles, sometimes I ran, sometimes I jogged, sometimes I shuffled, sometimes I walked. It didn't matter. The Reaper was back in the mountains antagonizing some other poor guy. The winner was already having a hearty breakfast after a good night's sleep. All I had to do was break 30 hours.
Marianne joined me for much of the last four mile uphill, which was a great boost. By now it was hot and sunny again. I wondered why they had to throw in a long uphill at the finish. But then I remembered all the other fun things this race threw at us: the elevation, the mountains, the rocks, the heat, the sun, the long night. And I thought, what’s one more little hill? And I reflected back to just a few hours earlier, when I was totally convinced that this moment wasn’t going to happen for me.
Finally we were running down the last emotional stretch, packed with a cheering crowd. Marianne peeled off and I found myself finishing on a red carpet and breaking the finishing tape. Then I got my finisher’s medal and my belt-buckle. And my sweatshirt printed with my finishing time of 28:41:16.
I think I’ll wear that sweatshirt after all.
Will Andresen
Will Andresen Named Coach for New GCC Ski Team
Gogebic Community College is starting a new men's and women's Nordic ski team for the 2009-2010 season! The new ski team will compete in collegiate and citizen races and will offer an affordable way for young skiers to compete at the collegiate level.
Will Helped out as an assistant TG coach this season, and we look forward to combining forces with his new college team next season.
Go to www.gogebic.cc.mi.us/athletics/nordic.shtm for more info on Will and the new x-c ski team.
THANK YOU TO OUR 2009 DONORS
American Birkebeiner Foundation Skier Development Grant - $1000
Kimball Inn - $313 (proceeds from Taste of the Trails)
Iron Co. Development Grant - $250 youth racer scholarship from proceeds of Stormy Kromer Pursuit
Brian Kearney - $50
Super-One Foods - $25 for fund raiser
Wal-Mart - $25 for fund raiser
Pastry Kitchen - brat buns for fund raiser
Rigoni's Bakery - brownies for fund raiser
2009 Financial Report
submitted by Jackie Powers, treasurer
submitted by Jackie Powers, treasurer
Inflows
Donations - Unrestricted $366
Equipment Rentals $185
Fund Raisers $318
Grants $1,250
Memberships $1,365
Team Apparel Sold $1,465
Total Inflows $4,949
Outflows
Equipment Purchases $500
Team Apparel $3,323
Web site $64
Total Outflows $3,887
Carry-over from 2008 $22
Bank Acct Balance $1069
2nd Annual Yooperbowl
Feb 1st, 2009
Feb 1st, 2009
Steelers - Team Captain: Molly - Team: Rich, Clyde, Britta, Susanne, Ken D.
Cardinals - Team Captain: Katie - Team: Geneva, Jackie, Will, Scott, Dave
Referee: Coach Ken
It looked like it was going to be all Cardinals when Will skied the length of the field for a TD on the first play. The Steelers learned quickly how to put an end to that! Late in the first half, Britta intercepted a pass and skied it in for a TD and tied the score.
Early in he second half Katie’s catch and TD was ruled illegal because she fielded a foreword pass – who ever heard of such a silly rule? Both teams then dug in for a hard-fought defensive battle with neither team able to score. In a dramatic attempt to catch a high flying pass, Dave found out skis aren’t made for jumping and landing; his folded in half under the pressure! Yikes!
Penalty loops were handed out by Ref Ken for everything from illegal formation to blocking to unsportsmanlike conduct. Will and Scott escaped penalties with their constant cry of, “Good call ref!” Brownnosers, or good strategists? Then just as the Cardinals were poised to score, the whistle blew and the game was over.
We then convened in the cabin for a post-game celebration as all present feasted on pies won the day before at the Valhalla Summit ski race. A happy day.
Jackie
Team Gogebic Receives Iron Co. Development Grant!
Thanks to the Iron Co. Development Zone, Team Gogebic has a little more money to support our '09 youth skier program! $250 of the proceeds from last year's Stormy Kromer Pursuit has been donated as "scholarships for student racers." We have been given the discretion to determine just how the funds are used. We will apply the funds as the need arises, as relates specifically to youth with an interest in racing, and a need for financial assistance. Be sure to thank Kelly Klein, Jenni Kallas and the other Stormy Kromer race organizers for their support.
Team Gogebic Receives Birkie Grant!
The American Birkebeiner Ski Foundation has awarded Team Gogebic an '08/'09 skier development grant in the amount of $1,000! The funds are for the purchase of loaner ski equipment to expand our Youth Skier Program. Our loaner equipment is for anyone wishing to try the sport of cross country skiing, and for seasonal equipment rental for any youth who join the team. Many thanks to the Birkie Foundation for its generous support of our efforts.
Team Gogebic '09 Kick-Off Well Attended
25 people attended Team Gogebic's kick-off Sunday, Nov. 9th. We watched a compilation video Ken put together, with footage he took gliding through the woods of ABR, then of an "old timer" breaking trail in knickers, segueing into modern race scenes, finally culminating with images of the team from last year. We could all find ourselves somewhere in there. After some words from Ken and introduction of our new stride coach, Will Andresen, we took in a motivational video with training advice and adages. Again, something for everyone. Everyone shared what brought them to nordic skiing and what they hope to get out of the upcoming season. Then I shared some of the nuts & bolts of membership. Bob Alleva was on hand to share his wisdom and gave tours of his gorgeous new facility, Wolverine Village. Finally, we filled out our membership forms and submitted team clothing orders before breaking up for more socializing and the drive home in our first major snowfall of the season.
For those of you who missed the meeting, the videos (20 mins. total) are available upon request, as are membership forms and clothing orders.
Jackie
For those of you who missed the meeting, the videos (20 mins. total) are available upon request, as are membership forms and clothing orders.
Jackie
Yooper Bowl Sunday '08 Super Fun
Team Gogebic commemorated Super Bowl XLII by hosting its own Yooper Bowl: a football game on skis! Everyone had a chance as quarterback, including Molly and Lilly, and was it my imagination or were most of the completions carried out by the females? And weren't most of the penalty laps skied by Ben?? Of course, only the ref seemed to understand the "rules" and the reasons for the penalties.... And Paul caught the interception that resulted in the only score, for the White Tails. Afterwards we feasted on scrumptious pumpkin pie and cheesecake (see story below).
Jackie
Jackie
