SAD 25 approves Big Rock skiing for students Ski for Life targets sedentary youth

STACYVILLE – Officials in SAD 25 are working to buck a nationwide trend of sedentary youths by giving students the opportunity to participate in a popular winter sport at a site that is more than 60 miles away.

Superintendent John Doe said earlier this week that the school board approved a proposal to have district students participate in the Big Rock Ski for Life Program.

The after-school event takes place at the Big Rock Ski Area in Mars Hill. Doe said that the school board agreed during their meeting to send a bus full of participants to the mountain several times from January through March.

“We will be sending a bus four times in January, twice in February and three times in March,” he explained. “The school district will only absorb the cost of the transportation, and the students who take part will pick up the rest.”

In addition to Stacyville, the district includes Sherman Station, Mount Chase and Patten.

Big Rock is run by the nonprofit Maine Winter Sports Center and shares in the MWSC goal of re-establishing skiing as a way of life in Aroostook County.

The ski area has introduced several school- and community-based programs designed to appeal to anyone who wants to take part in outdoor winter recreation.

Ryan Guerrette, Big Rock’s operations manager, said Thursday that the Ski for Life program has been taking place for about three years.

As part of the program, participants pay $10 a day for a lift ticket and rental equipment and take part in an introductory ski program for a scheduled block of time.

“We do this with schools and recreation departments throughout Aroostook County,” explained Guerrette. “We try to keep the costs real low, and our goal is to get these youths hooked on skiing and physical activity.”

The initiative has benefited both area students and the ski area, according to Guerrette. The manager said that when students from the Houlton Southside School first took part in the program, the ski area saw “huge sales” in season passes the next year.

“The kids got the adults hooked on the sport,” he added.

Doe said that the SAD 25 board was happy to hear about the program.

“We all know that kids today don’t get as much exercise as they used to,” he said. “So anything that we can do to encourage physical activity and wellness, we’ll definitely do it.”