Athletes train full days Saturday & Sunday at Snowbasin and Tues-Fri afternoons at Wolf Mtn. For optimal training, some weekend gate sessions may be held at Wolf Mtn. Season runs from early Dec. to end of March (conditions permitting).  Athletes race in South Series races (5 weekends Sat/Sun) and may compete in YSL.  Includes fall dryland and Christmas Camp.  Program includes transportation from Snowcrest to Wolf Mtn and associated OVWSF Academy programs.

 

The Ogden Valley Ski Team has an optional tuition refund insurance program if your athlete is injured or is otherwise physically unable to complete the season (i.e. family relocation, etc.).  Tuition Refund Insurance can only be purchased during online registration. The cost of insurance is 4% of the athlete's total tuition.  A pro-rated tuition refund will be given to the family based on a percentage of missed training days using a September 1 to April 15 season.  No credits or refunds will be given for any reason if the insurance was not purchased. 

Currently we are going to stay with a normal school schedule for academy athletes until November 12th this means no early out for ski team activities.

Snow dependent at Wolf Mountain and Snowbasin we may extend that date one week longer to the 19th of November. 

This will give the students a little more time in the class room before switching to the winter schedule.

 

The winter schedule once we begin with it will go very similar to last seasons.

Mondays off of ski team activities.  Study time will be available each Monday afternoon in the Snowcrest Library.  I will be looking for Parent

volunteers to help supervise the library like we had last winter.

Mondays for FIS athletes Tommy Franquelin and Joey Thomason, there will be organized dryland at Bomber Athletics.  J.O. athletes this is a rest day for you, no gym time on monday's I would like to see you utilize this time to catch up or get ahead on school work.

Tuesday through Friday we will leave the school at 1:00 p.m. for the ski hill either Wolf Mountain or Snowbasin depending on the training schedule.  Back to the school between 4:00 and 4:15 for drop off.  The team van will leave the school making one stop at Rainbow Gardens approximately 4:45 to 4:50.  If it is a Snowbasin training block the time frames will be later into the early evening by about 30 minutes.

Saturdays and Sundays will be 8:30 to 3:00 at either Snowbasin, Wolf Mountain or a combination of the two. 

If you have any questions let me know,

Slopes and books at Ogden Valley Academy

 

By Trent Toone (Standard-Examiner staff )

OGDEN -- The Weber School District has partnered with the Ogden Valley Winter Sports Foundation to provide students with an opportunity to capitalize on their academic and athletic potential.

It's called the Ogden Valley Winter Sports Academy.

Students interested in training to be competitive skiers can enroll at Snowcrest Junior High School in Ogden Valley, study core subjects from 7:45 a.m. to 1 p.m. and then spend three hours training on the slopes, including four days a week at Wolf Creek Ski Resort and Snowbasin on weekends, said Dr. Jeff Harrison, president of the foundation.

The foundation is a nonprofit organization whose goal is to develop young ski racers.

"Ogden Valley hasn't had any Olympic-level skiers for 30 years. The last one was Scotty Hoffman, now over 50 years old. It's been a long time," said Harrison, a sports medicine orthopedic specialist and longtime physician for the U.S. ski team.

"In order to get the kids to that level, we feel like we have to get the infrastructure in place, including education, coaching and hill time. Eventually we would like to open it up to cross country skiers, snowboarders (and other winter sports)."

Currently 13 students in the 13-16 age group are in the academy at Snowcrest.

If you are a resident of Utah, you can attend Snowcrest for free. Students must maintain high academic standards to participate with the ski team. While attending school is free, Harrison said it costs individual skiers around $3,000 to pay for coaches, hill time, equipment, and transportation.

For those who live out of state, tuition costs about $5,000. Attending a special school in Park City could cost more than $30,000, Harrison said.

"Most of our kids' families can't afford that," he said.

Michael Jacobsen, Weber School District superintendent, has been meeting with Harrison and others since November. He said the Ogden Valley Winter Sports Academy is a win-win situation because it helps keep enrollment numbers up at Snowcrest and appeals to nontraditional students.

"It's an opportunity for us to have a magnet school that focuses on the needs of a group of students who don't fit a regular schedule," Jacobsen said. "It's been an exciting opportunity for us to look at different ways to give instruction and work with students on an individual basis, so they can have the best of both worlds -- an academic education and improve their skills in areas that will probably result in future opportunities like scholarships and participating at elite levels of skiing."

Since Snowcrest was built in 1987, average enrollment has been around 300 students. Jacobsen said the school has a capacity of more than 600.

"They have space and it is situated in a location where a prime reason for people to live up there is outdoor and winter sports," Jacobsen said. "It fits into the lifestyle of those who live in the valley."

Troy Price, the academy's former program director, said students study core subjects such as math and science, but sacrifice electives to ski. For them, however, the sacrifice is worth it.

"This partnership with the school district, the foundation and the community allows athletes to pursue their dreams," Price said. "Normally an athlete will peak out at age 12 or 13 if there is no support system."

More information can be found at www.ssef.org.