What Do Students Have to Say About the Ski and Snowboard Club?

Imagine being up on the top of a mountain, the cold breeze blowing in your face. 2,000 feet above the ground. The cold crisp air in your lungs. You push yourself down the face of the mountain, down the steep slopes and you get hit with a rush of adrenaline zooming down the slopes of the mountain.

The Emerson Jr/Sr High School ski club was founded in 2010 by Scott Avedis and is currently advised by woodworking teacher William Bliss and P.E teacher Thomas Mansfield. The club goes skiing after school at Mountain Creek in Vernon, New Jersey. They meet and ride on Thursdays five times in total from 3 pm to 10 pm after school.

With skiing season coming to an end and club trips having passed, Bliss is inviting students onboard to join the club for next season. Sign-ups are available at next year’s club fair or through emailing Bliss. 

Even with the shortage of snow, club members still had a positive experience and many great things to say about the club.

Ski club member Thomas Monahan, an 8th grader said his favorite part of ski club was being with his friends. Monahan said this was his first year of skiing and he enjoyed it. Monahan explained, “I’m getting better at skiing but the sugar hill is the hardest hill I’ve done but I normally stick to the bunnies.” The sugar slope is one of the green slopes at Mountain Creek Resort. Monahan said that he joined the club because his friends were doing it and he wanted to give it a try.

Madison Benefield, a sophomore this year explained that her favorite part of ski club is hanging out with her friends in the lodge. Benefield said, “Sometimes I go skiing outside of the club with friends and family.” Benefield has a season pass to Mountain Creek, which allows season pass holders to go skiing outside of the club whenever they want. A season pass before the season costs roughly 400 dollars, however during the season, it will cost around 600 dollars. Benefield usually rides blues and sometimes blacks and she explained, “I got into skiing because my friends convinced me to join, and I have no regrets. I recommend this sport as it is unlike anything else!”

Sophomore, Sarah Busam, said her most memorable part about ski club was being able to ski with her friends. Busam started skiing when she was 11 and she got into it because “her cousins forced her to.” She said that she goes skiing with her cousins outside of the ski club. She also explained, that she normally rides the blues when she goes skiing. Finally, Busam recommends the club to people who enjoy skiing.  

Many people may wonder, how does the club go skiing when there has been no snowfall? The answer to this question is Mountain Creek uses over 1,600 snow makers across its 167 acres of skiable area. The snowmakers work day and night in below-freezing temperatures to keep their trails open for skiers.