The rental equipment at Porcupine Ski Runners is due for an upgrade, and a generous donation is helping them do just that.
Newmont Porcupine recently donated $30,000 to the club, which will go towards replacing the cross-country ski club's aging rental fleet.
“The binding system that we currently have is sort of being phased out and discontinued, so it’s really hard to find replacement boots, replacement bindings. So we’ve been looking at replacing the whole fleet,” says Christine Dorion, the president, youth and events co-ordinator.
“We can’t just do some because the boots won’t match the bindings. This will help pay for at least half of our rental fleet. We do a lot of repairs but you can only glue them back together so many times before they start breaking."
In addition to replacing their more than 20-year-old rental equipment, Dorion says there is also a need for a new trail groomer.
“We have some money in our reserve funds, but this is something that we needed help with. Especially because this year, we’re looking at getting a new groomer, so we’re in the process of getting grants for that,” she says.
While there isn't snow on the ground yet, memberships for the 2023-24 season are already available.
Registration for the youth programs is also open. Dorion says they try to begin the ski season at the end of November or early December, but it can happen whenever the snow hits.
“Even though we’re buying a lot of stuff this year, and our expenses have gone up, we’ve kept the memberships the same this year. With all this craziness, everything is just so expensive that for this year, we’re going to keep memberships the same just to sort of help families, and so people can at least be able to still ski,” Dorion says.
Ski runners also offers discounted prices during the holiday season.
While the club will not be hosting any big races this year, they still have a few fun events planned. The annual loppet, during which skiers can try to beat their own personal records or just ski for fun, will close out the season in March.
Dorion is also hoping to host another Loot-a-Loppet, an event they ran last season.
Participants pick a trail to ski or snowshoe, guess how long it will take them to complete, and the person that finishes the closest to their time wins a prize. Every participant also brings a small gift, and everyone can pick a gift for themselves once they’ve returned from the trails.
The next event for the club is the ski swap, where people can buy or sell skis, snowshoes, and other equipment.
“If you’ve got stuff to sell, there’s a couple drop-off dates. You bring it, we can help you price it out. Twenty per cent goes to the race team and the other 80 per cent goes back to the person who brought the skis,” Dorion says.
“It gives opportunities for people to come buy used or new, and then we have experts on the floor helping people get sized because there are some things to know about cross country before you buy. There’s a few different types and so we’ve got all the volunteers here for that,” she says.
The ski swap is on Nov. 25, and drop-off days are Nov. 17 and 24. There will also be waxing and binding installation services available.
For more information about upcoming events or to buy a membership, visit their website or Facebook page.
