Skidmore College offers a wide range of clubs, with a total of 130, but only 11 of which are sports and fitness related ones. For students that don’t want to participate in varsity athletics — whether it be because the college doesn’t have a particular team or the commitment of being a full-time athlete is daunting — students like Kyra Foley ‘20 look towards clubs like the Snow Sports Club to get involved in athletics.
Transferring to Skidmore her sophomore year, Foley was immediately welcomed into the Snow Sports Club. With the current president about to graduate, Foley assumed their role after only one semester and never looked back.
“It was really exciting because the club had been around since Skidmore started, but there was a lot of work to do to get trips up and running and new programs started.”
As president, Foley’s main job is organizing all the moving pieces, as well as introducing new trips.
“It’s really important to have a point person with relationships to Gore Mountain for our students ski passes and Double H Ranch [a nonprofit providing programs for children with life-threatening illnesses] for the training program,” she says.
Along with her Co-President, Emily Perkins, she works with Budget and Finance, as well as Diversity and Inclusion, to make sure they are doing everything to get the word out about their trips.
“It’s been really exciting coming up with new ideas, starting new programs, and even bringing some ski films to campus. I'm excited to pass the torch and let Snow Sports carry on with a ton of new energy and events.”
Snow Sports Club, as Foley states, is super casual, non-competitive, and open for anyone to join. Members can use the Facebook page to find rides to the mountain and new ski buddies. Other members go on the clubs’ annual Whiteface trip or join the beginners ski trip at West Mountain. The club also facilitates a season ski pass at a super discounted rate that they sell every fall.
Additionally, the club started a volunteer program with Double H Ranch, where students go through a semester long training program so that in the spring they can volunteer as adaptive ski instructors for children with cognitive and physical disabilities. This year the club has some brand new trips happening, such as their one-day avalanche rescue course and a sledding night trip to West Mountain.
When asked which snow sport is her favorite, the business major and studio art minor responded “I really love skiing. I started skiing before I was even born, in my mom’s belly. I fell in love with it immediately and spent all my winters skiing in Jackson Hole.”
As she got older, Foley found interest in backcountry skiing and taking avalanche preparation courses. After working with the adaptive ski program in NY, she decided to carry on with this interest and is currently getting her certification to be an adaptive ski instructor.
And even if Skidmore doesn’t offer a specific sports team or related club, there are always other ways to participate in the sport — there quite definitely will be other students who share your same interests. Foley is no different in this.
“I also love ice skating outside,” she says. “There is this really cool hidden cave in Vermont that we take students to and you can ice skate inside of it.”