Alpine & Freestyle Programs
2023-2024 MOUNT SUNAPEE ALPINE, FREESTYLE & DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM
ALL PROGRAMS ARE FULL FOR THE 2023-24 SEASON
Our Mission To inspire a passion for snow sports in our young athletes and to help them reach their potential as athletes. We encourage them to be good, responsible citizens and develop a strong sense of sportsmanship.
Our Values: U.S. Ski & Snowboard values: excellence, grit, passion, integrity, community, fun and team.
Our Vision: To help guide the development of the athlete in all areas of their lives.
Athletes will work on developing skills based on their age and ability. We will provide each athlete with the opportunity to excel and enjoy skiing or boarding in a fun, safe and honest environment. We recognize that each athlete is unique, and we strive to teach them to reach their own potential. This is achieved through various learning stages and techniques which will continue throughout their training.
Our program supports and follows the philosophies of the U.S. Ski & Snowboard Alpine/Freestyle competencies. These philosophies address physical and psychological factors which, in turn, address all aspects of athletic development. Skill development is a complex interaction between the athlete’s inherent physical and psychological abilities and physical age at any particular development stage. The U.S. Ski & Snowboard Alpine/Freestyle Training System (LTAD) is a guide to athlete age-appropriate development. Training Systems (usskiandsnowboard.org)
In each program we will work to provide a clear path of skill development. Based on the principals of the ATS our coaching staff will build upon the athlete’s current skills. These include free skiing, balance drills, turn shape, gate drills, and developing skills in our terrain park. Mount Sunapee Alpine & Freestyle program endorses the use of Skills Quest, a cornerstone program of the U.S. Ski & Snowboard Training Systems. Skill Quests is a training program we use to help develop the athlete’s technique with the use of age-appropriate drills and terrain. Skill development is based on repetition and mileage: therefore, consistent attendance is crucial. We teach the athletes how to apply the wide variety of skills in all weather conditions, terrain and competitive environments, which results in strong lifelong skills.
We will instill 6 fundamental skills which are: Balance/ athletic stance, lower leg engagement, snow contact, pole plant, outside ski commitment and upper body discipline.
For more information about the USSA clubs of excellence click HERE.
Questions? Please contact Beth von Beren, Skier Services Administrative Assistant at 603-763-3500 ext. 3527 or bmvonberen@vailresorts.com.
Alpine Programs
U8-U10
U8 (ages 6-7)
Runs Saturdays and Sundays, 9:30am-1:00pm beginning on Saturday Dec. 16, 2023– Sunday, Mar. 24, 2024.
Christmas week and long weekends on vacation weeks.
U8 will ski from 9:30 am to 1:00 pm, with a midmorning break, with their coach. This program is for children who have skied at least two full seasons, are able to ski intermediate trails comfortably, and want to improve their skills. Athletes must plan on attending program 80% of the time as it helps improvement of skill development as well as team/friend bonding. The program emphasizes skiing on the entire mountain, with an introduction to bumps, terrain parks, air and rails, as well as appropriate fun racing on courses. Athletes will participate in 75% free skiing, 10% coached drills, 10% coached gate training, slopestyle, moguls and Big Air and 5% competition simulation. Athletes will compete a maximum of 3-4 times throughout the year in a NASTAR type of course. U8s are required to have a U.S. Ski & Snowboard General Membership license.
Athletes should plan on attending program days for a minimum of 80% of the time as it helps improvement of skill development as well as team/friend bonding. This program emphasizes skiing on the entire mountain, with an introduction to bumps, terrain parks, air and rails, as well as appropriate fun racing on courses.
U8 parents are required to attend a parent meeting.
The Alpine Director reserves the right to refund the program fee if the child does not have enough ski experience or maturity to take part in this ski program.
U10 (ages 8-9)
Runs Saturdays and Sundays, 9:00am-1:00pm beginning on Saturday Dec. 16, 2023– Sunday, Mar. 24, 2024.
Christmas week and long weekends on vacation weeks.
Mount Sunapee and U.S. Ski & Snowboard required that all athletes wear hard eared helmets.
Athletes must have at least 3-4 years of skiing experience and the ability to ski blue trails comfortably. Athletes must plan on attending program 80% of the time as it helps improvement of skill development as well as team/friend bonding.
The U10 group will ski from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm with a coach. U10’s will experience every aspect of being a well-rounded ski athlete. This includes free skiing, gate training, slopestyle, moguls, glades, and more. Athletes will work towards improving their fundamental skills such as balance, pressure, control, rotary, and edging. By integrating these skills, it will help improve the athletes over all skill level. This program will also include a limited competitive event schedule which will concentrate on home competition and limited travel.
All U10 athletes are expected to participate in all aspects of fundamental training. Athletes will have the opportunity to choose a discipline that they would like to focus on at the age of 10. Athletes will participate in 60% free skiing, 20% coached drills, 10% coached gate drills and 10% competition situations. Athletes will ski in the glades with coaches. The athlete must be at least 8 years old. Athletes must have one (1) pair of SL or twin tip skis which are tuned and boots that the athlete is able to flex/crush. A pair of “Rock” skies are recommended.
U12-U14
U12 (ages 10-11)
Runs Saturdays and Sundays, beginning on Saturday, Dec. 9, 2023 – Sunday, Mar. 24, 2024.
Weekends, Christmas week and Mondays and Fridays of February vacation weeks.
Athletes must have at least 4-5 years of skiing experience and be parallel skiers who have the ability to ski any trail on the mountain.
This group will ski from 8:30 am to 1:00 pm with a coach. Each coach will be assigned 8 athletes per group. U12’s must have skied a minimum of three full seasons and be able to ski intermediate and advance trails comfortably. Athletes will participate in 45 - 60% free skiing, 20% coached drills, and 25% coached gate drills.
Athletes are encouraged to ski with friends and family from 1:45 – 4:00 pm on weekends and if possible during the week. Having fun and a passion for skiing are important elements in the engagement of young athletes.
U14 (ages 12-13)
Runs Saturdays and Sundays, beginning on Saturday, Dec. 9, 2023 – Sunday, Mar. 24, 2024.
Weekends, Christmas week and Mondays and Fridays of February vacation weeks.
The group will ski from 8:30 am to 1:00 pm. After program we encourage your athlete to ski the remainder of the day with friends. The athletes will ski with a team of coaches with an 8-1 ratio, which will allow coaches to work with each athlete individually at different times. The U14’s will concentrate on expanding and improving skills that were introduced to them in the U10-U12 programs. Athletes will participate in 30 - 45% free skiing, 20% coached gate drills, and 25 - 35% coached gate training. The program will focus on all learning styles and will continuing to work on strong fundamental styles. Athletes should have multi-sport involvement. We will instill the 6 fundamental skiing skills into our athletes. These 6 skills are: balance/ athletic stance, lower leg engagement, snow contact, pole plant, outside ski commitment and upper body discipline.
U16-U18
U16 (ages 14-15)
Runs Saturdays and Sundays, 8:30 am – 1:00 pm beginning on, Saturday, Dec. 2, 2023 (snow permitting) – Sunday, Mar 31, 2024
Weekends, Christmas week and 3 week days during February vacation weeks.
U16s will ski from 8:30 am to 1:30 pm. Athletes will ski with a team of coaches with an 8-1 ratio of athletes to coaches.
The coaches will work with each athlete individually at various times. The U16’s will concentrate on refining and expanding their technical and fine motor skills on skis. We will work on technical and tactical refinement of skills, using Skills Quest drills to measure improvement. The group will follow a ratio of 1 race day to 4 training days. Athletes will participate in 30% free skiing, 20% coached drills, 35% coached gate training, and 15% competitive skiing. Athletes should free ski with family and friends as much as they enjoy. Early season will focus on ski mileage and technical skiing skills. It is critical for the athletes to attend as much as possible throughout the winter. This allows athletes to take advantage of more race starts, skill development, and accumulate miles on their skis. Mileage on skis is an important part in the improvement of skills, so we encourage the athletes to ski until 4:00 pm with their ski team friends.
U18 (ages 16-17)
Runs Saturdays and Sundays, 8:30 am – 1:00 pm beginning on, Saturday, Dec. 2, 2023 (snow permitting) – Sunday, Mar 31, 2024
Weekends, Christmas week and 3 week days during February vacation week.
The group will train from 8:30 am to 1:00 pm. There may be some late day practices from 1:00-4:00pm which will be communicated beforehand by coaches. The athletes will ski with a team of coaches at a ratio of 8:1 athletes to coaches. Coaches will work with each athlete individually at various times. Athletes and parents should attend an early season meeting to discuss race schedules and balancing school with days missed time for skiing. The coaching staff will determine the best possible competitive schedule to support the athletes. A coach will be available on the mountain for training on non-race days. We encourage athletes to ski as much as possible throughout the winter, during the week and on the
weekend before and after their program. The goal is to attend and compete in the USSA finals in late March 2024.
Freestyle B Team
Freestyle B: Runs Saturdays and Sundays, 9:30 am - 1:30pm beginning on Saturday, Dec. 9, 2023– Sunday, Mar. 24, 2024.
Weekends, Christmas week and long weekends on February vacation weeks.
The Freestyle Group will ski from 9:30 am to 1:30 pm with a coach. This Program strives to develop multi-event freestyle skiers who can compete in Mogul, Free Ride, and Slope style competitions. This group will focus on developing and mastering basic skiing, jumping and balancing skills. It is recommended that the athletes compete in as many disciplines as possible.
High School Race Program
*We must have 6 athletes per Coach to run this program and withhold the ability to cancel and refund payment
Athletes must be on a high school alpine ski team roster and must have a U.S. Ski & Snowboard General membership for training purposes. Athletes will have to send in a copy of their USSA membership card when signing up.
The group will focus on racing fundamentals that will help the athlete gain more experience as a high school racer. Athletes must attend all 4 days of the session they are registered for.
Equipment requirements: Hard eared helmets are required for GS training.
Runs Dec. 26-29, 2023.
Interested? Please contact Beth von Beren, Skier Services Administrative Assistant, at 603-763-3500 ext. 3527 or bmvonberen@vailresorts.com
Parent Information
We want to extend a warm welcome to the Mount Sunapee Alpine, Freestyle & Development Program!
We teach/coach our young athletes to be the best skiing and snowboarding athletes possible. We focus on having them build their self-confidence and practice good sportsmanship. We ensure that every child who has the desire to participate in our Program is given that opportunity.
Mount Sunapee Area Ski Club , opens in a new window
Our Mission
The Mt. Sunapee Area Ski Club is a non-profit organization that was formed in 1954. Through volunteer efforts and fundraising, the club supports a variety of winter programs for area youth.
Gear Up For Winter
Bob Skinners Ski & Sport offers the best race tune in the industry by Edgewise. Check them out right off the traffic circle at the base of the mountain.