The Golden Nordic Club is gearing up for a great season as their membership gets stronger and stronger.
The club has matured over the years, and now has more than 500 members, and some prestigious accomplishments to boast, including acting as host to the Nordic Masters competition in 2012.
“I have had lots of positive comments about all aspects of our club, from the tremendous trails and grooming quality, to the friendliness of our greeters, instructors and volunteers,” said Jeff Dolinsky, president of the club. “I think that’s really notable.”
Volunteers have been busy the over the past year, especially during the off season, upgrading some of the facilities that make Dawn Mountain and its 33 kilometres of groomed trails so unique.
A new green trail has been built, improvements have been made to some of the existing trail network, and upgrades were made to the chalet, including finishing the kitchenette and improving the bathrooms.
“There are a tremendous number of volunteers who keep this club going,” said Dolinsky. Many members put in more than 40 hours, significantly higher than the required 10 hours to receive their volunteer discount.
All of the grooming, greeting, trail building and maintenance, and coaching is all done by club volunteers. The work they have put in is really starting to pay off as Dawn Mountain’s reputation gets better and better.
“I’ve heard people say that this is one of their favourite places to go and ski,” said Dolinsky. “We can now bank of the fact that we are attracting skiers from all over the country who will return for more.”
For anyone who has not taken advantage of the great cross country skiing facilities in Golden, this would be a good year to try it out. The rental program out of the Nordic Club chalet is continuing to grow, and will be including skate skis this year.
To find out more about the club, the trails in town, as well as details about prices and rentals, go to the club’s website at www.goldennordicclub.ca.
