Speeding down the slope, ice spewing into the goggles, swerving through trees and obstacles, flying off of ten foot high jumps, one can experience the thrill of a lifetime.

Skiing is believed to be one of the oldest sports of all time. Dating back to almost 4,000 years old, people used skiing as a mode of transportation, but today, it’s used as a form of entertainment. Here at Woodland, one club can offer this form of entertainment.

Since 2004, the Woodland Ski and Snowboard Club has been taking trips to Mount Southington, Okemo Mountain, and Bromley.

Experience is not needed to join this club; the club is open to all applicants. If a student knows how to ski or snowboard, then they just hop off the bus and head down any slope, depending on their talent. But, if one can’t even figure out how to put the shoes on the skis or zipper their jacket up with gloves already on, each mountain offers lessons for the new adventurers.

“The Mount Southington trip price includes a lesson.  It’s for liability reasons. You pay for a lesson, you take it, and it makes you have some professional instruction so that you won’t just go out on the mountain and be falling and getting hurt,” said ski advisor, Chris Misuraca.

Not only is the ski and snowboard club open to everyone, if a student joins the club, the price for a trip can be reduced.

The more the people, the cheaper the price of the tickets. All three mountains offer a reduced price or a group rate.

If a student travels to Mount Southington, not including the price of gas or rented skis if he/ she does not own any, it can cost up to fifty three dollars for an eight hour day. If the student took four trips alone to Southington, it would cost two hundred and twelve dollars.

Joining the Woodland Ski and Snowboard Club can reduce your price by at least fifty dollars. In 2009, students paid one hundred forty- two dollars for four trips up to Mount Southington.

So, not only does this student get to spend the afternoon skiing down slopes, laughing at friends, they will also be able to make mom and dad smile with a reduced price.

“I learned to ski because of ski club. Skiing is really fun experience that I wish everyone would try,” said junior Lindsay Hawthorne. “It’s really beautiful being out in the mountains, overlooking everything, watching the sun sink into the evening sky.”

Though the ski lifts may get stuck sometimes and there may be some or many falls that get freezing snow down all down the one piece snow- suit, the Woodland Ski and Snowboard club has many things to offer and is currently looking for everyone to join in on this thrill of a lifetime experience.