Tompkins Weekly

Ithaca High alpine skiing returns to slopes



The Ithaca alpine skiing captains (from left to right) Isabelle Hoff, Willow Smith, head coach Ian Hayward, Anna Danks-Burke, Benjamin Rachlinski pose at Greek Peak with Aidan Hayward-Toland in front. Practices began for the team this week. Photo by Dan Doherty.

Skiing has been a popular winter activity during the pandemic considering that it’s naturally socially distant. With that in mind, the Ithaca alpine ski team is returning to the slopes this week as one of the three low-risk sports permitted to begin practice in the area.

It was a very long year without in-school competition, and while he awaited the return of his ski team, head coach Ian Hayward helped out with the WAZA club soccer program alongside IHS girls soccer head coach Maureen Whitehead. That history and the lack of any COVID-related issues gave Hayward plenty of confidence heading into the ski season.

While that was a meaningful experience for Hayward, he reflected on the experience of coaching his team through a pandemic and what he’s learned about coaching.

“One of the problems you can run into as a coach in the pandemic is thinking, ‘well, it might not happen, so let me just plan that it’s not going to happen,’” Hayward said. “What I feel is the best way is to make the plan as if things are going to happen and be as honest as you can with the athletes. In the event that [things don’t go as planned], we’re preparing ourselves, and then I’m going to our backup plan. They know upfront that when we pivot, this is what we’re doing.”

He’s been helped out by his team captains throughout the year, who have helped bring the team closer together while they are apart. This year’s captains are Willow Lewis, Aidan Hayward-Toland, Anna Danks-Burke, Isabelle Hoff and Benjamin Rachlinski.

“I called on my captains who were awesome, incredibly awesome,” Hayward said. “They know they’re upperclassmen. They know they’ve got younger kids that they need to keep engaged. They’ve already done this for eight or nine months. My captains then pivoted and arranged Zoom meetings that were meaningful. My captains understood that the younger kids are going to be less likely on a Zoom call to participate. When it came to stuff like working out or things of that nature, they went at that pace.”

Considering virtual meets in skiing would be difficult with the differences between mountains, Hayward has several plans for competition this year depending on what is permitted.

“What everybody else is doing right now is they’ve got their schedules,” he said. “If they don’t do it, then we’re going to pivot. We’ve got a plan. In the case of IHS alpine, if we don’t have the opportunity to get in the bus and travel, I’ve gone ahead planned activities for them in skiing and ski racing. There are numerous opportunities at mountains across the country. It’s called NASTAR, which is an informal racing network.”

Greek Peak, which is the ski team’s home course, runs these NASTAR races on Saturdays. Hayward is currently working with Greek Peak to have his team get timed if they are unable to travel to the Catskills for competition.

While the sport is inherently socially distant, protocols, of course, have to be followed. Hayward detailed what the team must do to safely ski.

“You’re getting your gear on out at your car,” he said. “I’ll try to keep it at least 10 feet away. You’re wearing a face covering [at] all times. When you’re riding the lift, we’re following not only the rules of the team and the district; we’re also following the rules of Greek Peak, which has set aside a set of rules to keep everybody safe.”

Hayward addressed a change he’ll be making to his approach this season that he sees as one of the positive things to come out of the pandemic.

“I’m going to lean a little more on video,” he said. “That’s one of the things that maybe was an unforeseen bright spot here. If kids are used to Zoom, then I can now film, and we can talk about skiing. Usually, ski instruction through video is a great tool.”

Hayward is prepared for everything this year and has been putting the work in during the offseason to make sure his athletes are safe.

“The minimum we’re going to do is virtual,” Hayward said. “The maximum is skiing like normal. So, for right now, we’ve been lucky that area hasn’t gone to the red zone. I’ve been to the mountains and I’ve noticed that more people are skiing than ever. I’ve skied 12 out of the last 14 days. And so personally, my routine as a coach is also I had to get back in shape. I had to get my mind around and I got out there early. As soon as the mountain opened, I was skiing every day. I wanted to get a feel for what’s going on there, how to keep the kids safe.”

With only three high school sports active currently, there is a bigger spotlight on the ski team this year. The program has produced state championship competitors, and several Cornell University skiers and will look to keep going strong following the pandemic-induced delay.

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