Ski Cats teaches cross country skiing techniques to kids

SANDS TOWNSHIP, Mich. (WLUC) - A program is giving Marquette County children the opportunity to learn cross country skiing techniques.

Ski Cats is a program that teaches children 5 to 10 years old crossing county skiing skills. Sisters Kyla and Lucy Loewen said they have learned a lot under the program and had fun while doing so.

“I’ve learned that skiing can be fun and if you try you can more skills,” Kyla Loewen said.

“I learned that you can have fun even if you don’t want to do it,” Lucy Loewen said.

The coordinator for the Ski Cats, Melissa Polkinghorne-Coxon, said the program has many participants.

“We have 15 volunteer coaches, which also means we have 110 kids skiing from ages 5 to 10, so we teach them the basics,” Polkinghorne-Coxon said. “We teach them how to fall, how to get back up, we teach them how to put their skis on, how to take their skis off.”

Polkinghorne-Coxon said that they use games and activities to teach ski techniques.

“Because we want to have fun, we have scavenger hunts, we have Simon Says, kids want to be out here and enjoy,” Polkinghorne-Coxon said. “But also they want to ski and they want to ski at distance as well, so a lot of our older kids up to 3 to 5K, which is awesome.”

Polkinghorne-Coxon said this program is about getting people, and their kids, out of the house.

“We live in Marquette, we need to get outside, we need to enjoy the snow, we need to enjoy each other and to spend time, honestly, outside,” Polkinghorne-Coxon said. “And Marquette is amazing, and plus we have snow how many months of the year, right?”

Polkinghorne-Coxon also said if anyone wants to donate money, or equipment or even volunteer their time, they can do so through the Superiorland Ski Club.

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