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President’s Message -February

It has been a very frustrating winter so far with our first measurable snow coming the last week of January.  Harriet Hollister Spencer State Recreation Area has been the only park we have been able to groom for some decent skiing.  Hopefully we can get enough of a base soon so we can get a good base for the rest of the parks into March.

Be careful when winds are picking up while you are out at any of our venues.  There have been several downed trees at Mendon Ponds Park and Harriet Hollister Spencer State Recreation Area.  We are working with Monroe County Parks and New York State Parks to get these cleared out as we groom.  RXCSF is only allowed to hand clear.  We are not permitted to use chain saws so there is some coordination needed for larger downed trees to be removed. I encourage everyone to be cognizant of the weather conditions and forecast while out skiing – be safe.

Zak Burke, our IT Specialist, provides an article this month about a new app our groomers will be testing and trying out called Nordic Pulse.  We hope this will help supplement the conditions page to get more up to date and live tracking of our grooming.  In addition to the trail signage, improving our trail conditions, trail conditions updates is a priority goal resulting from our 2021 Spring Survey.

In a separate article, Darren Leach, our Grooming Coordinator, provides an update on some equipment purchases and an alluring call to become a groomer.  Please consider becoming a groomer.

If you would like to support RXCSF this season, please go to our website here to make a tax-deductible donation.  As always, thank you to everyone who has supported RXCSF.  I look forward to getting out on our groomed trails soon.  Please reach out to me if you have any questions, concerns, or comments.

Jim Pippin

President, RXCSF

Live Conditions Updates: Nordic Pulse

Author: Zak Burke, RXCSF IT Specialist

We are pleased to announce that RXCSF is partnering with Nordic Pulse to improve the effectiveness, timeliness, and accuracy of our grooming reports. Nordic Pulse is a two-part system with a phone-based app for groomers to record their progress, and a website that displays maps synchronized to the phone-app to show up-to-date maps of trail conditions. We hope the situation will be win-win for groomers and skiers alike: groomers won’t have to spend as much time updating conditions pages after hours spent out in the cold on the trails because the app tracks their progress and updates the report automatically, and skiers will be able to learn exactly which trails were groomed and when. 

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President’s Message – December Newsletter

Author: Jim Pippin

Snow!!! It’s finally here. I hope everyone has enjoyed some skiing since our first snow on Thanksgiving weekend. I know there isn’t much around currently, but I was just at Harriet Hollister Spencer State Recreation Area this morning and there was enough to do some classic skiing. Just to confirm for everyone, late season hunting is not allowed at Harriet Hollister Spencer State Recreation Area. So get out there and enjoy the snow.

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Strategic Planning

Author: Bob Kuehl

During offseason this summer the RXCSF Board updated its original Vision and Mission statements which were initially created when RXCSF was founded in 2006. Our revised Vision Statement reads as follows, “Establish and grow an inclusive environment for cross country skiing sustainable for future generations in the greater Rochester, NY area.” The Mission Statement explains how the vision will be achieved.

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October Message from the President

Author: Jim Pippin

I hope everyone is enjoying the beautiful fall color and the unbelievable stretch of weather we have been having.  It’s that time of year where we enjoy our last paddle or long bike ride before we start tuning up the skis for winter. The RXCSF Board has been busy over the summer and recently wrapping up a couple of projects. In this month’s newsletter Anna Gorbold shares some of the signage improvements that we have been working on at Mendon Ponds Park in collaboration with Monroe County Parks. I think you will like the new changes and if all goes well, we hope to do the same at Harriet Hollister Spencer State Recreation Area in collaboration with New York State Parks.

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RXCSF Trail Signage

Author: Anna Gorbold

For some time there has, without doubt, been a demand and concern for improving signage for XC trails at Mendon Ponds Park, Harriet Hollister State Park and possibly at Durand Eastman Park and Webster Park. At this time RXCSF’s focus is primarily on Mendon Ponds Park and Harriet Hollister where we are working in conjunction with the park management.

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Rochester Nordic Racing Summer Recap

Author: Jason Hettenbaugh

The Rochester Nordic Racing summer program recently wrapped up its 14th summer of programming. For the second year in a row two options were offered. The traditional evening practices are all encompassing with a focus on roller skiing proficiency, technique, agility, skill acquisition, and strength. The morning practices are by qualification and invitation only. These practices focus primarily on building fitness and strength while continually working on technique development. The athletes who are involved in the morning practices also take part in the evening practices and are often utilized as mentors to the younger skiers, often times leading agility and technique drills. The crossover between the two groups allows for teaching and learning at the same time!!

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