‘Ski for Women’ set for Sunday

GOVERNMENT PEAK — Women seeking an outdoor alternative to watching the Super Bowl this Sunday will likely find what they’re looking for at Government Peak Recreation Area that afternoon.

The Mat-Su Ski Club’s third annual Ski for Women is set to begin at 1 p.m. on Feb. 7 in the main “stadium” area. Registration is by donation only, and proceeds benefit Alaska Family Services, a Palmer-based nonprofit dedicated to serving Mat-Su women and children in crisis, particularly as a result of domestic violence or sexual assault.

“We wanted our money raised to go back into our own community, to help our own neighbors out,” said Rebecca Buchanan, a member of the event’s steering committee.

The Mat-Su Ski for Women is modeled after the Anchorage event, which is in its 20th year of supporting victims of abuse through various nonprofits. The Anchorage ski also occurs on Sunday.

Once the Government Peak Chalet was completed in January 2014, the Mat-Su club decided it was time to have its own Ski for Women.

“Some guys from our community said, we need our own ski for women — we have our own trails, we need to use them. Let’s create an event,” Buchanan said.

The Ski for Women really is an event, rather than a race, since it’s untimed. Skiers simply show up with all the necessary gear, sign up between 11:30 a.m. and the start of the ski at 1 p.m., then shuffle into the chalet after 4 or 5 kilometers for a potluck lunch and door prizes.

“It’s about being together with your friends, your daughters (and mothers),” Buchanan said.

Men are welcome to join, she said — and a few of them will be manning the trail junctions as guides — but tend to be less enthused about dressing up in costume and going for a leisurely ski in the woods with about 100 women and children.

“I think girls like to have fun and be goofy,” Buchanan said. “Guys, maybe, are not into dressing up as much.”

Marianne Wick, who participated in the event last year, went all out with a couple of friends and dressed up in handmade taco costumes. Wick said it probable took her about 8 hours total to make the three costumes, complete with sombreros.

“I just searched for ski costumes online and saw them. It was something different and I thought oh, I can make that,” she said.

As much fun as it was, Wick sees the importance of the event as a fundraiser. She said she’s happy to donate to an organization that is working to end violence against women.

“I got exercise, supported a good cause, hung out with friends and it was fun,” she said.

Though Wick will be watching football this year — her favorite team, the Denver Broncos, are playing — she said she’s glad the Mat-Su Valley has a ski of their own and hopes it continues to grow.

“I never would’ve gone into Anchorage to do it,” she said.

Sheri Musgrave, another member of the event’s steering committee (who claimed she’s been skiing “since Moby Dick was a guppy”) said she had been to the Anchorage event at least once, and would rather not brave the enormous crowds again.

Still, the promotion of healthy activities is more important than the location, she said.

Fellow committee member Mary Ann Holmquist agreed, adding that health is about more than just exercise. The event, she hoped, would acknowledge that.

“It’s about women gathering together to support other women in our community through struggles,” Holmquist said.

Holmquist, Musgrave and Buchanan are joined by Teresa Clemmer and Tammy Sipos on the event’s steering committee. The Mat-Su Ski for Women is sponsored by the Mat-Su Health Foundation and Backcountry Bike and Ski, in addition to the Mat-Su Ski Club.

For more information, visit facebook.com/MatSuSkiForWomen or contact the Mat-Su Ski Club via email at info@matsuski.org.

Contact reporter Caitlin Skvorc at 352-2266 or caitlin.skvorc@frontiersman.com.