Nome Nordic's After-School Ski Program met from late January through mid-April.

We ran three sessions per week, with 4th grade skiers meeting on Tuesdays, 3rd-grade "Intro to Skiing" on Thursdays, and returning 5th grader skiers on Fridays. We also had several second grade skiers whose parents voluntered.

70 kids got on snow!!

Volunteer coaches run our program.

Special thanks to NES teachers Ian McRae and Emmett Foster for attending every session.

Other volunteer ski helpers were Charlie Painter, Marta Pardee, Heide Hanebuth, Mel Woehler, Maggie Kinneen, Erika Rhodes, Tyler Rhodes, Mallory Conger, and Keith Conger. Also Ski Tech Joe Sem, and Trail Groomer Melissa Stewart.

The Dry Creek Ski Trail was established in 2018 with the help of Don Erickson and his track machine (see below) for the youth of Nome Nordic's after-school ski program. Nome Nordic reestablished the trail last year with the help of NSEDC and the Bering Sea Lions Club (They made it possible to purchase a widetrack snowmachine and groomer). The trail is designated for Skiers, Skijorers, and Snowshoers only. While the trail can be very firm when it is around or below-zero, it will not hold up to bicycle, kick sled, or dog sled traffic in warmer temperatures. Youth and adult skiers, skijorers, and snowshoers appreciate your understanding, cooperation, and support.

The Dry Creek Ski Loop trailhead is at the connex, northeast corner of the Snow Dump.

Nome Nordic has served the youth of Nome, Alaska, for 23 years. Nome Nordic proudly offers skiing to elementary-level third, fourth, and fifth-grade students. Our After-School Ski Club program is headquartered in the Nome Elementary School. NNCSP had 53 kids skiing after school in 2024. Using a partnership between Nome Nordic, Nome Elementary School, and Skiku, NNCSP again put around 100 kids on skis during school hours the week before Spring Break. Nearly 20 of our young skiers participated in ski racing in 2024..

Nome Nordic focuses on teaching people of all ages to enjoy skiing. We strive to teach skills that can help our participants learn a healthy, lifelong sport. We provide classic and skate technique lessons at all skill levels, from four-year-olds to adults. We also teach biathlon.

For years, Nome Nordic participants traveled to ski and biathlon competitions throughout the state, country, and Circumpolar North (see below). Nome Nordic and the Nome Winter Sports Association continue to offer support and equipment to the high school and junior high ski and biathlon programs. That group has used our supply of race-quality skis and waxing equipment. They have also using our collection of laser biathlon rifles.

Nome Nordic is excited to announce that we now have space in the new Nome Winter Sports building, which was moved to its new location next to the Nome Recreation Center the fall of 2023. As a result, members of the Nome Community (of all ages) will soon be able to check out our surplus ski equipment at no cost. Our equipment and instruction will be accessible to all youth and adults, especially to community members who can't afford skis or lack transportation.

Nome Nordic extends a special thanks to the Norton Sound Economic Development Corporation. Nome Nordic and the Nome Winter Sports Association used an NSEDC grant to purchase a snowmachine for our trail-making and maintenance. In addition, we bought a Yellowstone Tracking Systems groomer.

The healthy experiences gained by Nome Nordic participants have been made possible by the support of many outstanding individuals and organizations. Thanks to Mitch Erickson, Lynette Schmidt, and the Nome Winter Sports Association; Steve Smith, Stephanie James, and the Nome Sportsman Association; Friends of the NRA; Mary Fisher and ALPAR (Alaskans for Litter Prevention and Recycling); The City of Nome; Mike McNally and Alaska Commercial Company; Bering Sea Lions Club; NSEDC (Norton Sound Economic Development Corporation); Nome Community Center; Cross Country Alaska (CCAK); Nome Eskimo Community; Bering Strait School District (BSSD), John Miles and the Western Interior Ski Association (WISA); Lars Flora and Tyler Hennigan of Skiku; Nordic Ski Association of Anchorage (NSAA); Fairbanks Biathlon Club; and AK Biathlon Association (ABA).

Nome Nordic's primary terrain lies just north of Nome. No roads connect our 3,500-person Seward Peninsula community to the rest of the world. We ski in a windswept area dominated by tundra and a lack of trees. Our athletic accomplishments are impressive, especially considering that until recently, we skied exclusively only snowmachine packed trails.

Nome Nordic and WISA athletes have received instructional support from some very accomplished coaches.

See the World-Class Instruction section below.

Sunset Biathlon Range sits on an abandoned gold mine nine miles west of Nome.

Many thanks to the Nome Sportsman Association and the NRA for helping to establish a range there.

SEE VIDEO BELOW: A day at the Sunset Biathlon Range.

The Sunset Range is on the "Teller Road," a State of Alaska gravel highway that goes unmaintained from October 1 to June 1. Our dedicated Nome biathletes worked hard to reach the range during our eight-month winters. Check out this short video produced by one of our athletes!

Nome Nordic's Caity Tozier earned a gold ulu (medal) in the Snowshoe Biathlon competition at the 2012 Arctic Winter Games in Whitehorse, Yukon Territories, Canada. Athletes from rural sites can become eligible for this international cultural and sporting event through Western Interior Ski Association qualification meets. WISA's AWG biathlon qualification races have averaged well over 50 athletes in the past 15 years, three to four times the number of participants trying to qualify for biathlon spots in the rest of Alaska. One of our former biathletes was on the 2023 Team Alaska Biathlon Coaching Staff.

Nome Nordic participants gain the cold weather preparation skills necessary to experience winter in enjoyable and exciting ways for the rest of their lives.

NRA grants allowed us to purchase five competition-quality biathlon rifles, two target rifles,

and two laser biathlon rifles. Thanks NRA! These have been made available to the new junior high/high school ski program.

Skijoring is one of Nome Nordic's secret training methods.

Nome's Skush Puppy Kennel provides the dogs. The fine, furry athletes originally came from top Iditarod mushers Aaron Burmeister and Aliy Zirkle.

Nome Nordic participants attended many summer and fall biathlon clinics.

Special thanks to The Nordic Ski Association of Anchorage for maintaining a world-class biathlon range at Kincaid Park and to the United States Biathlon Association for sending amazing coaches to clinics there.

Nome Nordic has also hosted world-class biathletes for our Summer Biathlon Camps.

Nome Nordic's favorite ski trails!

We thank the White Mountain School, the Koyuk School and the Bering Strait School District (BSSD) for inviting us to many meets over the years! 

Nome Nordic is housed at Nome Elementary School, but we receive zero funding from Nome Public Schools. Our coaches are all volunteers!!! Our past fundraising efforts were centered around trash cleaning contracts with the City of Nome and ALPAR (Alaskans for Litter Patrol and Recycling). Nome Nordic athletes also washed many cars over the years. Our 13.5 oz. Nanook Joe bags of Mountain Blend coffee were a big hit during Christmas. Nome Nordic was voted the 2016 ALPAR Litter Patrol of the Year. We took pride in our community service efforts of cleaning up the tundra, some of which lie in the ski areas we use.  

Nome Nordic's After-School Ski Program met from late January through mid-April.

We ran three sessions per week, with beginning 4th and 5th grader skiers meeting on Tuesdays, 3rd-grade "Intro to Skiing" on Thursdays, and returning 4th and 5th grader skiers on Fridays.

53 kids got on the snow!!

Volunteer coaches run our program.

Special thanks to 3rd-grade teacher Ian McRae for attending every session.

Also volunteering were Mallory Conger, Keegan Bourdon,

Charlie Painter, Miriam Trujillo, Evan Burgess, and Keith Conger.

On days when there is no practice, Coach Conger is on the snow somewhere, either skijoring with his dogs, backcountry skiing in the Kigluaik Mountains, or traversing the tundra with his Skimbat. He also likes to Skush (a skiing/mushing hybrid sport) and is seen here on a Skushing camping trip with five dogs on the Iditarod Trail. Coach Conger is currently a freelance writer. He attended the 2018 Arctic Winter Games in the Northwest Territories, Canada, as Team Alaska's Head Ski Biathlon Coach, the 2023 AWG in Wood Buffalo, Nothern Alberta, Canada, as Biathlon Mission Staff, and was a member of the Arctic Winter Games Team Alaska Board of Directors.