2019 - 2020 Far West Skier's Guide - 31

FWSA Athletic
Scholarship
Program Assists
Promising
Junior Racers

The Far West Ski Association Athletic
Scholarship Program is entering its 16th
year, growing from an initial $1,000 in scholarships in 2004 to $16,500 and 19 recipients
in the 2018-2019 season. The total awarded
since the program's inception is now over
$150,000 to over 100 recipients.
The program is designed to provide financial assistance to junior ski racers
throughout the western United States where
FWSA has a presence. Applicants must be
junior alpine ski racers affiliated with United
States Ski and Snowboard (USSA), and must
participate in racing programs in states where
FWSA has regional councils. These include
California, Oregon, Washington, Nevada, Arizona, Idaho, Utah, and Wyoming. Scholarships are awarded based on financial need,
athletic performance, academic achievement,
and community service.
Skiing is an expensive sport and the
costs involved in ski racing cannot be left up
to the parents alone to incur. For younger
athletes the costs are modest. However, for
16 through 20 year olds, where competition
becomes national and even international, the
costs can be significant. Without the help of
outside resources, many junior racers simply
cannot compete. For a top competitor,
expenses can reach $20,000 per year. This is
not a seasonal sport for these racers; it includes a full year of ski-related involvement.

by David Krupp
Athletic Scholarship Committee Chair, FWSA
Ryan Herhusky, FWSA Scholarship recipient, is from Carnelian Bay, California
and skis for the Sugar Bowl Ski Team. photo provided by David Krupp

After the winter race competition has concluded, competitors engage in dryland training; then off to summer camps. Camps
typically run about $1,200 per week, not including transportation.
Winter training costs range from $1,000$1,500 each season. Most applicants work
part time to offset expenses. The demands on
their time is significant. They must balance
their time between training, competition,
school, work, and community service. Despite
these demands, the average GPA for these recipients consistently exceeds a 3.9 average.
Our scholarships are modest compared to the
need, but they do make a difference in the
overall scope of the resources they require.
Our recipients include current or former
US Ski Team members Garret Driller, AJ
Hurt, Lila Lipanja, and Foreste Peterson. AJ
Hurt was nominated to the US B Team for
this coming season.
The funding of the scholarships come
from a number of sources: raffles, auctions,
club and council partnerships, and direct con-

tributions from club members, clubs, and
councils. The FWSA has greatly benefitted
from the generous support from its sponsors
including Whitefish Mountain Resort
(www.skiwhitefish.com), a year round winter
and summer resort; Averill Hospitality Group,
a premier choice in mountain resort accommodations; Schure Sports, Inc. (www.karbonmail.com), maker of the Karbon line of
snowsports apparel, the US Ski Team, and the
Far West Racing Association. Their contributions of vacation packages, snowsports apparel, and cash bring in approximately
$10,000 per year as raffle and auction proceeds, as well as direct cash donations.
In addition, our partnership program
through clubs and councils afford us approximately one third of our scholarship funding
each year. Finally, the Far West Ski Foundation
(www.farwestskifoundation.org), a 501 (c)(3)
non-profit organization, is a valuable resource
for encouraging tax-exempt donations. For
more information on the Far West Athletic
Scholarship Program, visit www.fwsa.org. ss

Far West Skier's Guide 2O19 - 2O2O

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2019 - 2020 Far West Skier's Guide

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