Butternut Race Club
Meet the Teams
The purpose of the alpine race program is to train young athletes to become great skiers and foster a lifelong love of the sport. The primary focus is on building self-confidence and good sportsmanship.
BRC supports these goals by providing a community for socialization and giving back. We want to ensure every child who has the desire to participate in ski racing is given the opportunity.
Development
This half-day program introduces young skiers (ages 5-10) to alpine ski racing. The primary focus is on developing fundamental skiing skills which are applied to fun (non-competitive) racing drills and games. This is a great program for kids to explore their interest in alpine ski racing.
Interclub
This all-day program introduces skiers (ages 6-14) to alpine ski racing. Coaches will help athletes develop good fundamental skills while introducing both the mental and physical elements of ski racing. The kids will have the opportunity to compete against racers from other Berkshire ski areas in both slalom and giant slalom events.
Tri-State
This all-day program allows our more experienced racers an opportunity to compete at the highest levels. The focus is on continued skill development, with additional emphasis on more advanced skills and race tactics.
A Note from the Director of Racing
We help athletes develop a strong base of fundamental skills. Training groups develop skills and practice drills based on the age and developmental stage at an individual level. We provide the opportunity to excel and enjoy ski racing in a fun, safe environment.
We encourage each athlete to reach their personal potential through various stages and techniques. We offer high-quality coaching and a clear path for skill development. The coaching staff assesses and builds on the athlete’s current skillset while providing individual attention to address each skier’s specific needs. As the athlete improves and grows, they will move onto more challenging terrain and higher speeds. All groups work on sound technical free skiing, pole plants, one ski skiing, dynamic balance, carving drills, gate drills, and race tactics.
We teach the athletes to apply a wide variety of skills in varied weather and snow conditions on a variety of terrain. A skier with good fundamental skills will be a good racer. Skill development is based on repetition; therefore, attendance is crucial to success - especially early in the season when the most rapid improvement is seen. At all levels, training time is paramount and more productive than race days, where there is significant idle time. If you have to miss a day, miss a race, not training.
Ski Butternut alpine race program follows the guidelines and philosophies set forth by U. S. Ski & Snowboard (USSS). USSS defines the core competencies for both physical and psychological factors, which in turn, address full-circle athlete development. Skill development is a complex interaction between the athlete’s physical and psychological abilities at a particular development stage and the opportunity to make the most of those abilities.