The Best Way to Spend Wisconsin Winters

Photo submitted by Elkin.

Elise Elkin

One of Hamilton’s lesser-known winter sports is the alpine ski team. The ski team, known as MSG, is a composite team with students from Menomonee Falls, Hamilton, and Germantown high schools. The boys and girls teams compete against other high schools in the Midwest High School Ski Conference. Joining the ski team is a great opportunity to meet students from other schools and improve your skiing ability!

The ski race season starts in December and ends with the state meet at the end of March. There are six races throughout the season, not including conference and state, with practices twice a week. Practices are held at Sunburst ski hill. Since you are only skiing three nights a week, you have more time to do homework and other activities in addition to ski racing. The boys and girls teams each have JV and Varsity. While the boys and girls race separately, everyone attends the same races and practices.

There are two types of ski racing that MSG participates in. The type of race alternates every week between giant slalom and slalom. In giant slalom races, the gates are bigger and farther apart from each other. In slalom races, the gates are smaller and closer together. MSG’s most recent race of the season was slalom at Little Switzerland ski hill. The race was a big success with girls varsity and boys varsity each placing 1st.

Ski racing is great for people of all abilities. While some people in the team have done club ski racing, there are also many people who have never ski raced before joining. Jaya Drover, a sophomore at Hamilton High School, has raced for MSG for two years. She had skied for three years before joining MSG and had no previous racing experience. Drover states, “Ski racing has made me much more confident in skiing in general. The difference is amazing!” Many other students just like Drover have found ski racing to be super beneficial and fun.

MSG is different from many other school sports as it combines multiple high schools into one team. While the majority of racers are from Hamilton, there are also racers who go to Menomonee Falls and Germantown. Instead of only knowing people from your own school, you get to become good friends with people who share your interests who you wouldn’t have met otherwise. In addition to getting to know people from other schools, you also get to know people from your school who aren’t in your grade. Unlike other sports, everyone practices together so people of every grade and ability get to know each other.

The coaches are also incredibly supportive and make practices fun. Coaches Kenny Butler and Eric VanWormer both race in their own ski league and give helpful advice. Coach Shelly has significant experience coaching Parks, a club ski racing team, in addition to MSG, and is very good at helping out beginners. MSG would not be the same without such amazing coaches.

If you feel cooped up in the winter and want to get out, you should strongly consider joining MSG. MSG provides a way to improve your ability in a lifetime sport and allows you to meet many new people. Claire Nesemann, a junior at Hamilton High School, sums up her MSG experience by saying, “I love the community. All of the people are so supportive and kind. Also, I love meeting new people who have the same interests. The ski team is so much fun and is including of everyone.” There truly is no better way to enjoy a Wisconsin winter than hitting the slopes with a team of people who all love and support each other.