By Emily Wolfe Explore Big Sky Managing Editor
Skis, snow and girls. If those aren’t three of your favorite things, you can stop reading right now.
The brainchild of Whitefish native Alyssa Clark, K2 Skis’ U.S. Marketing Coordinator, International Women’s Ski Day is about getting the gals out skiing. Set for Dec. 14, the idea is to “amp up the stoke level for the year [early] and go out with a bang,” Clark said.
Based in Seattle, Wash., K2 has been a pioneer in the realm of women’s specific skis. Clark came up with the idea for IWSD last spring, and says she basically wanted to create a grassroots approach to get women out on snow.
The K2 Ski Alliance has teamed up with She Jumps, Ramp Skis, Crystal Mountain in Washington, Christy Sports in Beaver Creek, Colo., and a number of its ambassadors and other individuals to host events. Anyone can jump on board, said Clark, who’s also K2’s Women’s Team Manager.
“It’s an open invite for anyone, anywhere in the world. Say you just moved to Jackson Hole for the winter and don’t know anyone – it’s fun to be able to see what’s going on in your region and link up with [different folks].”
Already, independent events are set for Whitefish, Jackson, Japan, Scandinavia, Canada and the Northeast, and Clark wants chicas worldwide to create their own local events through an interactive Google Map at k2skis.com/womens-ski-day.
To create an event, she says, enter your information, write down what you’re doing for the day and where to meet up, and it automatically generates a pin on the map – no email address or phone number required.
“We’re encouraging ladies to take a lesson if they’d like to, go touring if they’re into backside skiing, or into the park if they’re park skiers. If you’re in Atlanta, Ga., and don’t have snow, you can have your girlfriends over and watch ski movies or meet for après and have hot cocoa. Make this your own.”
The flagship events at Crystal and Beaver Creek will include an element of fundraising to benefit the Breast Cancer Research Foundation and Vail’s Shaw Cancer Center.
