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GDHL Newsletter March 9, 2023

The GDHL Committee thanks you for your participation in the 2023 Race Season!

We are so happy with how well our season went! When planning began for this year’s races, all we could hope for was a season without interruption or delay. The snow and weather at the start of the year caused some concern, but ever since the Calcutta we have been on a successful trajectory, culminating last weekend. It has been a memorable ski season for so many reasons, so we, the GDHL committee are so thankful you chose to participate with us.

This will be the final official newsletter for the 2023 GDHL season which means there is a lot to pack in. Proceed with caution as it will take a few minutes to read it all. Covered off below is:

  • Season Wrap Up

  • Message from our Chair, Brook Dyson

  • Recap of the End of Year Banquet

  • A short farewell from your editor, Doug J

  • Info on where you can buy/pick up your GDHL Jacket

  • Glenn’s Coach’s Corner

Announcements:

Before we go any further, here are a couple important announcements:

  • BIBS: A reminder to return your bibs to the race office or front desk. Those that do not return by the end of March will have their accounts charged.

  • LOST SKIS: One of our racers has had their Blue 165cm Stockli skis accidently picked up by someone else. He has the same Blue Stockli skis in his possession, but a 160cm size. If you have picked up these 165cm skis by mistake, please reply back to this email.

Season Wrap Up

It is hard to look back and pinpoint exactly how COVID impacted our skiing over the past few years. Surely it did but what measures had to be taken to enable us to ski, seem to be a distant past now. In fact, it was just last season that we had to begin each ski day by filling out a survey, and then wear a mask on the chairlift. Fast forward to this year, and we got to enjoy all the luxuries of a full, and awesome year.

We started out with a fun and rambunctious Calcutta on January 7th, something we had not enjoyed since January of 2020. Then we had a race season that spanned the next six weeks, with races and training days. This year we put on our second Night Slalom down Little John, with huge success. And our Dual Slalom event is becoming an annual tradition at the club, providing spectators with hours of amusement as racers duke it out. In a first for many of us long-time racers, and certainly a first for newer racers, we raced a Super G course down National and Big John, providing an experience for many of us to remember forever.

Our fun was not limited to the racecourse though as competitions and rivalries became hot topics of conversation. At the top of the race hills the congregations of skiers, many new to racing, built friendships and revisited old, childhood rivalries. The Mintz family of racers took opportunities to try besting each other, and let everyone know when they had. Siblings were battling for parental approvals across many other families, with the Harrison-Browns, Bruces, Ottaways, Dysons, Addisons, and more! Our community of realtors took their competitive spirit to new heights as well, with the likes of Kate Veer and Meghan Barber roasting Brayden Irwin and Paul Peterson.

All the above is a product of the GDHL having a such an enthusiastic turn out this year. This truly has been a record setting year for our race program. We had dozens of new ski racers join us, along with many first time GDHLers. The young blood is coming in, shifting the average age down. The recruitment will not stop either. Our goal is to ensure anyone with interest in joining our community feels welcome to. Next year we hope to bring in more people, so spread the word.

Thank you for the fantastic season on the slopes!

A Message from your Chair

A big THANK YOU to all of our racers this season! As Paul mentioned at the banquet 2023 had the highest number of racers ever, as well as a record number of new racers. I can't wait to see what next year holds!

A feedback survey will be sent out before the end of March. Please take a minute to tell us how we are doing and let us know how your GDHL experience can be made better.

While you only hear from myself and Doug (and @PaulTheSkiRacer) in these newsletters, there are many hands helping out behind the scenes. Your GDHL committee works hard to put together a season that is memorable and fun.

The race season would not happen without the contributions of all committee members. Thank you!

2023 GDHL Committee:

  • Chris Knight

  • Peter Dyson

  • Carrie Lenauskas

  • Michael DeAngelis

  • Richard Usher-Jones

  • Douglas Jarvis

  • Meg Ryley

  • Jamie Coulter

Sponsors

Our sponsors allow us to fill out the GDHL experience beyond the races. A big thank you to all of our sponsors this year:

  • Sutherland Insurance

  • Budget Propane

  • Patty Mac Construction

  • Sidelaunch Brewing

  • Dynastar/Lange

  • Squire John's

**If you are interested in sponsoring the GDHL next year (and having your company logo and social media associated with the league), or interested on serving on the GDHL committee,  send an email to gdhl@gdhl.org***

The Coyotes and Race Office help us to put on a great season. Thanks to all of the Coyotes for making sure our races run smoothly. Thanks to Dave, Alli, and Steve for helping out with logistics behind the scenes.

Glenn and his team have had their hands full this year. I recently found out how many of our new racers were really taking training seriously! Think of Glenn as the next stop after you have bought lots of new gear for your blossoming race career. Check out the coaching tip at the end this newsletter.

Banquet Recap

This year's banquet was hosted by Craigleith's very own Paul Peterson. Paul gave us a great rundown of the season, some highlights and lowlights, and walked us through the awards and recognitions. This year's banquet once again provided a nice wrap-up to the GDHL season.

Our Fearless MC, Paul Peterson (@paultheskiracer)

Thanks to King Davis (IG: @kingdavis.theband) for providing some great entertainment for the evening.

Awards (serious and not-so-serious) were given out throughout the evening. We recognized rivalries, winners, improvements, families, credit card bills, and much more. Thanks to the non-racer attendees for sitting through A LOT of inside jokes. Kudos to Carrie Laurencelle for putting on a chugging clinic!

Awards given out included:

  • 1st Place Team: VORTEX

    • (Calcutta Winner: Ed Barnicke)

    • Team Members:

    • Meghan Barber

    • Ed Barnicke

    • Robbie Bruce

    • James Coulter

    • Trevor Currie

    • Brayden Irwin

    • Richard Kennedy

    • Ray Murakami

    • Paul Peterson

    • Meg Ryley

  • 2nd Place Team: VENTURE

    • (Calcutta Winner: Christine Ottaway and consortium)

    • Team Members:

    • Greg Cavers

    • Roger Chiu

    • Nico Hart

    • Allan LaChance

    • James Mathers

    • Paul McCool

    • Andrew Ottaway

    • Mario Skopek

    • Shelly Spivak

    • David Staples

  • 3rd Place Team: MUSILS

    • (Calcutta Winner: Tony Ciccocioppo and consortium)

    • Team Members:

    • Libby Barnicke

    • Elizabeth Hind

    • Ian Latimer

    • Patrick Pedlar

    • Robert Prusinski

    • Meghan Robinson

    • Craig Sievenpiper

    • Richard Usher-Jones

    • Marc Warren

    • Mike Welton

Individual Winners:

Women:

  1. Meg Ryley

  2. Katie Farrow

  3. Madison Staples

Men:

  1. Mike Welton

  2. Ben Williams

  3. Gordie Bruce

Women over 50:

  1. Kate Veer

  2. Leslie Sims

  3. Tiana Boyman (Koffler)

Men over 50:

  1. Greg Cavers

  2. Jeff Sutherland

  3. Allan Lachance

Greg "Sumo" Lee award for Most Improved:

  1. Brent Addison

  2. Ed Barnicke

  3. Andrew Ottaway

Andrew, Brent, and Ed, recipients of GDHL’s highest honour

Fastest Family: (over 19 families this year!)

  1. Bruce Brothers

  2. Farrow Cousins

  3. Cavers Boys

Rivalry Award:

  • Libby Barnicke vs Dan Lacey

Many more awards given out as well!

**if you are on a winning team and did not attend the banquet, please reply back to coordinate picking up your medal**

**Cooler bags are available for pickup at the front desk as well. GDHL racers only for now. (We will make these available to our GDHL superfans in a few weeks.)**

Farewell from Doug J

As the saying goes, all things must come to and end. It is time for me, the editor of this newsletter to heed this saying and ski off into the sunset. I have loved writing for all of you over the past 5 seasons, even though a couple were cut short because of COVID. Curating material and forcing myself to write out these weekly messages through the winter has become therapeutic in a lot of ways, and yet also cumbersome and stressful at times. After all, I never ever want to let you down with a late newsletter, a spelling mistake or grammatical catastrophe. These newsletters will continue with new editors and styles.

Thank you for reading my content and thank so very much to all those who provided feedback. I am forever grateful to all of you who shared your thoughts on what I wrote about last week, even when you disagreed with me!

And a very special thank you to my copy editor, my mom – Laura Jarvis!

See you at Craigleith soon!

Jackets

The cool new look of the Niagara Escarpment are our GDHL, Karbon Jackets. Get yours before they are gone! We still have a few for sale, awaiting new owners. Email GDHL@GDHL.org to connect with a local sartorial expert. Or if you are at the club, they are also available at the front desk.

Coaches Tip from Glenn Blaylock

Craigleith Head Coach, Adult Race Programs

Forward versus Upward

Moving the body forward rather than upward during Transition allows the skier to be in a strong athletic position square over their skis and ready to apply pressure to the new outside ski. The following video shows World Cup racers moving forward as their outside leg bends or shortens during the transition to prevent the body rising or popping up. Also focus on their ankles flexed forward, the stacked leg standing against the outside ski and the level hips and shoulders.


The bending or shortening of the outside leg is not an “absorbing or retraction” movement as some pressure on the outside ski during transition will cause the ski to continue accelerating as explained and demonstrated by Paul Lorenz in one of my all time favourite videos.


We look forward to seeing you next season.

That is all. See you on the slopes in the coming weeks!

-Doug J