Ski In, Ski Out

Traverse City is a drag to live in during those pesky winter months, straying away from the cold as best as we can. Whether that means staying indoors or fleeing out to somewhere with ungodly heat like Florida or California, most of us do it. For the rest of us that don’t fit into the “most of us” category, loving the cold is mandatory. People along those lines are always outside in the winter while the rest of us are dreaming of hot sand between our toes. So for those of us who 1. Love sports and 2. Would rather be outside in the winter, we pick up sports and pastimes like hockey, skiing or snowboarding. Those sports are always at the top of the “to do’’ list during the winter season. For Central seniors Pearl Hale and Luke Farella, they’ve come a long way in their respective skiing journeys.

Pearl Hale has been hitting the slopes since she was just five years old. Hale explains that although it’s a love-hate relationship with skiing, she’s stuck with it because she loves the community aspect. “I grew up with all of those kids… We’ve been racing [together] our whole lives, so they’ve…become a family to me,” Hale expresses. Within Central’s skiing team, they mostly cover competitive racing rather than cross country, and for Hale, this is more like her true passion, which happens to be snowboarding. Although she loves racing and skiing, Hale tends to lean more towards snowboarding for her free time activity in the winter. “I actually snowboard [a lot], so I don’t free-ski at all,” she admits. Hale recommends

by Trinity Whiteford staff writer

skiing or snowboarding to anyone considering joining, either as a freetime sport or competitively. “It’s fun and it’s something to do in the winter, especially here where there’s nothing to do,” she encourages.

Similarly, Luke Farella also started out skiing as a toddler. He quickly joined a little league-esque team in elementary school, then got involved in a club around middle school, and started on Central’s team his senior year. He finds it’s a good freetime activity but also a good outlet if you like racing. “I think it’s a really good sport, because you can do it until you’re old. [No age restrictions] there’s no real limit to when you can stop,” he explains. More recently, he went on a trip with the Grand Traverse Ski Club outside of school to Austria. “[Experiencing] the different culture and going up into the mountains and skiing all day…was really fun, ‘’ Farella reflects. He plans on continuing his skiing career at Michigan State and racing with their club to keep his passion for skiing going.

Whether you enjoy hitting the slopes in the wintertime or participating in other sports, many of Central’s seniors this year encourage underclassmen to carry on the legacy of the team beyond their graduation. Farella recommends making the most of your high school years while you still have the chance. “Do as many things as [you] can, whether it be skiing or another club [you] like,” Farella advises. “Just try and expand your group and your friends and just have fun.” //