Sam Young is having a breakout season for the combined Winona High/Cotter Nordic ski team.

It is easy to take part in a many sports at Cotter, but Sam Young is the only Rambler who is a member of the varsity Nordic ski team.

On January 6 at the Highland meet in Bloomington,  Young placed 20th as an individual with a time of 17:52 to help Winona to a 5th place finish.  At the ABC relays at Theodore wirth Park Sam placed 30th in the classic discipline in a highly competitive field, and was the team’s 2nd highest placing finisher,, despite being just a sophomore.

When in Nordic ski, dealing with the weather is important in preparing for the sport. Warm weather melts the much needed snow.

“The weather is pretty good for skiing,” Young said, “players always want more snow. However if the weather becomes extremely cold,  it becomes one of the biggest challenges.”

Young has been skiing since he was five years old.  After starting to learn to Nordic ski with some help from his father, he is now a key  member of the WSHS Ski Team.

The team is coached by Jason Mork (head coach), Jacob Tycrow, Tom Brandt, Coach Sagan and Coach Bullard are assistant coaches.

During practice, they have to arrive at 3:45p.m. to get dressed and hear what they need to do for the day. They usually ski from 4:00p.m. to 5:45p.m. After skiing , they start core work- exercises that generally work arms and core muscles. They have to do three sets of four activities with push-ups in between.

The Winona Nordic ski team has approximately 45-50 members, growing with a steady amount of younger kids, who excited to be involved.

Young’s sister, Christine, is also part of Nordic ski and one of the great parts to of being on the team in Sam’s eyes.

“Christine is there for transportation and if I need any help at all. It has been great being on the same teams as my sister.”

“Skiing is a great sport that you can do your whole life.  Many people like to ski and there is no better way to spend time outside in the winter, ” said Sam Young, showing h true philosophy for skiing.