Ski and Snowboard Club Expands in Second Year

By EVAN HICKS

The University of Mary Washington is host to a wide variety of clubs and activities that students can participate in, and another was added in January 2011 when Rob Jarvis, club president, and sophomore David Chambers, club officer, started UMW’s Ski and Snowboarding Club.
“We want to help get people who want to go snowboarding out on the slopes, and help seasoned powder enthusiasts keep their skills sharp and enjoy the mountain,” Jarvis said.
Jarvis, who is also a member of the skiing and snowboarding racing club at UMW, said that the club he created is open to all students, regardless of skill level. Whether it be someone who has never been snowboarding or skiing before, or a seasoned veteran looking for a challenge and a group to go with, the club welcomes everyone. And to those amateurs still fearful of joining, the club president had some reassuring words.
“We had three people on our trip to Canada who had never been skiing or snowboarding and they had a great time,” Jarvis said.
On Dec. 31, the club’s members left from Fairfax, Va on a quest to reach the aforementioned Canada destination. They departed at one in the morning and took a 13-hour drive to the city of Montreal where they celebrated the New Year. The following day, the club members took a much shorter two-hour drive to Mount Tremblant where they spent five days enjoying the slopes.
During their stay at Mount Tremblant, the club encountered temperatures as low as negative five degrees F and the area received 15-inches of snow. The members got plenty of time to indulge in their club activities as nearly 70 of the mountain’s 95 runs were open when they arrived.
Though many in the group didn’t know each other before they embarked on their winter break journey, the gang bonded during their stay.
“We started out as a group of 23 almost random UMW students and over the course of the trip we all became friends,” Chambers said.
Even though their winter break trip has passed, Jarvis said that the club still has events slated during the remainder of this semester.
“We have upcoming weekend trips to Wintergreen, Va, Snowshoe, WVa, and Seven Springs, Penn.,” Jarvis said. “We are planning another big trip to Breckenridge in Colorado over Spring Break as well. We have raised funds by selling club shirts, have sold baked goods, and have worked with the FBLA to set up a fundraiser off-campus at Crave Frozen Yogurt in Central Park.”