Kelowna Subaru Donates!

Kelowna Nordic Press Release

April 14, 2025

Kelowna Nordic Ski & Snowshoe Club would like to announce a Significant Donation toward its Groomer Fundraiser campaign.  Kelowna Nordic will be receiving a cheque from Kelowna Subaru!

Facts: 

·      Kelowna Subaru’s donation is for $10,000

·      A new Groomer costs about $600,000 dollars. 

·      This donation brings the club within $120,000 of this goal.

·      More information can be found online at: https://www.kelownanordic.ca/about-1-1

What: Cheque Celebration: Donation towards Kelowna Nordic’s Groomer Campaign.

Where: Kelowna Subaru: 2759 Hwy 97W Kelowna

When: 3pm Tuesday April 15 in the Kelowna Subaru Show Room

How:

·      Christina Bailey will be presenting a Large Cheque to President Marshall Moleschi

·      Both will say a few words

·      Opportunity to ask questions of both Christina and Marshall

·      Photo Opportunity

Quotes: “Kelowna Nordic is so very appreciative for this very significant donation towards a new Groomer for Kelowna Nordic”, said President Moleschi. “This support will go a long way toward the purchase of our much-needed new Grooming Machine.”  “As many in the central Okanagan know, our current machines are a quarter of a century old, suffered significant and frequent breakdowns this past season and are over 30% past their best years.”  “The need for a new groomer is important and urgent.”

Background: The groomer campaign is progressing well.  While Kelowna Subaru’s donation to the Groomer Campaign brings us much closer to our goal, Kelowna Nordic still needs to raise more funds. 

“With further support from organizations, businesses and individuals in the central Okanagan, the Kelowna Nordic Club is confident that we will soon be able to purchase a new grooming machine” stated Moleschi. “A new grooming machine will ensure a sustainable, affordable and active winter experience for the locals and visitors.”

Kelowna Nordic Club’s extensive trails system and rustic cabins support cross-country skiing and snowshoeing in a pristine natural environment.

Marshall Moleschi

President

Kelowna Nordic Ski and Snowshoe Club

president@kelownanordic.com

Tales from the Trail

A stunning sunrise is Stefan Buhl's reward after grooming Kelowna Nordic ski trails all night.

Ever wonder what it takes to create and maintain excellent groomed ski trails? At Kelowna Nordic, it takes a seasoned team of four dedicated people with diverse skills and the experience to deal with varying snow conditions and the challenges of unreliable, aging equipment.

This year, even though the snow was slow to come, the team was out on snowmobiles doing regular rolling to prepare the trails base before Kelowna Nordic opened. "This definitely helped us as we had low snow all winter," says Stefan Buhl, one of our groomers. "At the beginning of the season, we also had to clear fallen trees on the trails after heavy snow or windy nights.”

Stefan is a club member, avid skier, ski instructor and KNSSC volunteer team leader doing trail work. He has been employed as a groomer at Kelowna Nordic for two years. Stefan often lies awake planning grooming routes and thinking of ways to improve efficiency.

Grooming trails in the middle of the night by the lights of the snowcat requires intense concentration. "There isn't much opportunity to check out the scenery," says Stefan. "But occasionally I do stop the machine to take a sunrise shot." After his shift, Stefan would often go for a ski to check his work, and to flag danger trees for removal. In the off season, Stefan works as a bike mechanic at Cyclepath.

Jason Rock, a talented, conscientious individual, has been running snowcats at Big White for 15 years. Twice a week, after his shift at Big White, he drove to his second job at Kelowna Nordic to groom trails from 1:00 am to 7:30 am.

Chris Stewart is a very busy volunteer as a board member, Facilities Manager and self-appointed Operations Manager at Kelowna Nordic. He also oversees the maintenance of the snowcats. “A few times I started my shift at midnight to ride with the snowcat operators," says Chris. "Not the easiest thing to do but there were rewards such as seeing the gray and white flash of a wolf as it streaks across the hillside, or rabbits darting across the trail when the snowcat lights hit them.”

When Chris did a ride-along, he made notes for trail clearing work to be done for the next season. (Once he rode along with his tools, as they were pretty sure the machine would break down…and it did!) One of the biggest challenges this year was mechanical problems with the snowcats. “We had a few breakdowns," says Chris, "which made it difficult to get a good flow going. We had to switch machines in order to keep grooming.”

Phil Klotz doing endless mechanical repairs in the Summit Quonset at Kelowna Nordic.

Phil Klotz, another invaluable Kelowna Nordic volunteer, was a groomer at Telemark for five years, and has 30 years’ experience in welding. Phil has headed our grooming program for three years handling everything from interviewing, hiring and training new operators, to planning grooming routes. Together Phil and Chris, a retired mechanic, have spent many, many volunteer hours performing a myriad of machine repairs to keep our snowcats moving - avoiding the need to bring in expensive labour. 

Kudos to Phil, Stefan, Chris and Jason for providing excellent grooming against all odds this season! 

President's Message - April, 2025

The end of another season for Kelowna Nordic

On March 30, 2025, we wrapped up another season at Kelowna Nordic. Our trails and cabins are now officially closed, and the groomer is tucked away for the summer.

Looking back, it was a banner season. While our startup was a little later, and our closure a little earlier, our trails were fantastic, all events were well attended, and the smiles were plentiful as skiers and snowshoers came out in solid numbers to enjoy our winter wonderland. I sincerely hope that your Kelowna Nordic experiences met your expectations.

Time is of the essence to replace groomer

Since my last message, I'm pleased to report that we've had a good response from members donating towards our new groomer campaign.

The quotes we have for new grooming machines are valid until May 31, 2025. Ideally, we want to commit to a machine before then as the uncertainty created by tariff threats make a significant price increase very likely.

Our club cannot function without a groomer - and our current machine is old and unreliable. I liken our situation to an urban delivery business: Our vehicle must travel 75 km every night. Not only do the parts wear out, but our equipment suffers from metal fatigue. If we want to stay in business, we cannot depend on a vehicle that is over a quarter century old. If you're able, please donate what you can to help in our final push to purchase a new groomer. 

Board members and volunteers keep KNSSC going

Our season may be over, but the work of the KNSSC board and other volunteers does not stop.

Board members will meet monthly to finalize operations for the past year and plan for next season to make Kelowna Nordic an affordable, fun-filled winter recreational facility for all. Volunteers will be hard at work to service equipment, clean and maintain cabins and outhouses, split and stack firewood, and clear and flag snowshoe trails.

The only people paid by Kelowna Nordic are those who groom our ski trails. Everything else is done by our amazing volunteers. To show our appreciation, we are holding a Volunteer Appreciation event on April 15, 2025. 

By spreading the work load, the operations of Kelowna Nordic are manageable and sustainable. Over the coming months, our Director for Volunteers, Tricia will be announcing volunteer opportunities. If you are not already, please consider giving us a helping hand to ensure the smooth operation of Kelowna Nordic.

A personal thank you

Finally, I want to personally thank you, our members, for your support and loyalty. And for bringing your friends, family and dogs out to discover and explore our beautiful trails.

I feel strongly that our 2024-25 season was a success. I hope you agree. Please continue to support Kelowna Nordic by spreading the word and becoming a member. I look forward to seeing you on the trails again next year!

Marshall Moleschi

KNSSC President

president@kelownanordic.com