By Dan Balkin
Why should kids have all the fun? Junior ski racing programs across NYS accommodate kids from 8 – 18 years of age. The average age of a Master’s ski racer is typically in their mid-forties. There have been, however, Master’s racers in their seventies and even eighties competing at HoliMont! This is less surprising when we learn there are 14 age categories for Master’s racers. Class 1 consists of racers 18-29; Class 2 for racers 30-34; Class 3 for racers 35 -39 … all the way up to Class 14 for racers 90+.
This past weekend, HoliMont hosted a Master’s ski race. The participants came from WNY and across a wide swath of neighboring geography: Cleveland, Ohio, various parts of Pennsylvania, London, Ontario, and the greater Toronto region. On Saturday, January 31st, there were two Giant Slalom races and on Sunday there were two Slalom races. This means that over the weekend each Master’s racer competes in a total of four races. Each individual race consists of two separate runs through the gates where one’s combined time determines one’s placement not only in the race, but also in one’s age category.
Jeff Konsella, the current leader of HoliMont’s Master’s Race program, grew up in Saratoga County NY, close to Vermont and the Adirondack Mountains. Jeff’s mother had a passion for skiing, but an aversion to crowds. She took Jeff skiing about 20 days a year at night and during quieter midweek days. Unlike most other race coaches, Jeff never raced as a kid. His passion for ski racing and race coaching, however, was sparked when he attended UB Engineering School. A friend he met at UB was an accomplished Junior ski racer, and he convinced Jeff, at age 23, to join the UB Ski Team and learn how to race. In a pleasant twist of Holi-Fate, Mike Widger was Jeff’s coach. Mike is the son of former HoliMont GM Pete Widger and the father of current Snowsports Director Travis Widger. After graduating from UB, Jeff spent 13 seasons as a coach at Jiminy Peak in Massachusetts. Moving back to our region, Jeff has been a Master’s ski racing coach for 23 consecutive years at HoliMont. For the past ten seasons, he has served as the Head Coach and is instrumental in both overseeing events such as last weekend’s Master’s race and in guiding the Master’s Ski Racing program at HoliMont.
Jeff notes that the program “Has evolved a lot during my 23 years here.” Jeff said the focus was originally narrower: Basically, setting a course and letting current and former adult racers swerve through the gates for several hours. According to Jeff, in these earlier times the racers were more interested in the experience of running gates than in being coached. Jeff informs us that, “Over the years the HoliMont member interest has changed to an equal focus on skill development. We now accomplish both using directed free skiing (ski specific exercises) and by using gate environments to focus on specific areas of skill development. I would say the goal of our average master’s athlete changed from being faster in a racecourse to being a better skier who has the confidence to ski anything.” The success of this formula is evident in the enthusiastic participation of HoliMont adults in the Master’s program. 26 HoliMont members signed up for the Master’s program this year. Many of them have one or more children involved in HoliMont’s Junior race program. The program offers flexibility, being held each Saturday and Sunday from 9:30 – 11:30am. As Jeff mentioned, while there is a component where participants run gates, ski specific exercises and coaching tips create more accomplished all mountain skiers. This has been verified by many current and former participants, who credit the HoliMont Master’s program for enhancing their skiing skills
Last weekend’s Masters ski race was a resounding success. Competitors, from as previously noted, a broad geographical swath of our region, neighboring states, and the Province of Ontario participated. The day on the slopes rolled into an après race party, where humankind’s greatest comfort calories – beer and pizza – were accompanied by smiles and laughter.