November 19, 2005 – It was great to see such a large bunch of athletes from all over Alberta skiing together at our three day camp at Lake Louise this weekend. For most of the 54 athletes, this weekend was the first days on snow and on skis for the season. The weather and the snow cooperated to give us great early season conditions, for our skate day, our classic day and for our final fun relay day. From Lethbridge to Fort McMurray, we all had the chance to make new friends from far away, and find out how xc-skiers, their clubs and their coaches are all the same, and all a little bit different. For many of the midget aged skiers this weekend was a great opportunity to learn about the programs becoming available to them as they grow up in the Cross Country Alberta community. Alberta Winter Games Teams, Arctic Winter Games Teams, Korean exchange program and Alberta ski team opportunities.

For older athletes it was a weekend to catch up with friends from other parts of the province. Many of the Alberta Development Team members were also at the camp. The ADT is a team of skiers which is designed to grow continually over the ski season. New members from the summer dryland selection were welcomed to the team this weekend. This camp was a great success in bringing the team together in a non-competitive atmosphere for their first on-snow team event. Thanks to the many coaches and parents who came to help out and share ideas from around the province. The main highlight of this camp is the chance to make new friends with a like-minded group of active, fun, xcskiers. I asked a few skiers how many kids in their class at school were as active as the group at Lake Louise; the answer was “not many”, then I asked how many in their class have ever done xc skiing – the answer was “even fewer”. So when we all head back to school this week we can tell the folks back home how we deliberately headed for the snowiest, coldest part of the province just to spend as many hours as possible in outdoor activity, skiing for miles up the frozen trails at Lake Louise, and even the “funnest” part – the 7:30 wake-up runs of course. They may think we’re a little bit nuts, but for the 55 athletes, and 20 coaches/adults who have just “been there”; it was fun, fun, fun. Sharon Hogg