Saturday at Deer Valley Resort, former U.S. Ski Team member Megan Trayner stood on skis at the top of a blue run — Little Stick — teaching her assigned group of eight women how to plant their ski poles while turning. “Having that pole plant is actually going to help you stay in that really solid position. If you’re on ice, you’re going to be able to dig those edges into the ice,” Trayner said to the group, planting her pole and leaning on her ski’s edges to emphasize the correct posture. “I would love for everyone to just think about that as you’re going down. You pole plant, turn. Pole plant, turn.”Trayner demonstrated the proper form, purposefully planting her ski pole as she initiated each turn, weaving down the mountain a few times before stopping and signaling for her group to follow. One by one, they did. Led by Trayner and followed by two Deer Valley mountain hosts, this beginner-intermediate group would ski mostly blue and green runs at Rossignol’s annual Women’s Ski Day. For many, Saturday, Dec. 14, marked their first ski day of the season. Rossignol Marketing Manager Nina Wright, who led the event Saturday, said the timing was intentional. “It’s a great way for women to get out on their first day in a really positive way and build confidence and be ready to go for the season,” Wright said. “You’re split into groups based on ability and what you’re looking to get out of the day.”With each run down the mountain, Trayner stopped with the group to give tips and tricks on skiing like a pro. With trickier sections or if a skier needed more instruction, Trayner or a Deer Valley host took the time to ski with them, offering pointers as needed or demonstrating so the other women could mirror their movements. Megan Trayner (left) demonstrates how she leans into the front of her ski boots for a more athletic stance while Tracy Farrell follows. Credit: Clara Hatcher/Park RecordAfter a steeper section at the start of the day, Tracy Farrell, flanked by a mountain host, caught up to the group and started to apologize.“I’m sorry I’m the slowest one!” Farrell said. “I thought I signed up for the beginner group.” Emphatically, all eight women in the beginner-intermediate group said speed did not matter. They were in it for the company. And, after a few runs, Farrell gained more confidence, tackling blue runs with the rest. After speeding down a particularly high angle section on a blue run called Big Stick, Farrell and skier Emily Wilson whooped at their success.“We did it!” They said, picking up speed to catch up with the other women. “I think the fine adjustments make such a big difference,” Farrell said later on the Sterling Express lift. “And her [Trayner] just explaining, ‘Pretend like you’re hugging a tree.’ So far today, that has been the best tip for me.”Farrell said she has been skiing for nearly four seasons, cumulatively, with multiple pregnancies interrupting her progress.“You don’t ski when you’re pregnant,” she said. “You don’t ski when you have a newborn.” Like Wilson, her husband got her into the sport. Wilson said that despite encouragement from her significant other and friends, her first ski season prompted some nerves. Eight skiers, former ski racer Megan Trayner, and two Deer Valley mountain hosts gather to discuss skiing tips before tackling their next run at Deer Valley Resort. Credit: Clara Hatcher/Park Record“My first season out, I had moved from Virginia to here, and my first season was out here so I went with a bunch of people … I just found myself so anxious halfway down a blue,” Wilson said. “Taking lessons and coming out to this event has been really great to tackle that anxiety that I had.” Farrell’s start to skiing was similar. Despite encouragement from her husband, she said that the Women’s Ski Day produces better results. “My husband’s such a trooper, and I know he doesn’t judge me,” Farrell said. “But he zooms down the mountain and then will stop and wait, and then I see him just watching me.” Wright said that, since the event started at Deer Valley in 2019, she’s seen women come back year after year for the same confidence-boosting start to their season. “I think it’s just the energy that other women give you when you’re skiing or trying anything new. It’s a really encouraging group of people, and you’re all starting at the same base,” Wright said. The ski day started with a welcome and the chance to try out different pairs of Rossignol skis. Wright said that trying out gear was an important part of the event for her because it gives the skiers a chance to figure out what works best for them. While some women new to the sport might not know what to ask for in a ski shop, Wright said that getting the chance to demo different types of equipment helps them figure out what kind of gear they prefer in various conditions and on different terrain. After a few hours of skiing, every group from beginner to advanced retired for a lunch break before getting back out on the mountain. By lunch, the weather shifted from blue skies and blustering wind to heavy snow and nearly whiteout conditions. But, according to the skiers, the more snow there was, the better the skiing. Shay Lyons and Michelle Mallory signed up for the event together. They said their sons are “inseparable” and attend school together in Heber Valley. Saturday marked Mallory’s second year at the event and, this year, she moved up from the beginner group to beginner-intermediate. After a few runs, Mallory said she was feeling good and getting her speed up. But, she also said, she doesn’t see a future where she seeks out advanced terrain. “I just like being in control. I don’t have any thrill-seeking bones in my body. So I think of advanced as going down blacks, going down blacks with moguls, and backcountry. Stuff like that,” Mallory said. “I don’t know if I have an appetite for that.”“Maybe there’s room for feeling more stable and safe and taking on more difficult terrain with some more technical skills,” Deer Valley mountain host Jennifer Winstead said in response. Saturday’s Women’s Ski Day sold out all 40 spots. Wright said that their event slogan is “collaborate and share.”Marketing manager at Rossignol, Nina Wright, welcomes the group of around 40 women who had joined for the day of skiing at Deer Valley on Saturday. Wright was the coordinator for the event that brought together women of various skill levels to participate and socialize with each other. Credit: Clayton Steward/Park Record“That’s truly what it is,” Wright said. “It’s just getting them together in a place where they all connect on the level of a love for being in the mountains, whether it’s their first time or 100th and whether you’re 18 years old or 70.” Some skiers at the event, like Julia Gregory, have been at it for 60 years. Gregory learned to ski first in Pennsylvania, and then at Aspen Snowmass Ski Resort as a teenager, where she took $5 lessons with Stein Eriksen — an alpine ski racer and Olympic gold medalist who spent the last years of his life in Park City. Despite her decades of experience, Gregory said women’s specific ski events are crucial for building community and becoming a better skier. “Usually we’re skiing with men and trying to keep up,” Gregory said. “And then we take these clinics. Then, not only can we keep up — we can be faster.” The post Women’s ski day carves out space for learning, community appeared first on Park Record.