General
NEW and exciting SSC race training programme
After 9 years of sterling service as coaches of the Scottish Ski Club race training programme, Craig Lamont and Gary Todd have decided to step down. They rescued the club at a time when training numbers were low and the success of their athletes at both national and international level speaks for itself. We owe a huge debt of gratitude to them and their team for all they have contributed to the club over the years and we wish them well as they get more time to themselves in the mountains.
The development of UK alpine academies with full time coaches and a more comprehensive coaching programme has highlighted specifically the lack of continuity between the alpine camps that our athletes are involved in, and our domestic programme. It has become clear that in order to provide a high quality coaching programme that we can no longer afford to exist on a shoestring budget andmust aim either to supplement our programme with external funding or increase the cost to parents.
We are therefore delighted to be able to announce that SSC has secured the services of Sean Langmuir and his Alpine Training Centre to provide both a domestic and alpine training programme for our young aspiring ski racers. Sean, as a long-time SSC member, will be familiar to many of you and both he and head coach Ali Kuwall work full time on the planning and delivery of high quality alpine ski coaching.
Our vision is a joint venture combining the history and infrastructure of the SSC and the professionalism and expertise of ATC to create a Scottish based domestic and Alpine programme to rival the UK alpine based ski academies, but at significantly less cost. Our aim is to create a peer group of young ski racers of a size and quality that has not been seen in Scotland for decades.
We are aiming to focus initially on Cairngorm. The programme is centred around the 10 weekends over the winter period from January to March. The main changes that parents will recognise is that training commitment is slightly increased and that training will occur whatever the weather – wherever possible on snow, but on dryland if all the ski areas are stormbound. Also included are mid-week access to dryland sessions organised locally as well as Braehead for snow training on a Tuesday night.
It is anticipated that our young ski racers will be involved in Sean’s Scottish and alpine based camps with ATC using if not the same coaches, then at least coaches working under to the same structure and standards. Sean has also committed to the mentoring and training of our own young club coaches.
The club would like to propose the following fee structure. This maintains a £15 a day rate for those fully committed to the programme, but asks for a modest increase in contribution from those looking for fewer days of coaching over the winter. These fees would cover the weekend programme only with additional fees for any week long Scottish or alpine ATC camps.
The 10 and 20 day options would need to be confirmed by the middle of December with single day options available up to the Wednesday before the weekend. Days in the 10 and 20 day packages would need to be specified ahead of time but could be part or all of a particular weekend.
20 day package: £300 (plus £15 per day for additional days)
10 day package: £200 (plus £20 per day for additional days)
Single day: £30
Athlete / coach ratios are set at this point at 10:1 but we are aiming for a better quality ratio of 6:1 as more funding becomes available.
We would also like to make the training available from age 6 to junior under 18. The child protection rules mandate a supervision rate of 6:1 for the U8s and we would be looking for voluntary parent helpers to support that end of the programme.
This is a really exciting time for the club and we hope that both you and all the families that you ski with can get behind this venture. We hope that the base of our pyramid of young ski racers will increase massively, that club membership will be boosted and that ultimately we will produce world class ski racers from this programme.
Details of how to sign up will be communicated by email to those on the previous year’s programme and will also be posted on the website in due course.
For further details of the programme click here
Glencoe hut repairs
Thanks to the generous provision of materials from Derek Price of W.F. Price (Roofing) Ltd and the stalart efforts of two professional tradesmen provided by Stewart.G Shaw (Jnr)from Cowal Building and Plumbing Supplies Ltd, the SSC Hut at Glencoe has now been repaired.
Last January’s storms caused considerable damage and it was very neccessary to make good the temporary repair made then.
The Palace has been informed! (OBE anyone?)
Allan McMurtrie
Fun infographic on Scottish ski resorts
Check out this funky infographic on Scottish ski resorts, click here
EQUIPMENT FOR SALE/WANTED
The Guests have some helmets (not GS or SG FIS compliant this season but are still OK for all those U16 until 2016) and shinnies available too.
They also have some race boots, including brand new ones still in box.
Also 2 pairs of 183 ladies Salomon GS skis (in perfect condition). These have been used one season and are womens FIS skis (old regs) and are still suitable for U16 racers.
Please contact Mollie Guest for more details.
You can leave a post in here as a reply or to advertise wants/needs. Each post must be approved by our web team, so there will be no spam advertised. Please bear in mind that this is a public website, so please be cautious about giving out your details.
Rona Hulbert – New SSC President
Dear SSC members
The club AGM was held at the River House in Stirling on Wednesday 29th of October 2014. In line with our constitution, Eddie Guest stood down from his role as President after 6 years of service. The club owes Eddie and his family a huge debt of gratitude.
Under Eddie’s stewardship, the Club regained it’s feet after years of poor snow and dwindling membership. Knowing that the success of the Club rests on having youngsters excited about skiing and more particularly, racing, Eddie secured the support of Craig Lamont, our Head Coach. And so began the building of the race training programme which now covers weekends, half terms and Christmas and Easter holidays.
Eddie has ensured that all our huts have been well maintained and now most weekends the Cairngorm, Lochaber and Glencoe huts are filled with members, young and old, braving the gale force winds! Last season, families were out skiing on the hills having fun and improving technique while using the Ski Club huts as a refuge and a place to make new like minded friends. Alongside the race training programme, support for the Club holiday and other activites have thrived and last April we saw 100 Club racers from 2 to 92 compete in the Conveners Canter and 150 members join us at the end of season BBQ at Farleitter.
All this flourished under Eddie’s presidency and as a Club we thank Eddie for all he has done on our behalf. Eddie has handed over the presidency to me and I very much appreciate that I have some big shoes to fill! However, I am very fortunate to have the help and support of a great and dedicated committee. I am also excited that some more members have volunteered to join us in helping move the club forward; Kenny Waite, Kenny Carruthers, Mark Blyth, Mags Duncan and Neil Ross. They all bring new and different skills to the table which will really give us a fantastic base to build on.
Our club functions only through the selfless dedication of volunteers. For instance, today (1st November) a group of members including Craig Lamont, Jer Whittet, Bill Thomson, Sean and Lara Langmuir and kids, Moira and Cate Langmuir, Mark and Rachel Blyth and kids and our new hut convenor Mags Duncan are on Cairngorm fixing the walkway to the hut and making sure that it’s ready for use this coming season. We cannot thank them enough for giving up their time to do this on behalf of everyone.
I am meeting shortly with Jane Campbell-Morrison, chairman of Snowsport Scotland, to get an understanding of how SSS supports the clubs. I am also meeting with Janette Jansen who is the new General Manager for Natural Retreats, the organisation now running Cairngorm Mountain.
Our journal is underway, hopefully to be sent out pre-Christmas. It is only as good as the contributions sent in, so move fast if you have an article to submit! Craig Lamont, head coach, has set out the training programme for the coming season.
For myself, it was a huge moment of pride to become Club President (although I think my mum Myrtle Simpson, a past President, was more proud)! For those who don’t know me, I have been a member of the SSC practically since birth and have skied and raced on Cairngorm and Glencoe with the SSC from about aged 2 along with my 3 brothers, Robin, Bruce and Rory Simpson. Apart from 10 years when I lived in Cape Town and had no skiing whatsoever, skiing has been part of our family make up. We know that its a sport that everyone can do together, young and old. Our daughters, Jemma and Lucy have come through the club training programme and Jemma has been mentored as a coach by Craig and Gary and has now passed her alpine level one coaching. My Husband is the expert cook and fire maker at the end of season BBQ, taking over from my Mum and Dad at our family home, Farletter. Mat has worked for the past 14 years in Coach education and child protection roles for Tennis Scotland so has an understanding of the workings of governing bodies for sport. I work for Marks and Spencer, who I have been with for 28 years. Currently I am the General Manger for the Argyle Street branch in Glasgow .
To me, the Scottish Ski Club represents a club for families and individuals to find friends who enjoy a common love of being out on a hill in all elements! Either ski racing, ski training, back country ski touring, hillwalking , piste bashing, learning about avalanches, mountain safety or sitting out the weather in the club hut with like minded friends. Our club is over 100 years old and has been the backbone to the development of sking in Scotland. It has always provided a pathway and support to potential Olympic medalists as well as being a club for those who just want to go skiing.
Our new committee is very excited about the future of the club and I look forward to hearing views and ideas from all members about our way forward in a survey we will send out shortly.
I look forward to seeing you on the hills and in the huts!
Regards,
Rona Hulbert
SSC President