EVERYONE:

1. Attendance form dooooo ittttt. Sunday night or Monday is ideal.

2. Headlamps: get one. Bring it to 3:30pm practices. Some of you are really good at this! Others could show some growth here.

3. Be ready for all the things, including all the weather. Always pack running shoes!

4. Slack etiquette: if you have a question or announcement that’s relevant to everyone, go ahead and put it in the channel. If you have something that’s just relevant for coaches, please send the coaches a direct message and avoid spamming the hundreds of other people who use Slack for ski club communication.

5. How to get the coaches to answer emails: jrskiing@craftsbury.com goes to all the junior coaches. bkl@craftsbury.com goes to the lead BKL coaches. biathlon@craftsbury.com goes to the biathlon coaches. Emailing the relevant coach group, rather than just one coach, greatly improves your chances of a response.

6. Uniforms/jackets: we don’t have separate fitting times to pick up these rentals. Just talk to coaches to arrange grabbing them right before or after a practice.

7. important dates: We're adding events/dates to our club event calendar, to which you can easily navigate from the sidebar of this "club updates" page we stick in your face every week--but it's also right here: https://www.craftsbury.com/csc-event-calendar. Dates of note that are coming up pretty fast:

   • Tuesday, December 3rd @ 5pm: kickoff potluck and team meetings for BKL programs (skiers + parents)

   • Tuesday, December 10th @ 3:30pm: first day of BKL programs

   • Sunday, December 15th @ 4:30pm: kickoff social/info session for all adult/masters programs (spouses, etc. welcome, and we'll probably have an optional ski beforehand)

8. Junior/U14/BKL rental equipment: get on it! Info here. Please make note of the fitting date you select and put it in your calendars. Note that we are out of certain sizes of certain things, but we’ll be getting another shipment of gear this week.

9. Uniforms/jackets/vests: uniform/jacket/biathlon vest rentals are in the same place you ordered equipment (here). You don’t need to make an appointment.

10. Waitlists: still a thing; still worthwhile.

JUNIORS:

1. Funky week this week. Take a good look at the schedule and plan accordingly.

2. Equipment kerfuffling: race season is coming up fast and we want to get gear sorted out before it. If you have gear needs, get them sorted pronto and ask us for help.

3. Rollerski rental gear: needs to come back!! Now!

4. Looking ahead: Here are all the details that exist so far re: the Eastern Cup schedule & Craftsbury’s team travel plans.

5. Racing licenses: speaking of racing, if you’re interested in doing Eastern Cups, you need to hop on purchasing US Ski & Snowboard and NENSA memberships ASAP. You can read more about what you need and for what kind of racing at this blog post. Holler with questions; it can be confusing.

U14s:

1. Funky week this week. Take a good look at the schedule and plan accordingly.

2. Equipment kerfuffling: race season is coming up fast and we want to get gear sorted out before it. If you have gear needs, get them sorted pronto and ask us for help.

3. Rollerski rental gear: needs to come back!! Now!

4. Racing: a parent asked a good question at the potlock on Sunday: “What racing, besides middle school racing, is there for a U14?” U14s are actually still in BKL in the 7th/8th grade category! BKL races often take place on the heels of an Eastern Cup, but there are also a bunch more throughout the season all over New England. NENSA has the most definitive schedule thus far, which tends to flesh out more once it snows. We’ll keep you apprised of upcoming opportunities in this space. For the more local races, we sometimes send a coach and organize as a team. More experienced U14s who are gung-ho about trying an Eastern Cup are also welcome to try a U16 race at the Craftsbury Eastern Cup in December. Either of these paths are OPTIONAL!

BIATHLETES:

1. Always Bring: Hat, dry gloves (mittens don’t work for shooting a rifle), poles, dry shirt (U14s and up- plan to ALWAYS change into dry stuff after ski practice).

2. USBA Basic Rifle Safety Course: Everyone in our program needs to take this online course which take 20 minutes.

   JRs/U14s should complete before Sunday December 8th. We will do the in person part of the course as part of practice on Dec 8th.

   BKLers should complete the online portion by Jan 1.

   If your child is 12 or under, you will need to do this under a parent’s account. In that case, please email susand@craftsbury.com to let us know your child has completed this.

3. Interested in Racing? Read this: Biathlon race opportunities 2024-25.

4. Club Kick Off Meeting Summary: Lots of helpful info and overview about the winter here.

5. BKL Biathlon starts Dec 10 when BKL ski programs start

ADULTS/MASTERS:

1. Keep an eye on the training plan and Slack, as that’s where we’ll post/send updates.

2. Sundays in the winter: Sunday practices have been shuffled to 9:00am for the winter! The first official practice of winter for competitive adults/masters is December 5, coming right up.