CROSS COUNTRY
With rewards as deep as the snow, children enjoy new cross country adventures. COURTESY OF DOROTHY A. WALLACE-SENFT
INSPIRATION AND GIVING BACK: STARTING A CROSS COUNTRY SKI PROGRAM FOR KIDS
By Dorothy A. Wallace-Senft
fter spending 17 winters as a cross country ski instructor at 11 different nordic centers, and 24 summers as a field botanist in 20 different locations, I was feeling seasonal exhaustion. It was time to take stock. When I read
A
“Crossing Cultures with Cross Country Skiing” by Megan Spurkland in the Fall 2014 issue of 32 Degrees, about introducing native Alaskan kids to cross country skiing, I was inspired. When I was 11, I was part of a free program that bused kids to the nordic
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center half an hour away. Tere, I met the people who eventually enabled my career as a nordic instructor. Now it was time to take the cue from Megan’s experience and give back to the community that had helped start my life as a skiing professional. I was
ready to open the world of nordic skiing for other children.
HOW I BEGAN MY OWN PROGRAM I began by Googling “cross country ski programs for underserved youth,” and found a nearby program in Burlington, Vermont, organized by the Catamount Trail Association (CTA). Tey oversee the longest cross country ski trail in North America running 300 miles through Vermont. I called CTA and they were immediately
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