The APU Junior Team is a development program for cross-country ski racing. The goal of the junior program is to develop cross-country ski skills with an emphasis on “training to race”, athlete education, and above all, create a passion for cross-country skiing.

During the junior development phase, training is more specific with the athlete transitioning from broad base activity to “training for skiing” with ski specific activity. Sessions are 4-7 times a week. Activities include skate and classic skiing, running, ski imitation, biking, classic and skate roller skiing, games, and strength. Training will be balanced between intervals, distance, speed, technique, and strength. Our coaches design training that is both challenging and FUN!

The Junior Team has two groups, Junior A and Junior B. It is important that training is developmentally appropriate, so we take care in designating the athletes to groups based on maturity, skills, training background, and age. Coaches will designate athletes to group A or B after initial training sessions.

Training is typically located at Hillside, APU, Kincaid, and Potter Valley. Training locations are chosen based on training method (run, roller ski, ski, etc) and coaches take great care to ensure that locations provide top quality training opportunities matched with close attention to athlete’s safety. APU facilities include strength room, team room for video analysis, wax room, and summer skiing on Thomas Training Center located on Eagle Glacier.

Involvement in our program is a great opportunity to be exposed to and learn from top skiers and coaches. APU currently has some of the best in the US and the world. APU skiers dominate US National Competitions and former junior APU skier Kikkan Randall brought home the first ever World Championship Silver Medal. The junior program is a great stepping stone to become a world class skier and a great athlete!

Year Round (May 3 to April 8) Ski training is best done on a year round basis. The year round program includes the benefit of all sessions listed below. This is a great option for those who want year round consistency in training to further skills and fitness. Recommended for athletes wanting to race High School, Besh Cups, Junior National Championships (JO’s), and beyond! Year round includes:

• Year-round coaching with personal coach, including training planning, ski advice, goal setting, video review, etc.
• Invitation to all appropriate training camps
• Race support for appropriate competition including Besh Cups, Anchorage Cup, and Junior Olympics. Accommodations for J1 and/or Junior World Trials may be made on an individual basis.
• Athlete Training Log
• Year round athletes are the only junior athletes that may receive an invitation to attend summer on-snow camps at the Eagle Glacier Training Facility

Spring (May 3 to May 21) Sessions are 4-5 days a week Monday thru Thursday (with occasional Friday or weekend outing) from 3:30 PM to 5:15 PM. May is “Activation” training to get ready for the summer training. There is a large focus on injury prevention.

Summer (May 24 to Aug 17) Sessions are 5-6 days a week Monday thru Friday 4pm to 5:30pm (for Jr B) and 4pm to 6pm or (for Jr A) with 1-2 weekend sessions per month. There is one morning session per week at APU, time and day TBA. Training is focused on dry land training for cross-country skiing.

Fall (Aug 24 to Sep 24) Sessions are 5-6 days a week Monday thru Friday with 1-2 weekend sessions per month. Sessions are Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday from 3:30 PM to 5:15 PM with Wednesday and Friday from 5:15 PM to 6:45 PM. Wednesday and Friday sessions are held later so that athletes who choose to run high school XC can roller ski to maintain ski specific fitness.

Fall Transition (Sep 27 to Oct 29) Sessions are 5-6 days a week Monday thru Friday with 1-2 weekend sessions per month. Sessions are Monday through Friday, 3:30 PM to 5:15 PM. The fall transition session is designed to fill the gap between high school cross-country running and high school skiing. This is a great option for high school athletes who ran cross country and wish to start the high school skiing season with some ski fitness!

Winter (Nov 1 to Apr 8) Sessions are 4-5 days a week Tuesday thru Saturday. Sessions are on Tuesday and Thursday from 3:30 PM to 5:15 PM with Wednesday and Friday from 5:15 PM to 6:45 PM. The later weekday time allows the athlete to benefit from participation on school teams and long-term skill development/training within the club atmosphere. Saturday’s time TBA and are not held if in conflict with ASD Region 4 race schedule. Winter session includes race support at Besh Cup and Anchorage Cup races.

Camps (Dates TBA and/or see below) There are 4-5 camps scheduled for the season:

*Girdwood Dryland Camp held at Challenge Alaska June 17th-20th

*Eagle Glacier on-snow camp, “By invitation only” week of July 5th

*Talkeetna Dryland Camp held at the Knapp family cabin July 26th-30th

*Hatcher’s Pass on-snow camp, held in late November

*On-snow “Holiday Camp” held between Christmas and New Years

Camps fees are in addition to program fees and athletes must be registered in the current session to be invited to camp.

Additional program details and registration policies:

• Registration payments are due in full before the first day of the session.
• Payment plans are available for year round participants. The first ½ of the fee is due on the first day of practice with the second ½ due on October 1st. Please choose the “Year round payment plan” option on registration sheet. By checking this box you are authorizing APUNSC permission to run the SAME credit card on 10/1/10.
• We are offering family discounts once again this year! To be eligible you must have three or more family members signed up for APU programs, two of which must be year round members. After purchasing two year-round memberships, all additional memberships are half price. (Half price fee will be applied to the least expensive APU membership.) If family members sign up at different times of the year, fees will be adjusted accordingly.
• New this year are performance incentives for top finishes at Junior Olympics. A top ten individual finish will earn the athlete a 10% program fee discount and a top three, or “podium” finish will earn the athlete a 25% program fee discount. Nothing like a financial incentive to ski fast!

We look forward to your participation in our program!