Alpine August Newsletter
Honoring the legacy of Former JHSC FIS Coach – Mike Syrovatka “Syro”
Syro passed away unexpectedly while windsurfing early July at one of his favorite spots near his home on the Columbia River.
Mike had an incredibly impactful career coaching ski racing at a high level in North America! He spent 20+ summers with Mt. Hood Summer Ski Camps, the Quebec Team, the Canadian National Team, Gould Academy, and 14 years with Jackson Hole Ski & Snowboard Club the last being 2021 before retiring. He was extremely passionate about seeing athletes improve and enjoyed every part of the process! He worked tireless hours in rain or shine to provide kids with the best opportunities and be a mentor for them in every aspect of training. Syro was the toughest coach on the hill wearing only a visor on his head in subzero temperatures. The number of athletes Syro has positively impacted over the years is wild to comprehend! Thank you, Mike, for everything you have done and given to ski racing and JHSC!
He will be greatly missed, and we will keep his wife Pam and son Mark in our thoughts.
Hood Camp & Summer Dryland
Hood:
Marissa & Ned took a group of FIS & U16 athletes to Mt. Hood for a productive training session. FIS athletes tested longer skis to prep for next season while also working on tactics and technique with the longer and stiffer skis. Summer is a great time to test and get comfortable on new skis for the coming year! During the summer the pressure is off since the race season is months away, Mt. Hood also has most ski brands there to provide demos for athletes looking to test a longer ski or test a different company.
While in Hood, JHSC athletes and coaches didn’t just ski! They went rafting on the Deschutes River, spent a couple drylands at “little Hawaii” a swimming hole surrounded by huge red woods to swim and cool off, hikes to beautiful lakes, ice cream at Volcano Cones, Huck shakes and thanks to all the parent’s delicious homemade meals every night to keep everyone fueled and happy!
Dryland:
The FIS and U16 age teams have been working out 5 days a week either in the gym, doing intervals up Snow King, agility in the parking lot and running to Phelps jumping rock in the park. The energy and motivation are high and fitness levels are improving to be in the best possible shape come ski season! In a month the U14 team will start in after Labor Day with dryland 3 days a week! Keep up the hard work and thank you Marissa and Ned for spending not only time with the athletes during dryland but creating beneficial and well thought-out workouts for these kids!
Western Region and National Development Project/Camps
JHSC had many athletes on invite lists for several camps & projects in several amazing locations. We had U14’s Zach Lighthart & Benny Zorkendorfer qualify for the U14 Slalom camp at Mt. Hood mid-July! U16 Taryn Moe qualified for many projects including Mt. Hood and Valle Nevado, Chile! FIS athletes Lucy Wirth and Taylor Moe getting invited to La Parva, Chile, New Zealand, and Wittenberg, Germany. Lucy will attend a 3-week camp in New Zealand this month before school starts with a small and elite group of ladies. She is also planning to attend the indoor slalom camp in Wittenberg in October. Congratulations to all the JHSC athletes for qualifying for these once in a lifetime opportunity to train in countries and with a group of athletes that will indeed push them to get faster! Thank you to all our donors who continue to give to our scholarships, without those these athletes would not be able have some of these opportunities. Giving to JHSC scholarships impacts our athletes greatly and the money we have the more of a difference we can make!
Upcoming Events:
September 2 – U14 Dryland Starts
September 18 – Interval Gear Swap
September 22 – Fit Night
September 23 – U12 Dryland Starts
September 26 – Wes Barron Scholarship Scramble
October 3-13 - U16 Austria Training Camp
October 15 – U10 Dryland Starts
October 25 – Ski Swap
December 6 – Ski Ball
