The Ski and Snowboard Club is already anticipating spending their Friday nights  traversing the snow as they excitedly prepare for the upcoming winter season, sophomore Luca Mariani, Ski and Snowboard Club President, said.

The club’s season begins when there is enough snow on the mountains to ski or snowboard, and members anticipate six trips to Alpine Valley Resort in Wisconsin, Mariani said. Only in their second year, Ski and Snowboard Club is working to raise money through fundraisers to provide more financial aid to pay for gear and lifts, and to fund overnight trips next year, Mariani said. The club has grown in size from only 40 members up to 74 this school year and has had to adjust to the growing size, Mariani said. 

“If you’re in the club, you can buy [a] card [for] discounted lift tickets,” Mariani said. “You can [also] use your club card and get discounted lift tickets when you’re not skiing with the club.”

Aside from lift tickets, gear rental can be expensive, and the club raises funds with their waffle stand during Spring Fling and concessions during basketball games, junior Sophie Collin, Ski and Snowboard Club Vice President, said. The money helps to fund the club and to give more students an opportunity to ski and snowboard as well as raising money for charities and avalanche support groups, Collin Said. 

“We looked at an avalanche safety charity and some more ski safety charities,” Collin said. “Those charities raise money to help protect the mountains and the people skiing on the mountains. We also plan on doing other types of donations.”

Transportation to and from the slopes is pre-arranged; school buses leave at 3:45 p.m. and usually return shortly after 10 p.m. on the same day. Members will ski for a few hours on the various routes for all skill levels, Yana Shabrova, junior and club member, said. Trips are lively and they are fun ways to spend Friday nights with friends, Shabrova said.

“I’m hyped the entire day [and] can’t focus in class because we are about to go skiing, and I love skiing,” Shabrova said. 

The club’s goal is to make it as easy and fun as possible for skiers and snowboarders of all skill levels, Mariani said. The club gives them something to look forward to in the winter and keep them outside and energized, Mariani said. As the club grows in size and experience the board continues to make it a welcoming and positive community to all skiers and snowboarder, Mariani said. 

“[The best part is] meeting everybody who shares the same passion as me and then going out and doing it,” Collin said.