By Todd Brickson and Andy Hare
Rowmark Summer and Fall Highlights
Our Academy and Junior Program summer and fall activities have been very busy and productive, with off-season ski camps, team building, and daily dryland conditioning.
For our U16s, our on-snow preparation period started back in May, with four days of late-season directed free-skiing and drills at the local Snowbird Resort, which is known worldwide for its extended ski season on world-class terrain (their season goes through May, and sometimes well into June).
Our U14s began with a June ski camp at Mt. Hood, Oregon, where the snow conditions were excellent and the on-hill skill development was very high on vast, moderate terrain above the famous Timberline Lodge.
Then in August, our FIS team traveled to the southern hemisphere, to El Colorado, Chile, for a two-week ski camp where they were also greeted with great winter conditions and had a very productive time. During the same time, our U16s and U14s drove up to Mt. Hood for another week of dynamic ski training on the Palmer Snowfield.
In late September, our FIS team headed out again, this time to Saas-Fee, Switzerland, for their second off-season ski camp. They had a few storm days where the mountain was closed due to a prolonged early-season snowstorm, but the weather cleared and they took advantage of the good early season snow conditions on the Allalin Glacier (3,600 meters above sea level). For the second year in a row, the camp provided our FIS team with a great ski training environment and an immersive experience of Swiss culture.
In early September, our Academy Team headed south to the San Rafael Swell and Goblin Valley State Park in Southern Utah for our annual Academy fall orientation weekend. There, we challenged the Rowmarkers’ teamwork skills while navigating the Goblin’s Lair and Little Wild Horse Slot Canyon hikes over two days. Then, in the evening around a campfire, we held a leadership exercise that involved re-forming our expectations statement around the theme What I expect from myself, from my teammates, and from my coaches.
Similarly, the U14 program recently hosted a team-building day at the Utah Olympic Park. The day was packed with team-oriented activities designed to build camaraderie and teamwork. Highlights included running an obstacle course, log carrying, a Q&A with Academy athletes, tug-of-war, and running the 110-meter ski jump stairs—all done together as a team, not individually. It was a fantastic way to strengthen both physical skills and team spirit.
Last week, both our FIS and U16 teams were in Colorado for a four-day slalom and giant slalom camp at Copper Mountain. The U14 team is currently in Loveland, Colorado, attending an early-season directed free-ski camp, and it’s going exceptionally well. The conditions this year are very different from last season, when we had to cancel the camp. This time, we’re experiencing true winter conditions at 11,000 feet—ideal for training and building a solid foundation.
Next week, our FIS, U16, U14, and U12 teams head out to Big Sky, Montana, for our final off-season camp of our preparation period before we get on snow here locally at the Utah Olympic Park and Park City Mountain Resort. At these camps, the Rowmarkers are focused on and further developing their skills, technique, and tactics, and dialing in their new ski equipment ahead of our fast-approaching competition season. The days are long and intense, with 3–4 hours of on-snow training, followed by dryland workouts, study hall, ski tuning, and video analysis. These are highly focused, high-performance training camps designed to prepare them for the competition season ahead. These camps also challenge the Rowmarkers’ academic and time management abilities, as they miss several days of school for the fall camps and work to keep up with school during evening study halls.
In between all these camps, our teams have been busy with daily after-school dryland conditioning, which includes strength training, intervals, core, cardio, agility, coordination, and games as we finally get on snow full time here in Utah to prepare for the fast-approaching competition season. Good luck to all!
Rowmark Staff Updates
We would like to welcome the following new coaches to our programs!
- Alexis Hollister, FIS (U18 and older) assistant academy coach
- Sean Sullivan, U12 head coach
- Carlee McCardel, U12 coach
- Nick Sheetz, U12 coach
- Joey Berg, U10 coach and parent of Rowmark/Rowland Hall students Molly, Max, and Warren
- Parker Hare, U10 coach
- Alyson Ronald, U8 head coach
- Maeve Crimmins, U8 coach
- Sophie Felici, U8 coach
Alumni Update
An incredible breakthrough two weeks ago for US Ski Team member and Rowmark/Rowland Hall alum Katie Hensien ’18, who stormed to fourth place in the opening World Cup giant slalom at Solden, Austria. Katie won her second run! Even more remarkable is that Katie is returning from a season-ending knee injury she suffered last winter.
Congratulations, Katie, and good luck to four of her fellow Rowmark/Rowland Hall grads, Breezy Johnson ’13, Madison Hoffman ’18, Mary Bocock ’21, and Elisabeth Bocock ’23, on their NorAm, Europa Cup, and World Cup races this season!