Thanks for a Great Season!

This was my first year as Alpine Director at PCSS, and it’s definitely one I won’t forget.
There’s an obvious storyline from this winter that everyone will talk about, but what stands out more to me is what happened because of it. Throughout the season, I saw a really strong community of athletes, coaches, clubs, and resorts come together to keep things moving forward and make sure the athletes had great opportunities, both racing and training. We had races canceled, moved, and reshuffled, and every time that happened, another venue or club stepped up to make it work and provided great venues and opportunites for athletes all season long.

The conditions we ended up training and racing on were actually some of the best I’ve seen in my 15 years working in the West, and more importantly, the athletes handled everything with a positive attitude and the willingness to work hard. They showed up with good energy, stayed motivated, and kept working toward their goals. Our coaches played a big role in that. They set the tone every day with a positive approach and a lot of effort, and it created an environment where athletes could keep improving. As the season went on, you could see that progress across the club. A lot of athletes had their best results at the end of the year, particularly at championship events. Our team had strong results across the board, with athletes winning races at every level from Devo through FIS and many more joining them on the podium (April podium finishers are highlighted at the end of this). We also had an Olympian, Tallulah Proulx, on our team, the first female Winter Olympian for the Philippines, and the youngest alpine skier competing in Cortina. That was an exciting moment for the club and for Tallulah and we all loved cheering her on during her events.

We also continue to build on a strong history as a club. Last season had former Devo athletes go on to podium at World Championships, World Cup, World Juniors, NorAms, NCAA Championships, and national events, and this year fell in line, highlighted by Alumni, Mia Hunt's double podium finish at NCAA Championship in our back yard, on Eccles Mountain. That’s something we want to keep pushing toward and honoring each year, while also supporting the currents athletes and those just getting started.

There was no better place to show that support and honor the athletes from the winter than at our annual end of season banquet last Friday. It was great to see so many in the club show up and cheer on all age groups! Having all groups together in one place, cheering each other on, was a great reminder of what this team looks like as a whole and not something we get to see often during the season.

Everything thing we do is for the athlete first and of course it doesn’t happen without the help and collaboration of a lot of people.
To the parents who are driving, supporting, and making this possible—thank you.
To the athletes who show up and put in the work every day—thank you.
And to the coaches, who put in a huge amount of time and energy to support every athlete—thank you.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for a great season and be on the lookout for summer programming sign-up and early registration for next season! For now, enjoy some down time, I’m grateful to be part of this group and looking forward to what’s ahead.

April Podium Finishes

• Dyllan Guay, FIS W – 1st SL, 2nd GS Big Sky Spring Series
• Sydney Daly, U16 – Snow Cup: 1st in all four events (SL, SL, GS, GS) and overall
• Wylie Rothwell, U16 – Snow Cup: 3rd SL1
• Cleo Abbott, U16 – Snow Cup: 3rd SL2
• Lila Tyler, U16 – Snow Cup: 3rd GS1, GS2
• Harper Janssen, U14 – Spring Fling: 2nd GS
• Banks Antablin, U14 – Spring Fling: 2nd GS, 3rd Kombi

Congrats to all on a great season, read on below to see who was recognized by their respective groups with End of Season Awards!

Club Wide Awards

• Skier of the Year: Dyllan Guay
• Cathy Swing Leadership: Jane Gutchess
• David Wright Leadership: Tyler Howell

Individual Team Awards

FIS Men/Women

• Top Performer: Max Meucci / Brooke Brown
• Most Improved: Steven Pruksirisombut / Winter Rothwell
• Donkey Award: Cooper Kirchmeier
• Sportsmanship/Coaches Award: Zeke Sherman
• Hard Charger: Maggie Carluccio

U16 Women/Men

• Top Performer: Sydney Daly / Feren Johnson
• Most Improved: Eleanor Maentz / Chase Wilkinson
• Hard Charger: Yael Lanzkowsky / William Beebe
• Sportsmanship/Coaches Award: Wylie Rothwell / Oliver Abbett

U14 (2nd Year) Women/Men

• Top Performer: Sydney Ervin / Julian Strangis
• Most Improved: Elsa Washburn / Perry Zemblidge
• Hard Charger: Grace Stansbury / Patrick Hennessy
• Sportsmanship/Coaches Award: Chesney Price / Reagan Abbott

U14 (1st Year) Women/Men

• Top Performer: Harper Janssen / Bronson Karr
• Most Improved: Leah Levy / Burke Inman
• Hard Charger: Bailey Cooper / Macon Humora
• Sportsmanship/Coaches Award: Evelyn Flis / Jonah McKenzie

U12 Women/Men

• Top Performer: Eisa Louis / Stellan Stiegemeier
• Most Improved: Emerson O'Malley / Lawson Shilt
• Hard Charger: Cooper Carey / Mateo Compain
• Sportsmanship/Coaches Award: Charlotte Stoughton / Austin Simpson

Devo Awards

• Road Furthest Traveled: Fenna Alvarez
• Coach Appreciation (Girls): Marie Halcott
• Coach Appreciation (Boys): Grady Iannaccone
• Red Ant Award: Heidi Rudio
• Devo of the Year: Mimi Smith