Eau Claire: See Ski Jumping That is Big Time Uplifting

 

Eau Claire: See Ski Jumping That Is Big Time Uplifting

Most parents drive their kids to after-school activities, but have you ever thought of ski jumping as one? We enjoyed checking out this unique after-school activity of the Flying Eagles Ski Club in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. After years of practice and traveling to competitions the Flying Eagles Ski Jumping Club has even produced athletes on the US National Team along with Olympians.

We have just recently moved to the Eau Claire, Wisconsin area.  In Particular, the biggest landmark that piqued my curiosity was the brand new 55-meter ski jump overlooking the town. Therefore, I marked the ski jump competition on the calendar with anticipation. We drove by every week or two during winter just to see if anyone was practicing or working to get it ready. No luck, except for a few people putting the finishing touches on the new 55-meter jump.

Ski Jumping Is Finally Here

  The Flying Eagles Ski Club will soon hold the Annual Flying Eagles Invitational & US Cup that we have been waiting to see.

Finally, the week before the competition we saw movement! Their snow groomer moved some snow around and groomed the landing area. We took a few photos without anyone else there just to show what it looks like. We were ready to finally see big-time uplifting ski hill jumping.

Surely crowds of people would make it difficult to get up close for photos on Saturday’s competition. With this in mind, we went Friday afternoon with hopes of catching some jumpers practicing. Lucky we were! Jumpers flew into the air with rays of sun catching them just right. We stayed until the sun went down below the hill. We had a nice time all alone watching them fly off the ramp and hearing the pop of the skis hitting the ground.  

The competition started Saturday at noon so we wanted to get there early to take it all in.  

 

Watching The Kids

What had been a quiet evening before turned into a full hill of enthusiastic kids of all ages from 4 and up. All of the jumps had a long line of kids eagerly waiting for their turn to go. In other words, the hill was buzzing with energy like honey bees around a beehive. 

We had a blast watching the lively kids jump again and again. I’m sure they didn’t have a problem sleeping that night!  

These kids carry on the tradition started by Norwegian immigrants from the 1800s. Ski jumping started in Norway so when they came to Eau Claire they built ski jumps at schools. Kids would go out to jump during recess and after school. How fun would that be!

The Flying Eagles Ski Club formed and has been around for 136 years. Now, their five ski jumps are 7, 15, 30, 40, and 55 meters. This year is the first time to use the 55m ski jump in a competition.

55-Meter Ski Jumping Is Coming Up Next

Next, the older kids started coming out to warm up for the big 55m jump and competition. They practiced their take-off technique from a stand as someone would hold them up as if they were in the air.    

Later in the morning, younger kids started slowing down from continuously taking jump after jump. While at the same time, the 55m jumpers came out for practice before the competition started. We were able to stand right at the bottom to catch the action.  

Although most of the jumps had good landings, there were a few crashes. Fortunately, no injuries happened.

Just before noon, they cleared the jumps and grooming started for the competitions.

A Few Fun Terms To Listen For

 

For the most part, listen to these fun terms used during ski jumping. 

 

Yard Sale: This happens when a jumper falls and their equipment scatters all over the hill.

Tossing Salad/Rolling Down the Windows: This means the jumper is waving their arms around in the air trying to keep their balance.

 

Furthermore, we wrote these other fun things to do in the area. Check them out!

 

Hurry To The Award-Winning Nasonville Dairy Cheese Shop

Now Is The Perfect Time To Crokicurl

My Love Affair With Rhubarb Is Contagious

 

Thanks for reading Eau Claire: See Ski Jumping That Is Big Time Uplifting. 

Tom and Kristi

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