Flips, fly, twist, go: Teachers, students take on ski, snowboarding adventures

Teachers Mr. and Mrs. Green both enjoy skiing with their sons. Drama teacher Nancy Green states, “… both my sons are also avid skiers who love to spend time on the slopes.”

     “We have skied at Killington Vermont, Squaw Valley in Tahoe California- and locally at Roundtop, Ski Liberty, and Wisp. We hope to visit Stowe Mountain in Vermont for a family ski trip,” she says.

     Nancy’s brother also skies, and she says he “is probably the best skier in our family though- he qualified for the Junior Olympics in ski racing, skied at Killington Mountain School, qualified for the Winter X Games in BIG AIR and can do lots of tricks even now in the jump park- switch 360s, all sorts of tricks with names and flips on skis,” stated green. 

     She says, “We are definitely a ski family and love it when we get lots of fresh powder!”

     North Harford’s students Grace Conklin, Dakota Bonaccorsi, Kendall Fortune, and Kayla Doll also enjoy going snowboarding as well. 

     Conklin, a sophomore, said she enjoys going snowboarding and her favorite place to snowboard is the Whitetail Resort located in Australia, Canada, the Midwest, the Mid-Atlantic, the Northeast, the West, and the Rockies, according to the Whitetail Resort website.

     Conklin states, “I started about 2-3 years ago snowboarding.” Conklin goes snowboarding about 2-3 times a year. “I started because both my uncles snowboard and I’ve always wanted to,” Conklin says. “My friends taught me the basics of how to get up but other than that I am self-taught,” comments Conklin.

     Dakota Bonaccorsi, freshman, enjoys snowboarding and she “started snowboarding when I [Dakota] was 11 [, and] I usually go 2 or 3 times a year with my family,” Bonaccorsi comments.

     “My family and I like to go to Liberty and Wisp to ski because we’ve had the most fun at those mountains,” Fortune said. Fortune’s father taught her to ski and snowboard.

     Conklin states, “My favorite part is getting a really good toe edge and being able to just have an overall good run…[and] the hardest part is probably figuring out tie edge vs heel edge. Once that’s figured out it’s pretty easy on.”

     Kayla Doll, sophomore, enjoys going snowboarding as well. “When I [Kayla] snowboard, nothing really matters and … everything goes away, like my stress and problems, and I am in a whole nother world,” Doll comments. 

     “The hardest part of [snowboarding is] getting your balance when you first start [but] my favorite part about snowboarding is the different obstacles you have to go through,” states Bonaccorsi.

     Kendall Fortune, junior comments, “I started to ski at a young age and just recently started to snowboard. I have been skiing for a longer time than I have snowboarding [,] but I enjoy both!” “. I started to ski because my dad is really into it and it was a great activity for my family and I to do together,” states Fortune. “My family and I like to go skiing as often as possible and especially when we are out at Deep Creek,” Fortune says.

      Fortune states, “My favorite part of skiing and snowboarding is spending time outside with my family. I also enjoy doing a different activity you can’t always do year-round. The hardest part about skiing and snowboarding is not being afraid of falling. Skiing and snowboarding are so much fun so there aren’t really any negatives when it comes to these activities.”

     “To snowboard you need a board, bindings, boot[s] [, and] extra[‘s are a] helmet, goggles, and basic snow equipment,” says Conklin. “[I] bought all my own equipment last year…[and] got my equipment from Baltimore Ski Warehouse and Oakley,” comments Conklin.

     Banaccorsi says, “I do own my own equipment and I get it from sporting stores or online stores if the places don’t have it.”

     “Some safety protocols I take are making sure I wear a helmet and checking the conditions before I go in case it is too icy,” comments Conklin. 

     “I always wear a helmet and warm clothes when I ski so that my head is protected and I am warm. It can definitely be dangerous so wearing a helmet is always a must,” Fortune comments.