Constantly battling with the mild, fluctuating Michigan weather, the EGR Ski Team has had a rough start to this winter season.

 “When the conditions are bad it sucks because obviously you can’t ski without snow which really affects how much work we can put in,” Lilly Wert ‘23 said. 

With poor weather, the team can’t ski at Cannonsburg which has resulted in them having to practice in the gym and workout as a team. 

However, if there was snow, you would find the team at Cannonsburg after school. 

“Usually, every day is the same,” Quinn Irwin ‘25 said, “warm up, free ski, practice gates for an hour to an hour and a half and then we go home.”

The missing sense of normalcy has given the team a different approach this year. They are working on creating good friendships and even though they can’t ski together everyday yet, they refer to themselves as a very tight knit group. 

“It’s a super close team because it is small and you get a lot of time to be together during the chair lift ride and even during preseason lifting. You get to be with a lot of different people and create good friendships,” Wert said. 

Though it’s tough to practice like normal, the team has not let this poor weather affect their morale. Looking ahead, both teams are hoping to make a good run at states this year. Anticipating that the boys team will qualify after not making it last year. 

There to help the boys achieve this goal is Sophomore skier Quinn Irwin. Irwin works all year round for ski season and is ready to make this year count. Last year Irwin placed first in slalom and second in GS. This year, with more underclassmen and some highly skilled freshmen, Irwin is hoping to help bring the boys to state.  

“I’m hoping to podium at states this year, and do well at qualifiers in the UP,” Irwin said. 

While the boys have strong underclassmen, the girls team has a strong group of seniors hoping to do well again this season. After falling six points short to a state title last year at the D2 state championships, the girls are ready for a comeback season. 

“This is one of the best girls teams we’ve had,” Wert said, “I think we’re going to do really well at state this year, and the boys having a shot at making it is a really big deal.” 

Though the team will have to reschedule some of their races from the early season, they are hoping for some snow to fall soon so that they can get back to practicing like normal.