Best of Maine skiing

November 26, 2009

(Page 5 of 5)

Northern Maine just might lure an Olympian or two after the Vancouver Winter Games. The world-class cross-country course at Fort Kent will host several season-ending Nordic marathon events the final week of March. The US Ski and Snowboard Association’s US Cross-Country Championships will feature a women’s 30K and men’s 50K race March 24, followed by the new three-day SuperTour Finals (one individual sprint, one mass-start distance race, and a hill climb) March 26-28.

- T.D. THORNTON

Best idea to get kids going

Winter Kids is a Maine-wide non-profit group trying to entice kids into a healthy lifestyle through snow sports. Athletes like Olympians Julie Parisien and Seth Wescott have helped with motivational messages but there are also programs designed to get Maine families out on the snowshoe and cross-country trails. They start them young, too. One program, the FunPass, allows limited free skiing for preschoolers to fourth graders at select touring centers across the state.

- MARTY BASCH