I hope everyone has had a wonderful summer and is starting to get excited for the upcoming ski season!

Thank you to everyone who has stepped up to volunteer at the upcoming casino. These fundraisers help support the entire family of clubs. Your support is invaluable. I also look forward to connecting with many of you at the Calgary New and Used Ski Sale.

This year, the club will have a booth at the sale where our head coaches and I will be working. Our goal:

• Showcase the club and its programs
• Answer ski gear questions
• Hand out / sell some stickers and hats
• Welcome newcomers interested in what we offer

What Makes Our Club Unique
At Lake Louise Ski Club, our guiding principles are captured in RISE: Respect, Inclusion, Support, Effort.

While we value Adventure, Unity and Excellence. Together, we are stronger. Our diverse team includes:

• High-level ski coaches in both Alpine and Freestyle
• Educators and students
• Coach-athletes who grew up in the club
• A dedicated professional management team

This cohesive group is ready to combine their skills to provide our best season yet!
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Quick Facts About the Lake Louise Ski Club

As ski racing and big mountain skiing evolves and we continue to push new limits, athlete safety remains a priority in our programming.  We are grateful for the technology available to us that mitigates the many risks of training and competition at all levels of the sport.  Helmets, back protectors, and even mouth guards are now standard in alpine and freeride skiing. However, a new piece of protective gear is becoming more widely available and addresses a major risk that seems to be on the rise in the ski world: lacerations from sharp ski edges. Welcome to the chat - Cut-Resistant Apparel.  
 
While these garments have been a fixture on the world stage for several years, a rise in accidents closer to home is highlighting the importance of these garments. Our club alone has seen two athletes sustain significant laceration injuries over the past three seasons.  
 
This April, a young FIS athlete, Joey Macknish, was critically injured from a ski laceration while racing GS at Alberta Spring Series. Joey has asked clubs across Alberta to share his story, stressing how preventable these types of accidents are, and has partnered with VIX Protection to make cut-resistant layers more accessible to our community. Please take a moment to read Joey’s story below. 

We encourage anyone in our LLSCs community to take advantage of the significant discount Vix is offering to Alberta athletes. Please take a moment to look at their website VIX Protection and use the Team Order Formfor pricing info and purchasing. Male, female and youth sizing options are available.  Deadline to order is June 30th and families will be sent payment links directly from Vix. Pickup instructions will come from myself once orders are shipped.  ​

We would like to once again express our gratitude to Charlie Locke who has graciously provided one 2025-2026 Family Pass to one LLSCs family!

The Robertson Family is the lucky recipient of this pass. Nylah and Matthis started their journey with the Club as Grizzlies and now are part of our Freeride programming!

​As the 2024/2025 season comes to an end and we look forward to next season, the LLSCs wanted to share a quick programming update for next season. While most of our current programs will remain intact with minor changes, we will be introducing one additional program option for U12 athletes next season.
 
We will be adding Grizzlies U12 as a program option. The intention of this program is to give our young athletes some more to develop fundamental skiing skills and help bridge the gap into entering a more competitive pathway. Parent meetings were held last weekend to introduce Grizzlies U12 as well as all the program options available to U12s. If you missed the meetings and have questions, please reach out to our Grizzlies Head Coach Emily Clarke. 

Join us this Saturday, March 15 at 3pm in the North Face Bistro
All LLSC athletes (Grizzlies, Freeride and Race) will be provided with a voucher to get a hamburger (gluten free buns available)
​Sunday Freeride athletes are welcome, find Liam M for your voucher
Bar will be open
Grizzly Cup Awards will take place at 3:30pm

It was brought to my attention than most parent information has disappeared from athlete profiles in TeamSnap.  I have learned this is a result of an upgrade to the system part way through season in which contact information was made private.

If you are comfortable with your athlete's teammates (and their parents) having access to your family contact information, please take a moment to open your athlete's profile under roster and click on 'edit'. Beside each phone number and email address in this view there is a box you can uncheck and your information will once again be visible.

​As we enter the back half of our competitive season, it’s easy for athletes to feel like their hard work isn’t enough or that their goals are slipping out of reach—especially when others around them are finding success. The reality is that in an individual sport, only a handful of athletes make it to the top of the podium. But true success isn’t defined by results alone; it’s about how we respond to challenges, learn from each experience, and continue striving for excellence.

In this article, author Dr. Jim Taylor explores how setbacks can be a powerful tool for growth. He highlights how parents and coaches can help athletes navigate tough moments and turn them into opportunities for learning. Disappointment is a natural part of competition, but when athletes learn to process it in a constructive way, they build resilience, adaptability, and confidence. Results aren’t always in our control, but how we respond to them is—and that’s what defines long-term success.

Our programming has always emphasized skill development, growth, effort, and perseverance. Every competition, every training run, and every challenge is part of a bigger journey. Learning to embrace setbacks as stepping stones rather than roadblocks helps athletes stay motivated and continue progressing, both in sport and in life.

Check out the full article linked below; 

Why Disappointment Helps Young Athletes: Building Resilience in Ski Racing and Beyond

Our annual survey takes place in January of each season and is a requirement to objectively evaluate club member satisfaction. The insights gathered from this survey inform our Board of Directors during their annual review, helping us continue to deliver professionally designed ski programs in a highly professional manner while upholding RISE principles. Together with our coaches, parents, volunteers, and athletes, we strive to build a community of lifelong skiers.
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Your feedback on these critical areas is important for us to meet our objectives. Please note that the survey is not anonymous, as our management team needs to be able to respond to meaningful member feedback in a very deliberate way.  The survey will remain open until February 14.

Hello everyone,
 
I'm Saya Fryer, and I'm truly honored to step into the role of President at the Lake Louise Ski Clubs. Since joining this amazing community in 2017 and as a proud mom of a U15 Freeride Athlete, I'm deeply committed to our club's mission and vision.
 
As we embark on the 2024/2025 season, I warmly welcome back our returning families and athletes—it's great to have you with us again. To our new families and athletes, I hope your time with us is enjoyable and rewarding. A heartfelt thank you to our coaching staff for your dedication in crafting excellent programing for this upcoming ski season.
 
Our clubs—Race, Grizzlies, and Freeride—thrive on the passion, commitment, and camaraderie of all involved. We're dedicated to creating an environment that nurtures not just athletic prowess, but also personal growth and lifelong friendships. Above all, we aim to inspire a lifelong love for skiing.
 
Together, we'll continue to build on our legacy of excellence and create unforgettable experiences both on and off the slopes. Let's make this ski season incredible! And let's hope for a La Niña season, bringing us more snow!
 
Thank you for your trust and support.