Unionville Ski Club

“Wear a helmet!” advised senior Dylan Castle as the Unionville Ski Club prepared for its annual adventure to slide down the steepest mountains. With 203 enrolled students and 181 students actively attending trips, the Ski Club has made a name for itself. The group exclaimed, “We might be the largest club on campus!” Normally, the Ski Club makes the trek to Vermont each year for its spring extravaganza. However, the bunch decided to shift gears toward a further destination. From March 30 to April 3, 2026, sixteen members of Unionville’s Ski Club took on the steep slopes of Park City, Utah. 

Quite different from previous years, the attendees who joined along for the Utah trip jumped out of their comfort zone and ditched a bus ride for a plane ticket. These students were filled with excitement as the club typically sticks to the East Coast’s range of mountains, such as Elk, Montage, Camelback, Blue Mountain, Bear Creek, and Sugarbush. 

For more advanced skiers, the Utah Trip, miles away from home, was mostly an open opportunity for juniors and seniors as they would embark on a five-day skiing exploration. The students were granted more time for freedom, independence, and opportunities as the Ski Club experienced a “first trip of magnitude for the organization.” 

When asked if they were changed by core lessons throughout the seasons together, the senior group members were not hesitant to share their responses. “You learn as you go,” Derek Hall reminisced. “Punctuality is key; you have to hit the mountains on time,” affirmed Logan Knox. The Ski Club participants have not only made their marks on the mountains, but also established unforgettable memories with one another. “I’m excited to be with my best friends in the biggest mountains,” declared Dylan Castle. Most importantly, the members have been fed a taste of curiosity for the world and a drive to develop their skills to its height. (Name) mentioned, “we’re excited to push our levels of riding to new frontiers. I know a lot of us haven’t experienced what it’s like to go out west before.”

Head advisor of the organization, Heather Biddle, explained, “The UHS Ski Club has been active a few times throughout the high school’s history.” However, it was reinvented by Unionville’s 2022 Alexandra Dahm and Grant McKnight, and then by 2025 graduate Kai Talbert, to brainstorm more ways for kids to get out, travel, and fundraise. Now, the club has transformed into an overwhelmingly popular one, as logistics for trips must be planned out months in advance, as well as packed waiting lists full of eager students. The Unionville Ski Club has expressed gratitude for its growth in recruiting other chaperones and coordinators, such as Jeremy Dickson, Wendy Farina, Pat Kehan, and Ryan Mark. To add, the club welcomes students of all skill levels. On local mountain trips, first-time learners are fortunate to be able to have lessons at the grasp of their hands. A recurring motto for the Ski Club is, “It’s never too late to learn.” With this in mind, the pack will continue to be on the lookout for new and thrilling adventures, including bigger trips for the future of the Spring 2028 school year. "I'm so glad I've been a part of the ski club the past four years,” the senior members summed up their seasonal ski crusades. 

Ski Club Website (Created by Ski Club participant Logan Knox)