From day to day you have to be mentally fast, both in your actions while skiing to the way you treat every day as a new day and move forward. I find my journey through ski racing has had a lot of ups and downs, similar with most ski racers. It is a sport that fluctuates so quickly in results through on and off days, snow conditions, and mental game. 

By: Gavin Preziosi, Provincial Program Director

Nathan Sylvester (SUNSH), Gered Thompson (KASC), Caleb Brooks (LLSE), Sara Paradis (CARC), Polly Lang (KASC) and Julia Culig (CARC) returned last week from a successful European campaign as they were abroad representing their clubs, AASA and Canada with Milan Arsovski (KASC) and Gavin Preziosi (AASA) leading the way through 2 International Children’s FIS races in Slovenia and Croatia. Let’s be honest, Milan led the way given the fact he can speak 7 languages, has greater navigation skills than our GPS units and hails from the region.

While the trip was sure to give the athletes some European ski racing exposure, it turned out to be the other lessons learned along the way and the ones we have all brought back to Alberta that truly made this experience one for the books. I’ll get back to those once I’ve recapped what little I can in one page and their performances.

Pokal Loka (Trophy Loka) was the first race held at Stari Vrh, Slovenia and boy do they know how to put on a race. We had full World Cup prep on the only slope with snow on the entire mountain. Needless to say, when we rolled into the parking lot I was skeptical as to how the heck we were expected to race, but as it turns out, 6 inches of ice, and hammer drill friendly dirt underneath is all you need to run a great race that held up for 275 athletes without putting a dent in it. I must also add that gates do not pop out when drilled straight into the earth but wouldn’t recommend cutting back on our snowmaking as getting them out is an absolute nightmare.

Oh right, the results, while we weren’t able to walk away with any awards that included handmade stools we did show that we belong on the world stage as the athletes achieved some world class competitive runs and it was nice to see that as a province we are tracking with the rest of the ski racing world through U16.

At the end of that series and all you can eat burgers while on hill it was time to make tracks back to Zagreb to the world famous Snow Queen track on Sljeme. Unfortunately, the consistent temperature ranging from +10-15 degrees were rapidly getting the better of the track and it was time to engage in some fundamental variable condition racing as the athletes were faced with changing conditions, the only morning of rain and a one run GS race as there just wasn’t enough snow for a second run.

Despite the challenging conditions the Alberta squad was ready to take all lessons learned from Slovenia and put their newly acquired intensity, focus and determination into action. Witnessing the transformation of the athletes in the start was enough to give me chills as they were all going Norge style.

Norge style you say. While in Slovenia rubbing shoulders with the Norwegian U16 A team and Croatia’s up and coming Kostelic like star, the athletes observed the intensity of the top U16s in the world and rather than shy away decided to take that lesson and apply it to their newly acquired routines. “It was like they were going to war each and every time they enter the start gate” said one of the athletes.

Their Canadian imitation of the attacking Vikings certainly paid off in Croatia as the awards started to come in and the objective shifted from competing to winning as they now had the belief that they could in fact win. After all was said and done, our small but mighty team from Alberta walked away with one silver medal, one bronze, two 5^th place finishes and one 6^th.

When debriefing the trip on our final night in Europe the athletes were asked three questions. What did you learn? What will you bring back to Alberta? And what was the highlight of the trip? To summarize, as most answers were similar, they were happy to see that they were competitive and believed more firmly in their process to date, they all took away that in order to be the best in the world it would require a new level of determination and intensity that only works if you also raise the level of focus to match it and the majority agreed that new found friendships and training in a man’s backyard for 15 euros with a rope-tow meets poma set up with enough vertical for 40 slalom gates were the highlights.

I should also mention the king of the castle race for cakes races and the new found love for cevapi but those tales will have to be shared in person.

Thank you to all the athletes and Milan for a great experience and thank you all for reading.

Hola my dudes!

I am Mara Bishop from the Alberta Ski Cross Team. The ski cross season is nearing its end, but the team has had one amazing season! Our races in Calabogie were awesome, our team left with three thirds, three seconds, and one amazing first place. I finished 3^rd and 2^nd hitting the Nor Am podium for the first time in three years. The course in Calabogie was a bit disappointing since we had just competed on a smaller world cup track but with only having 7 volunteers the race went off without a hitch. The second race block in Calabogie I was amped for, hoping to keep improving and race even harder. Unfortunately in small finals on the first race day I hit my head and was left with a concussion and no ability to move head. The team pulled through the entirety of the eastern block with smiles on our faces, we are all so happy with the improvement in our skiing and the camaraderie we have built within the team.

We only had a week home in Calgary before flying out to the next race in Colorado. Our week home we stayed in the gym and did some jump training at Winsport. Jean Marc was an angel who drove from Calgary all the way to Ottawa and back with the trailer filled with our equipment. He only had two days at home before driving down to Colorado to meet the rest of the team in Denver to drive out to the last Nor Am of the year. Ski Cooper was an awesome race from what I heard, our team crushed it! Callum got second both days, Ryan got 3^rd hitting the podium for the first time this season, Alexa left with a 3^rd as well. I am so happy for my team!

The team was treated to a special day in Jackson Hole to rip up a well deserved free ski day in the best place ever. While I am stuck in Calgary recovering well, I feel very lucky to be able to work with CSI and Group 23 to get myself back on skis!

The team is heading into the last leg of the season, March holds one FIS race in Big White, BC and a handful of Europa Cup races which a few athletes from the team will go over to compete in. As well World Juniors are coming up and we have quite a few athletes who may be going but that is still up in the air. However, for this being the first year of the Ski Cross team I believe we did a great job showing that we are a force to be reckoned with. We wouldn’t be able to be the team that we are without our coach JM and the help from head office!

As always, thank you to everyone that has supported us this year! Being a part of the Alberta Alpine family has been wonderful.

Yours truly,

Bish

Check out Mara’s Athlete Profile here.

I have talked to Leslie (Firstbrook, AST Assistant Coach) about this a few times —

When you ski well you are happy, but in order to ski well you need to be happy.

— So where does it begin? It is a constant cycle that is so easy to break, yet so difficult create, but almost impossible to stay in. Why is that? Why is it so hard to be happy? Why is it so hard to ski well — we’ve only been doing it our entire lives? This season is no exception.

I know these journals are supposed to be about what the ski team is up to in the past and upcoming, but I have never really used mine to do that. If you have followed my journals for the past 3 years, I always use them as a way to express how I am doing. So I might as well not change that now.

I don’t think a start to a ski season has ever been so hard. I don’t think an entire season has ever been this hard. I never thought it would get this draining. I am exhausted. I am frustrated. It has been a lot. It is only mid February but I feel I have no season left. And that is terrifying.

To be blatantly honest, the beginning of this season has been extremely difficult to enjoy. Let me take you back to the start…

The summer was awesome. I’ve never been or felt stronger. It was my job to get my body ready for this season and with the opportunity at CSI, I felt I managed to do that.

Then came Chile. Plans changed for this trip at the very last minute but we made the most of it. I was excited to get back training on hard snow to find technique as usual summer camps are. But in Pucon, it was different: soft, soft, and more soft snow. It was challenging. I honestly wasn’t enjoying myself. My body was ready to be there but my mind wasn’t. I just wanted hard snow to find the technique again. We got some salt but that only does so much. Don’t get me wrong, I was pleased with my skiing for that time of year. But I thought it could be better. It can always be better.

October 1st/2nd. If you read my 1st journal you’ll understand why this was such a hard time.

October 13th-28th. Hintertux on snow camp. I hurt my back day 2. It was the first day in gates and I thought I was able to push through it, but the rest of the camp was a bust. I couldn’t ski like me, nothing felt good. I was doing 3 or 4 runs a day when my teammates where doing 8+. I felt it was unfair. Unfair to me that I went all that way and couldn’t even train. Unfair to my coaches because they couldn’t do anything to help me. Unfair to my teammates because I wasn’t being the teammate I knew I needed to be. When I got home I thought rest was what I needed, but I think it made it worse. Not doing anything for a week was not the best call. I let my core get weak so I had nothing supporting my back. I found this out the day I got back on snow at Nakiska.

November 4th. Nakiska pre-season starts. If you know me I’m not a morning person. So this month I openly dread because it’s 4:47am wake ups for 5 days straight, 2 days off, then repeat. You get home late. Then you have to tune, eat, shower, sleep, and repeat. It is tough. You are fatigued — mentally and physically. I’m not trying to be pessimistic about it because this month of training is vital to get the quality and repetition in before races. And I do believe this month does make you tougher — mentally and physically — however, it is just the fact in getting through it. My first day at Nakiska was horrible. I went there thinking my back was better and I could ski but I was in worse pain than I was in Europe. I tried again the next day and it just got worse and worse —along with my mental state. I went to physio to figure out what was wrong. I was told to do a lot of neutral spine core and book more appointments, but in essence, it was just going to take time. Probably one of the hardest things to hear as an athlete is “give it time”. That really didn’t sit well with me.

When it comes to emotions, I am quite an introverted person. Most of what I do is to make those around me content before I really think about my own happiness. Skiing, however, is usually the exception; I do it for myself. Even so, my worst fear in this sport is disappointing others so I do my best to avoid that, even if that means biting my tongue in uncomfortable situations. But the month of November I felt like I was there for other people. It boiled up to where I broke down and finally spoke the truth… I truly wasn’t happy. It came to a point where I needed a break and time away from the sport. I took days off but I knew skiing was what I needed as the last time I had really trained was in Chile.

I was excited for the month of November to be over. December meant races started at full force. I thought racing would bring me joy and a realization on why I fell in love with this sport in the first place. I was excited to get away from Nakiska and see new faces. But when I got in the start gate I felt numb, almost like I couldn’t care less if I was there. I just wasn’t happy. It hurt to admit. The worst part of it was I was there expecting to ski well even though I was dispirited, which led to me to be continuously disappointed in myself. It was hard, I didn’t realize it was happening until it had happened. I was so blinded by the need to perform that what I actually couldn’t do was perform.

I came into this season with the thought that I either make NCAA or CAST or I quit. And I think that was a bit too much on me that it has created a lot of pressure to perform, and I feel it is a huge reason on why I haven’t yet this season. I have had good days, but they aren’t as consistent as I need them to be. However, I have recently found my footing in training and it has rekindled my joy for this sport. Nonetheless, it doesn’t mean much when you can’t do it on race day, and for me that is my problem. Right now, trying to figure that out is my focus and I am attempting to give myself every opportunity to allow myself to do that.

I am in a better place now and I have seen a drastic change in my skiing just because of my mood. I have learnt what has made me happy. However, I am still coming to senses with the fact that “it is okay”— It is okay to not ski well. It is okay to not always get what you want. It is okay to work hard and fail. It is okay to not always be the best. It is okay if things don’t always go as planned. It is okay to not be okay— I’m continuing to learn to be more accepting of these types of situations. As much as I would love too, I can’t control everything. That being said, I don’t know where I’ll be next week, next month, next year, but what I do know is that I will be happy. And I just can’t wait.

-Claire

Check out Claire’s Athlete Profile here.

Hi Everyone!

Alexa here, checking in as we are closing out our Eastern Block, with our last two Nor-Ams in Calabogie this week. It’s sure been an eventful few months!

In early January, we had Nationals and our first Nor-Ams in Red Deer. The field was very deep, with a number of World Cup girls racing, and I was super excited to move through all the heats both days. It was super fun to battle it out and spend time with my friends that have been at World Cup all year. My results were also a huge motivator going into the next week: Nakiska World Cup.

Unfortunately, things did not go as planned. Going into Nakiska was pretty stressful, as the World Cup there two years ago did not go very well for me. Sure enough, this year also proved to be a challenge. With extreme cold, the first two days of training ended up being canceled. They decided to go ahead with qualis on Friday with only two runs of training planned. I got in the gate for first run with my best friend Abby only to get flagged because someone had crashed in front of us. When we returned the the start, we found out they had cut training short and we would not be getting our second run.

For the hour or so before quali I doubted whether or not I could get in the start gate. I knew that this race was probably the most important race for me, the best way to earn my way back onto the National Team. Nothing had gone to plan and coping with that reality was not easy.

Sure enough, I went back up to the start with lots of emotions crowding my mind. As the boys finished up it was just me and JM. If it weren’t for him there’s no way I would have been able to get into that start gate. Every time I felt the doubts creeping back in, he told me he was not going to let me give up on myself. He talked me into racing up until the moment the start was being called. Near the bottom of the course I wasn’t sure of the speed and ended up throwing in a few speed checks, no doubt killing my time. When I got to the bottom I saw my position on the board: 17th, one spot out of heats. I was pretty devastated, but having my teammates coming up to hug me as I left the finish corral definitely made me feel much better.

A few days later, it was time to race Nakiska again, this time for Nor-Ams. I was able to get some redemption on that track. After slightly frustrating quali results, I skied to two third place results. Both finals were some of the funnest heats I’ve skied in years, with Zoe, Annie and I battling it out the whole way down the track.

Now we’ve made it back to Calabogie after a frustrating trip to New York, with both our races there being canceled due to an unsafe track build. I’m looking forward to two more races here, where I scored my first Nor-Am win just last week! Time to close off our Eastern Block strong before heading home for a well deserved break!

As always, thank you to all that support us! Being part of the Alberta Alpine family this year has been such a blessing. After two challenging years of racing, I’m so thankful to be part of such a supportive, encouraging association!

Thank you for the read! -Alexa

Check out Alexa’s Athlete Profile here.

Hello, again, everyone! Prepare yourselves for this taboo subject!

Cassidy, Claire, Ashleigh, Alyssa, Kiki and I recently travelled out east, while Tora is killing her return to snow back at Nakiska. We raced a great FIS series at Alpine Ski Club and Georgian Peaks. Alyssa, Claire, Kiki, Ash and Cass took home some sweet hardware. The Nor-Am series at Osler Bluff and Georgian Peaks has just begun, and we are all super excited to conquer some steep pitches, and long flats (classic Collingwood).

Last week, on January 29th, was Bell Let’s Talk Day (or #BellLetsTalk day). It is likely you saw the blue post, or hashtag, shared on many platforms such as Instagram, Snapchat and Facebook. The telecommunications company Bell Canada created Bell Let’s Talk Day to raise mental health awareness and combat the stigma surrounding it.

I felt that it is such an important subject; I should dedicate my athlete journal to the significance of mental health on teams and in sport.

Mental health includes emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It affects how we feel, act and think. It also helps determine how we relate to others, make choices and handle stress. Two out of three people with mental health issues suffer in silence. Being open and talking is the first step towards ending the stigma. Some believe mental health problems are fake and fixing them is as easy as flipping a light switch. A simple “just be happy” is often not a cure.

Improving mental health does not happen overnight. Plenty of people are afraid to talk about how they feel for the sake of being made fun of or treated differently. Countless people who battle mental health problems feel alone, like no one understands them or cares what they are going through. The truth is, they are not alone. Many people deal with mental health issues on various levels every day. It is possible to assume others are happy when they could just be struggling in silence. And helping people feel safe, instead of alienated, can make a significant difference in their lives. A great way to do that is to bring more awareness and discuss mental health more openly.

As an athlete, I am very familiar with the sensation of stress, pressure and anxiety, which can, at times, feel very overwhelming. I have previously experienced dealing with these feelings in silence. This is because I get worried about bringing any negativity to my team, believing they will not view my struggles as real, or think I am overreacting. I hope it is a dated belief that athletes are always supposed to be “tough.”

Recently, I started speaking more openly about my mental health in ski racing and began depending more on teammates. The support I have received is incredible and very relieving. What I realize is that we are all in this together. My team, more often than not, can relate to and understand how I am feeling. My frustrations have taught me that ski racing is a seriously team-driven ‘individual’ sport.

Our points, FIS profiles and medals are a reflection of our individual performance. We are all imperfect and need to remember that almost everyone is continuously working to better ourselves both on and off the hill. However, having supportive teammates and an open environment within the team goes a long way, even in our “individual” sport. A safe environment allows us to make progress for who we are as athletes, as well as people, and also supports performance improvement.

Believing in myself to perform my best every day is sometimes difficult. However, it is easier with the positive inspiration I get from my team. When the girls encourage me and reassure me that we are all in this together, it helps keep my spirits up. Kiki made a point this trip to say that if she couldn’t win, the next person she would want on top of the podium would be one of us. Even as fierce competitors, we need and depend on each other to accomplish goals and achieve new personal bests.

The Norwegian Ski Team has a reputation for being extremely tight-knit. It is alleged that Aksel Lund Svindal was the leader contributing to this environment. There is a story about him in the 2016 Kitzbuhel downhill, where he landed off badly on the Hausberg jump and injured his knee. Being bib 19, his immediate concern was for his teammate Kjetil Jansrud, bib 21. To avoid having the helicopter in view on the course prior to Jansrud’s run, Svindal limped over to the slalom start. He did not want Jansrud distracted and psyched out by the helicopter. This is an example of an athlete in an individual sport who, after doing his best, thought immediately about helping his teammate’s success. 

Every day we are working to develop our confidence, and we all have challenges and times of vulnerability. For this, we cannot be ashamed. Thank you, Bell.

When we notice a teammate who is not themselves, we must remember to ask, “Hey, are you okay?” and then listen. Within our racing circuit or even outside of skiing, we can say “Hi” to people we don’t really know, or join someone who is sitting alone. Any of these little acts matter and can make an impact. I am grateful for the support from my teammates, and I am hopeful I can reciprocate. In ski racing, we have to perform alone, but as a team, we are not alone! In fact, when one gets better, we all get better.

-Charlie

Check out Charlie’s Athlete Profile here.

Hi Everyone!

I am Callum McEwen from the Alberta Ski Cross Team. After the Christmas break we took a two day trip down to Castle Mountain for some soft GS training and some well needed team freshies. Shortly after, we headed up to Red Deer for some very chilly Nor Ams and Canadian Nationals. Lots of really great competition as many came for the following World Cup in Nakiska.

Last week I got to start my first World Cup and it was really the cats meow. Super cool experience to run a big fast track with the best in the world. Unfortunately I took a big slam in training and didn’t put down a great run in qualifications with a 39th place finish but my morale quickly shifted when my roommate finished in first place claiming his first World Cup victory!

Despite the World Cup not going as planned I was still able to put down some great racing in the following NorAms with two 4th place finishes and some fun heats with my friends and teammates.

The team and I have just arrived in Calabogie, Ontario where the next two NorAms will take place. Calabogie has a very fun track and should definitely make for some interesting heats! Afterwards we will be heading to Gore Mountain for the next races and then back here to Calabogie for the last two NorAms of our Eastern trip.

This upcoming block should prove to be lots of fun and very challenging and I am excited to see what’s to come! Make sure to keep an eye out on the results, the team and I will make Alberta proud!

This has been Callum McEwen for the ASXT, over and out!

Check out Callum’s Athlete Profile here

Hey Everyone!

We recently got back from the east coast after a long trip of NorAm racing this Tuesday. Racing in tough races is very important, at every level in skiing you need to be able to push yourself to new levels. The atmosphere at NorAm races is very focused and competitive. Despite tough conditions
and competition I feel everyone on the team was able to learn a lot out east. On top of racing we also had a chance to train with the University of Vermont Ski Team at their home mountain, Stowe.

Though racing in hard races is wildly beneficial, it’s always important to go back to the basics and train as much as possible. That said, we had a four day training block in Panorama this week to work on technique and get some more volume in our skiing. The training was great, we were
able to ski on lots of different terrain and familiarize ourselves a little bit more with the race venues for NorAm Finals and Canadian National Championships, which are happening this spring!

Looking forward, the women’s team is headed to Collingwood and some of the men’s team to Mont Edouard for some more NorAm action while the other guys are going to Utah for some college and FIS races!

I’d like to thank all of our team sponsors, Lone Star Mercedes Benz, Sporting Life and Descente for making this season possible as well as Crabbe Mountain and the Poley Mountain Race Club for all their support in my skiing and kind messages!

Check out Caeden’s Athlete Profile here

Hello!

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season and are ready to take on the new year! As for us here on the AST we have had a busy start to the new calendar year with the men (except for Gavin) racing the eastern NorAm Cup races taking place in Burke Mountain and Stowe, Vermont.

I strongly believe we as a group have learned a lot from these NorAm Cups about what it takes to get to the next level and earn World Cup spots and the caliber of skiing necessary to make such a step. We were able to have all five men in Vermont qualifying for at least one second run each with some qualifying on multiple occasions. We then had an Eastern Cup race at a hill called Smugglers Notch where we endured some of the most intense wind I have every experienced. Unfortunately, none of us were able to find the finish line on both runs due to the adverse weather conditions but we were not alone with 120 starters in the first run only 25 racers were able to complete both runs!

Meanwhile we had Gavin holding it down in some BC Cup races in Panorama winning the first GS race by a whopping 2 seconds! He managed to find the podium again in the Slalom where he placed third on the incredibly challenging Hayfever slope.

The team has since reunited in Panorama for a quick 4 day training block which featured some great training conditions with far more manageable temperatures than the -35 degree weather we had here in Calgary. The team has regrouped and we now have a 2 week training block here in Alberta at Lake Louise and Nakiska before we pack up and head out with the majority of the team continuing to follow the NorAm Cup which will take us on a tour through Quebec all the way down to the State of New York.

Devin and Kosta will be heading south to Utah as well as competing here in Alberta to tackle some FIS races rather than continuing with the NorAm tour.

Anyways this is what we are up to for the next little while and if you’d like to follow us head to our Instagram page @albertaskiteam or to the schedule on the Alberta Alpine website and come cheer us on!

Finally I would like to thank the sponsors for giving us this opportunity!

Sporting Life Canada
Lonestar Mercedes Benz
Descente International
Nakiska Ski Area
Pro Sport Protection

I would also like to thank my personal sponsors for helping me along the way!

Rossignol Racing
Swix Sport
POC Protection
Reusch Winter

Check out Angus’ Athlete Profile here

CANMORE, AB – Alberta Alpine is pleased to announce a talented team of individuals who will help the organization transition through this 2019-2020 season to assist in Member Services, Communications, Marketing and Social Media, and our website and Inside Track Newsletter.

Heather McRae is joining the organization in a temporary volunteer capacity to assist all members with general Member Services issues, including Alpine Points, Zone4, race notices, registration, race kits, and race results tracking. Please do not hesitate to contact Heather at: memberservices@albertaalpine.ca

Gieta Steingart is also joining the Alberta Alpine team with a focus on grant writing, reporting, and as a support liaison for RA’s and ROC’s in the province. Geita is also developing a full grant calendar for North and South Zone clubs to help each member club identify funding opportunities in their community, and province-wide. For support or information from Gieta: gieta@albertaalpine.ca

Jack Lane has also joined the Alberta Alpine team with a focus on the website, social media, Inside Track Newsletter, alumni updates, and athlete journals, storytelling and all things creative! Jack can be contacted at: jack@albertaalpine.ca

Alberta Alpine will be posting for more permanent positions in the coming weeks, and we look forward to expanding the services offered to support our membership.

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About Alberta Alpine

Alberta Alpine Ski Association (AASA) is the Provincial governing body for alpine ski racing in the Province. It has a critical role in leading, fostering, and encouraging interest and participation in ski racing amongst Albertans of all ages and abilities and promoting excellence in high performance.

Alberta Alpine is the Provincial Sport Organization recognized by Alpine Canada Alpin, Canadian Snowsports Association, Alberta Winter Games, Canada Winter Games, the Government of Alberta.  Alberta Alpine is affiliated with the Federation Internationale de Ski (FIS). Alberta Alpine has responsibility for a wide range of activities, including:

• participation in sport
• coaching standards and officials training and development
• development of children, youth and high performance athletes
• local and Provincial competitions and International competitions held in the Province and Alberta athletes competing in a number of International competitions.

The mission of Alberta Alpine Ski Association is the development and delivery of opportunities for individual growth, enjoyment and excellence in the sport of alpine ski racing and ski cross.

For more information, please contact Rob McCloskey, Alberta Alpine President.

For my athlete journal this week I chose to do something slightly different then the traditional recap of our racing and training. I decided to take this athlete journal to recognize our families, in every shape and size that they come. It is so easy for us to get lost in our own routine, with the early mornings, long travel days, and spending many hours of the day on the hill or in the gym. We tend to overlook the volunteers who spend so much of their time putting on races for us, as well as the fans who so intently watch live timing every time we leave the start. Believe it or not, my parents haven’t won a single medal, even though they have been the most faithful supporters since day 1. Although this is technically an athlete journal, I would like to make it more of a toast!

To my family, near and far, who have believed in me no matter what the clock says. Thank you guys for being my biggest fans, for supporting my skiing, and most importantly, supporting what I choose to be passionate about. You guys have turned me into the person I am today. From my very first snow plow, to me being able to racing all over the world, you have stuck with me through all the highs and lows. You guys are my rock!

To the amazing ski racing community in Alberta, who have worked tirelessly so I, along with many other young Albertans, can grow up in one of the most genuine and caring communities. Although most of you may not be blood related to me, I have never had a doubt that this community is a true family. I am so grateful for the fist bumps from the starter before my run, and the hugs from parents at the bottom of the hill!

Lastly, to my team. My current team, and my home team. Thank you guys for pushing me, cheering for me, and continuing to inspire me. You will always be my teammates, and many of you have turned into life long friends. There is so much to be said about the kids in this community. Alberta has so much to be proud of in the athletes they are bringing up!

There are so many individuals that lift every single one of us athletes up. I think that they truly deserved to be recognized. From sponsors, to parents, to coaches, to aunts and uncles, to trainers, to our AASA board, there is not a single medal that belongs solely to one person. It is earned by this amazing family we have in our corner, and I cannot thank each and every one of you enough for being in mine!

Cheers to you all! Thank you for being my family!

Xoxo – Cass

Check out Cassidy’s Athlete Profile here