In an effort to increase the opportunities for skiing events, FSNSC has partnered with the Strathcona Wilderness Centre and the Edmonton Nordic Ski Club to cross-promote some of our activities. This is a great opportunity as both other clubs are significantly larger than our club and have the resources to do more varied events (ie: Para-nordic training at SWC, year-round competitive training at ENSC) while possibly bringing more participants into our events (ie: we are planning to bring back the Jackrabbit & Youth Olympics Ski Event to Fort Saskatchewan with their abilities to provide some volunteer support). This also provides opportunities for us to collaborate on ski instructor training and sharing ski trail grooming best practices.
Joining with FSNSC now allows members to see some of the benefits of the other clubs in the region. These benefits begin immediately (SEE BELOW):
Joining with FSNSC now allows members to see some of the benefits of the other clubs in the region. These benefits begin immediately (SEE BELOW):
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SWC has invited all youth FSNSC members (ages 10 – 16 years old) to join in their Track Attack training group that is doing dryland training to prepare for the next ski season on Thursday nights from July 30 into September. If you have children who are interested in this please contact:
SWC Track Attack Head Coach: Mike Neary nearym3@gmail.com FSNSC will also attend the SWC Trail Run on Saturday, Sept. 26th. FSNSC will run ski lessons at the SWC World Snow Day Celebrations on Sunday, Jan. 17. |
FSNSC will attend the Troll in the Park Ski Loppet on Friday, Jan. 1st.
FSNSC will participate in the Edmonton Fun Evening Sprint Race in February (exact date to be determined). |
Skijoring and Dog sledding
Just because its winter doesn't mean that you can't have fun with your dog outdoors, two of the great activities available is kick sledding and skijoring.
Skijoring is a combination of cross country skiing and dog sledding. The dog is outfitted with a dog sledding harness which is attached by towline to a skijoring harness worn by the human.
A kick sled is a small lightweight sled designed to be propelled by a human, similar to skijoring adding a your pet to the makes this a fun activity for everyone.
As long as your dog weighs at least 35 pounds and has the energy, stamina and willingness to take part, all you will need is some basic training to get started.
If your looking for more information on skijoring check out these resources:
Skijor with your Dog - Great book for those interested in taking up the sport
Akko Sports - Supplier for harnesses and starter kits
Trail Etiquette for skijoring or Kick sledding
Skijoring is a combination of cross country skiing and dog sledding. The dog is outfitted with a dog sledding harness which is attached by towline to a skijoring harness worn by the human.
A kick sled is a small lightweight sled designed to be propelled by a human, similar to skijoring adding a your pet to the makes this a fun activity for everyone.
As long as your dog weighs at least 35 pounds and has the energy, stamina and willingness to take part, all you will need is some basic training to get started.
If your looking for more information on skijoring check out these resources:
Skijor with your Dog - Great book for those interested in taking up the sport
Akko Sports - Supplier for harnesses and starter kits
Trail Etiquette for skijoring or Kick sledding
- Try to stay in the middle of the trail and out of the tracks for classic skiing, it’s hard on a dog to run in those parallel tracks, and dog prints can really ruin the trail for other skiers.
- Keep control of your dog at all times. If your dog is reactive to other dogs while on leash, get that under control before you add a longer leash (gangline) slippery skis and fast speeds. Control also means no lose dogs in the staging area, and no dog park meetings. The message for a skijor dog, is harness time means working time. So save the socialising for the dog park.
- Pick up the brown stuff. But double bag it! Nothing worse than falling on a bag of brown stuff, and having the bag rip open!
- Let other trail users know you are coming. Some people wear a bell, other yell “Trail”. Whatever you do, let people know you are coming. Remember that in winter, people may not be able to hear you as well, with heavy toques or hoods up. So use your voice, and make sure they hear you coming!