Goddess of the Gates Elli Terwiel has joined the coaching team for this year’s Masters Gate Training program at Sun Peaks Resort LLP’s Sports School.
Terwiel competed in Sochi 2014, and is a slalom specialist, who competed for the Canadian Alpine Team in the 2013 FIS World Ski Championships. Starting skiing at 18-months old, she graduated to the Nancy Greene League at age 4. An opportunity to wear Nancy’s medals inspired her own Olympic dreams.
This is the first year that Terwiel has worked with the Masters program.
“I have done a lot of guest coaching in the past where I came in for a few days to work with athletes,” she said. “It was always fun to come in and present some new ideas.”
While Terwiel’s presence in occasional coaching roles has been inspirational to many in the past, the difference with the Masters Gate Training Program is in the continuity.
“I am excited to consistently work with the same group throughout the program,” Terwiel explained. “And I am excited about how we plan to progress the group through different drills and gate setting.”
With participants opting for four to eight weeks, she will be able to build their confidence and skills.
“I think my experience as a professional athlete will define how I am able to approach this course,” she said. “It’s about bringing curiosity to every day on the hill and working to the best of your ability.”
Intrinsic to skiing progression is new stimuli, she said, such as stubbies (half-gates) or gates, drills, freeskiing or a different prompt to think about during training.
“I have a lot of experience in the mental side of the sport which I am also excited to share. Overcoming fear in the start gate is one of the largest factors in changing your skiing from ‘good form’ to ‘fast’.”
Masters Gate Training program
The popular program is for ages 18+, with a capacity for 24 skiers. Running on Monday mornings, each four-hour session encompasses skills and drills as well as a focus on specific Slalom (SL) and Giant Slalom (GS) technique.
Elli’s father, George Terwiel is also coaching the program along with McSporties owner Matthias Schmid and Luke Hartigan, a Level 4 certified ski instructor.
While there is a need for specialized equipment for SL and GL, it is not a prerequisite for signing up for this program, Hartigan said.
“In an ideal world participants would at the minimum have different skis for SL & GS for their own enjoyment and development, although this is not always in the budget, especially for those new to the sport,” he explained. “We would much rather people attend and decide if they enjoy before loading themselves up with gear. A good option is to find a Masters’ hybrid ski which can be used for both disciplines.”
For safety, Hartigan recommended an FIS-approved helmet and there are a number of different guards for chin, poles, arms and shins which could become a necessity as skiers progress to hitting full gates. An important step, from the get-go, is to keep skis well tuned and maintained.
Now in his second season with the program, Hartigan has been teaching at Sun Peaks Sports School for eight years as well as four years with the Sun Peaks Alpine Club. He hailed this year’s Masters line up as the best ever.
“Obviously there is added hype this season as it’s not every day you get to ski with a World Cup skier and Olympian. The knowledge, stories and first-hand experience Elli has is an awesome bonus to the team – not to mention her warm, fun and welcoming personality.”
Former youth racer, instructor and patroller, Dan Matte is looking forward to benefiting from the stellar line-up. Now in his third season with the program, he is always looking to progress.
“The Masters Gate program is a fun way to improve your skiing quickly,” he explained. “I had not run gates since they were primarily made of bamboo, which was a long time ago.”
Matte has been skiing in Sun Peaks for the past 25 years, owning a home here for 20.
“Many participants in the program have amazing skiing backgrounds,” he said, while working out that this will be his 54th season skiing. With a high degree of camaraderie and collaboration between the trainees and instructors, he said their variety of expertise adds further dimension to the coaching.
Brand new racing recruits this winter are Level 2 certified ski instructor Linda Strachan and her husband, Kelly Brown. The couple regularly rack up 100 days per season and are always keen to develop technique.
“We had a friend who did it last season and her skiing improved dramatically,” Brown said. “I’m hoping I can see similar gains!”
Another opportunity to ski with Elli Terwiel will be at the TELUS Nancy Greene Alpine Classic where she is coaching later this month.
“I am very excited to be invited to help out this year and I hope everyone can join in the fun,” she said.
Hopefully, her favourite motivational motto, “you can do anything until you limit yourself,” will help inspire all the contestants this season.
What did you think of this story?
Your feedback after we publish a story helps ensure we're always improving our reporting to better serve you.
