WKTY Cares helps to make ski jumping a year round sport
The WKTY Cares January recipient is the Snowflake Ski Club in Westby, Wis.
The end goal of Operation Plastic Matting, is to create a year-round training program and increase participation across the area.
Plastic matting will allow young athletes to train year around, as opposed to the current season of 1-3 months.
This will allow them to progress in the sport with a goal of sending ski jumpers to national competitions and, potentially, the Olympics.
The ski club is open to any child interested.
The Westby ski hill is only one of six of its size in the U.S., and it has come to light that there is a lot of interest in growing the program.
The Snowflake Ski Club has a policy that no money should be spent until a child decides that the sport is for them.
It supplies all the equipment, including jumping skis, boots, bindings, helmets, as well as some of the most committed coaches.
Once a child decides flying is awesome and the sport is for them, they can become a full member, with those costs being more than affordable compared to other sports.
And, if it takes them all year to decide, that’s OK. It’s an individual sport, and the coaches will never put a child in a position to move to a bigger hill until they are ready.
To learn more about Operation Plastic Matting and how you can help, click HERE.
WKTY Care is supported by Performance Foods and Kratt Lumber.