Have you heard about the adventures that the Niles West Ski and Snowboarding club has taken? The members have traveled to Cascade Mountain, Alpine Valley, and Devil’s Head, which are all located in Wisconsin. There are about three to four trips a year if the weather permits.
Students have said that they join the club to do something they enjoy with a bunch of close friends.
Junior Robert Marohn said, “I love having the option to ski with so many of my friends that I don’t usually ski with, because usually when I go skiing, it’s only with a small group. Having a coach bus full of homies is really awesome.”
When traveling to the different resorts, the club members need to meet at Niles West before 6:00 a.m. so they can leave school by 6:30 a.m. Once they arrive at the resort, they wait for their lift tickets and have the option of getting lessons for an additional cost. If someone doesn’t have the appropriate gear for skiing or snowboarding, they can rent anything they need. From then on, the rest of the day is free for each member to do whatever they wish–as long as they follow the resort’s rules.
“It’s really fun because you can go with your friends to amazing resorts you usually wouldn’t be able to drive to,” said junior Robert Urosev. Urosev enjoys traveling with his friends and spending time doing something he loves.
“The only down side is that occasionally, there is an injury, but that is always a risk for skiers and snowboarders. It is an awesome club and we have lots of fun!” said Special Education teacher and Ski and Snowboarding club sponsor Marie Grunst.
Students join this club to experience things that would be harder to do without the club. They have great transportation, accessible gear, and great peers to spend time with.
“At the end of the day, everyone meets back on the bus and we head home. Usually, they play a movie or something, but most of the bus just knocks out because of how long the day has been,” says senior Maggie Swanson .
The club usually meets in room 1501 at 3:30pm on Thurday, but specific dates and information can be found on Grunst’s webpage.