Interview with December's Community Champion of the Month:
Chris Reitz
How long have you been involved with the Ptarmigan Nordic Ski Club?
Involved with PNSC since 2009
Have you competed in skiing yourself before becoming a coach? Do you still compete?
Never competed in cross-country skiing (and don’t now). My sports were golf and volleyball. I coached volleyball at the college and university levels and have transferred my coaching knowledge from volleyball to cross-country skiing.
What is your favourite thing about coaching youth athletes?
Seeing the development of participants as people first, then athletes, and finally skiers. Sport provides incredible opportunities for physical, emotional, personal, and interpersonal development and as a coach, I get an opportunity to help facilitate that development.
How do you manage to keep up with everything? Do you have a tip for other parents who are coaches and volunteers or those who are juggling a lot in the sport community?
Find something that works for your family and do it together. There’s such a mania around ‘finding programs’ for kids. Programs that purport to be ‘for families’ end up requiring that parents and siblings to be in different places and at different times a date, which results in separating families. I think people think that everything needs to be program-based but it doesn’t. We ski as an organized activity. We also play hockey, soccer, ultimate frisbee, bike/mountain bike, hike, golf, and ski/snowboard; all as a family without lessons, programs, fees, tournaments, etc... They’re all for fun.
When is the Alberta Cup Race and how could people in the community get involved?
The Alberta Cup is an annual series through the Provincial Sport Organization. PNSC hosted a race in 2022 but will not be hosting in 2023 due to the AWG. There may be an event in the 2024/2025 season and details will come out through our website (ptarmigannordic.org) or on facebook, instagram.
If you have anything else you'd like to add on behalf of yourself or the ski club, please feel free! It would be great to give some more information to the community.
Many people don’t realize that the Birchwood Trails are groomed in the winter entirely by volunteers from PNSC. The nice ‘corduroy’ in the trails and the ski tracks are set by a small group of volunteers from the club.
Membership in PNSC is $50 per family per year (programs and insurance fees are extra). Membership supports advocacy for the trails and allows PNSC to demonstrate to the RMWB how many citizens use and access the trails system.
This year, PNSC has 8 athletes representing Team Alberta North at the AWG (out of 18 total for Cross Country).
