Despite quite a bit of rain that delayed the beginning of the alpine ski season, four local teams are ready to get back on the mountain for a new year. 

The first meet of the season will be on Thursday at Berkshire East in Charlemont, moved from earlier in the week due to weather conditions. Here’s a look at how teams are stacking up before they hit the powder. 

New coaches for Hurricanes

There’s a pair of new coaches at the helm of the Amherst Hurricanes ski squad this season – Rick Howes and Gloria Davis, who are both filling in for former head coach Peter Vamosy. 

Vamosy will likely be back with the Hurricanes at some point in the future, and he’s been helping both Howes and Davis catch up on all the responsibilities that come with coaching a team. Davis has been with the team longer, working with them on dryland training over the month of December, and Howes got a call at the end of December asking him to join on, and he said yes. 

“I’m a lifelong skier, both my daughters are racers – one’s a former racer, one’s currently a racer for another school. So both my kids went to the Berkshire East ski program, the race program, so I’ve kind of been around racing for eight or nine years,” Howes said. “It's been great. Gloria and I, we both teach at the high school, so we've worked together for years. It's kind of easy to kind of get into the rhythm with each other in terms of coaching style and how we work with the students.” 

The two captains and some of the top performers for the Hurricanes this year are expected to be Paige “Vivi” Bernier and Beckett Baird. Howes and Davis will have a better idea of where the team stands after their first meet – because of inclement weather, they’ve only been able to hit the mountain twice so far. 

Hampshire returns experienced roster

Returning for the Raiders this season are a number of their top skiers, many of them now seniors with a significant amount of skill and experience. 

Leading the way on the boys’ side is Edward Przybyla, who placed fourth overall in the giant slalom with a time of 48.12 seconds at the MIAA Alpine Championships. Four of the the five skiers who competed at last year’s championships are returning – Przybyla, Dawson Kelly, Jon Dunn and Evan Novak, putting the boys’ team in good shape heading into the season. 

On the girls’ side, Hampshire is returning both Dana Warren and Ella Cleary, who qualified in both the giant slalom and slalom in last year’s MIAA Alpine Championships. Besides Warren and Cleary, expect Tayla Gilman, Hannah Burke and Maura Campbell to lead the way for the Raiders. 

Fardal leading Dragons

PVCICS is a younger roster this year – the Dragons graduated a few seniors last year, including Julie Scott and Ella Gander, and there aren’t any seniors on the team this time around. PVCICS co-head coaches Mike Belanger and Dan English are back leading the team this season.

Their leadership will come mostly from juniors and sophomores, notably Sarah Fardal on the girls’ side and twins Teddy and James Scott on the boys’ side, along with junior captain Clayton English, one of just two upperclassmen on the roster. Fardal is expected to place in the top 10 in most races, or even up in the top five.

They’ve been able to get to the mountain for a practice together, but most of the team’s training has been dryland. Many of the skiers also do other sports, so they’ll do just about anything to get a good workout in. 

“They do some after-school programs or they get together for an hour or so after school on certain days a week. They'll play basketball or kick the ball around in the gym, they keep themselves moving around,” Belanger said. 

Influx of youth for Blue Deviles

Like PVCICS, Northampton is a younger group this season. They graduated top skiers like Ellie Mahoney and Maddie Raymond last season, and while it’s tough to lose them, head coach Mark Krodel is excited with the number of young skiers joining the Blue Devils program.

“We kind of needed the shot in the arm, to be honest with you, getting some youth coming in,” Krodel said. “They wanted to give it a try, and hopefully they stick with it for the four years and that's how you develop a pretty good team.” 

Keller Mahoney returned for the Blue Devils after qualifying in both the giant slalom and slalom at the MIAA Alpine Championships. Alex Siros could move up the rankings this year as well on the boys’ side, and newcomer Charles Ames could also make an impact for the team. Maisie Tuck and Giselle Ohm will be the go-to skiers on the girls’ team. 

New start at Berkshire East

Besides the newcomers on the teams, there should also be a new start on the ski course at Berkshire East. Prior to this season, there was a ‘high school start’ marked by a mound and some trees, which were all removed prior to the start of this season. The start line change shouldn’t impact skiers that significantly, but it might be a slight adjustment for them. 

“The times will be a little bit longer, just gives a little bit more exposure to error,”  Krodel said.

Mohawk Trail favorites again

Frontier will once again be part of the Mohawk Trail co-op this winter. The Warriors were able to take home the state title thanks to a pair of top 10 finishes by Addie Loomis and Emmy Sisum, and with both returning, the team will be looking to add another banner this winter. 

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