Welcome Archive!

Perisher X Country (PXC) is all about promoting the activity of Cross Country Skiing so that one of the best-kept secrets around is not a secret anymore. Please encourage everyone to go to the PXC website (Contact Us page) and subscribe to PXC NEWS and daily XC Trail Reports during winter.

A great action shot of our best placed masters skier, Jane Scheer, carving it up, going uphill at the recent World Masters Championships in Klosters, Switzerland.

Mid-Autumn Edition

With the notably cooler autumn weather, I hope you are getting excited that winter is just around the corner. Hopefully the winter behaves itself this year providing more days skiing and a deeper cover. The North American winter snapped back to having great conditions, with this being a huge improvement to the previous year, so I believe it is our turn. We shall see. 

This newsletter has a bit of PXC business coupled together with other stories.

The stories that follow are:

• Recent Progress & Looking Forward

• 2025 Australian Rollerski Championships – April 12th-13th

• 2025 AUSXC AWARDS - Saturday 12 April 6:00-8:00pm – Ainslie Football Club

• Masters Skiing - Training and Other Notes

• XC Ski Week 

• 2025 XC Work Party #5, Next Being (17 - 18 MAY)

• Save-The Dates

• Nordic Shelter Donations

Recent Progress & Looking Forward

Despite last year’s short season, activity around the Nordic Shelter was high, with some new faces stepping in to participate and help. XC Ski Week was a highlight, although an early spring in mid-August cut the season short. Notably, our PXC Facebook efforts have had a positive impact in attracting more people to get involved—momentum that we want to build on.

The main goal for Perisher X-C (PXC) is to grow the numbers of X-C skiers who ski at the Perisher XC Centre and beyond, with our main tools being the website, newsletters, grooming reports, running/ promoting XC Ski Week and our Social Media (FaceBook & Instagram) sites. 

The Need for More Volunteers/ Help

PXC is looking for keen volunteers to take charge/contribute to the PXC website, Facebook and Instagram. Teams of 3 people for each area would be ideal to co-ordinate oversight and contributions of content.

• Audit the PXC website – check links and update content

• Administer the PXC FaceBook page 

• Administer the PXC Instagram page

• Help out during XC Ski Week

Contact Wayne Pethybridge at wpethybridge@fastmail.fm or call 0481 268 598 to find out more and/or offer your services.

For those interested in helping with the running of events or being involved in the Summer working bees, please contact Peter Ward at nswxc1@gmail.com .

Social Media Get-Together

A Social Media Workshop is planned before winter, which will be led by a professional Social Media Consultant. This session will cover everything from the basics to reviewing and improving our current Facebook and Instagram strategies. More details will be shared soon. If you are intersted in this project. please get in touch - wpethybridge@fastmail.fm

Let’s Keep Growing!

Now is not the time to slow down—let’s make this season even bigger and better! With more people involved, we can generate the momentum needed to ensure the future of XC skiing at Perisher.

 2025 Australian Rollerski Championships – April 12th-13th

This upcoming weekend at Stromlo Forest Park, the 2025 Australian Rollerski Championships will take place. The event is open to everyone—whether you're a member of the Australian team or a newcomer who's just getting the hang of rollerskiing. Spectators are also welcome, so if you're in that category, come along to watch some of Australia’s top skiers in action.

Among the competitors are Lars Young Vik, Bentley Waker-Broose, and Phoebe Cridland, fresh from the World X-C Skiing Championships and World Cup races. They'll be joined by members of the World U23 Championships team, as well as athletes from the Australian Junior Team. Notably, Lars came within just a few places of reaching the finals in both the Sprints at the World Championships and a World Cup race. Phoebe also being part of the Australians Women's relay team who came 12th out of 19 teams at the World X-C Skiing Championships.

To enter go to 2025 AUS Rollerski Championship - Snow Australia

2025 AUSXC Awards - Saturday 12 April 6:00-8:00pm – Ainslie Football Club

Join athletes, coaches, officials, families, supporters and general ski enthusiasts in Canberra on April 12 to celebrate the achievements and efforts of 2024/2025.

Awards include Cross Country Skier of the Year and Junior Skier of the Year, the winners of which will become the XC nominees for the Snow Australia Awards in Melbourne on 1 May, as well as awards for Masters, Coaches, Volunteers and more. The function will also feature images from the Australian Team competing overseas this past season and from the 2024 Australian winter.

REGISTER ASAP!! Use this link for details and to register - https://www.snow.org.au/events/290922

See also SNOW AUSTRALIA NEWS about this weekend's Rollerski Championships and the 2025 AUSXC Awards - https://www.snow.org.au/news/ausxc-awards-rollerski-races-in-canberra

Masters Skiing - Training and Other Notes 

The 2025 World Masters Championships in Klosters, Switzerland, saw 23 registered competitors representing Australia—our largest squad to date. Many athletes had been in Europe for several weeks leading up to the event, training and competing in races across Switzerland, Austria, and Italy.

The team spirit in Klosters was fantastic, with many of the Aussie competitors being relatively new to racing, the World Masters Championships, and skiing in general. The attached information is valuable not only for those new to Masters skiing but also for those who have participated in several (or more) Championships.

Improving your position in the rankings and reducing the gap behind the winners is a multi-faceted challenge. It requires dedication to the work (training) and ensuring the right type of training is prioritized. While the attached information covers several key aspects, it doesn’t delve into ski selection and preparation, such as base conditioning and waxing, which are also crucial.

For Masters skiers seeking more information on training and tips for mounting an assault on next year’s World Masters Championships in Sappada, Italy, CLICK HERE. 

For more information about next years World Masters Championships, feel free to contact Peter Lambert at peterllambert@icloud.com.

XC Ski Week

Just a short note to confirm the dates as to what is happening at this year's XC Ski Week

Peter Cunningham and others have been working hard to finalise the winter race/ event calendar with the following being set.

2/8 Friday – Australian Championships - Sprint - Freestyle

3/8 Saturday – Australian Championships - 15Km Distance - Classical

4/8 Sunday – Boonoona Open

5/8 Monday – KAC Classic

6/8 Tuesday – Mystery Coffee Tour No 1 & Hello in the Snow (PHS & PXC production)

7/8 Wednesday – Charlotte Pass Open & Twilight Relay’s

8/8 Thursday – Sundeck Cup

9/8 Friday – Mystery Coffee Tour No 2

10/8 Saturday – Snowy Mountains Classic & the Final “End of XC Ski Week Presentation”

To quote last year catch-cry - If you have not got your accommodation sorted, pitch a tent, if you cannot get time off work, find another job. If retired, well then you have no excuses.

2025 XC Work Party #5, Next Being (17 - 18 MAY)

Many thanks to the XC enthusiasts who joined the April XC Work Party #4 where bridge work, replacing trail poles, fixing trail signage and many tasks inside and outside the Nordic Shelter, were completed.

Join the May work party which will include placing down all the half-pipes and covers before the winter comes, more bridge work and more trail work as as usual plenty of tasks inside and outside the Nordic Shelter – all part of a rewarding and sociable weekend. Overnight accommodation in Perisher is available for all XC Work Partiers, generously provided by Canberra Alpine Club.

As usual: If you can attend all or part of the 17-18 May Weekend Work Party, contact Peter Ward (nswxc1@gmail.com). Bring gum boots, work gloves, PPE, work clothes for any weather, march fly defence, lunch and snacks. The hot water urn, sandwich press, microwave, coffee and tea are available at the Shelter.

If you require accommodation, please contact Peter Cunningham (peter.petercunningham@gmail.com). Bring bed linen, towels and food/drink for meals – the shared dinner on Saturday night is always an interesting social occasion.

Save-The Dates:

10 May – Annual Snow Sale – Click Here for information for Sellers, Buyers and Volunteers. Volunteers are needed on Friday for set-up and Saturday for the Sale. NSWACT XC and PXC benefit directly from the proceeds of the sale, so please volunteer! To volunteer, contact Wendy at sale@snow.org.au.

7-9 June – Annual NSWACT XC Jindabyne June Long Weekend Jr Camp and Snowy Mountains Nordic Rollerski Challenge. Stay tuned for more details as they become available.

LAST BUT MOST IMPORTANT:
NORDIC SHELTER DONATIONS

The Nordic Shelter is facing significant increases in running costs, specially building insurance.

If you can’t be at XC Work Parties in person, you can support the volunteers another way. Make Tax Deductible Donations to help with the development, running expenses and maintenance -https://asf.org.au/projects/snow-australia---northern/nordic-shelter-development/

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