By Laura Hayes – [email protected]
For many members of the Concord-Carlisle High School Alpine Ski team, love of the sport runs in the family. In fact, there are 11 pairs of siblings on the team.
This year, the team includes siblings Theo and Delaney Remington, Henry and Juniper Flint, Izzy and Jamie Poole, Julia and James Reynolds, Maddie and Ceci Clancy, Abby and Carly Bilotta, Gwen and Casey Sodergren, Liv and Declan Nevins, Jack and Ben Nugent, Nadia and Maddie Minkins, and Hunter and Cayenne Thin.
The siblings say they enjoy having the support of a brother or sister while racing — and it’s also nice to ride the ski lift together and debrief after a competition.
Delaney, a team captain, says this is the first year she and her brother are in a similar age group, so they race together more than ever before.
“He’s grown into such a fantastic racer [and] surpassed my abilities and pretty much everyone else on the team, as well,” she says. “It’s fun to watch him race, and I love being able to support him and especially hearing other people be like, ‘Oh, that’s Theo Remington.’ Yeah, that’s my little brother.”
Family beginnings
Julia and James’ older sister, Amanda, also skied with CCHS and was on the same team as James.
“We were never all on it together, which is too bad,” says James.
Ceci followed in her older sister Maddie’s footsteps and joined the team.
“It’s so fun. There’s so many people … so it’s not like we have to be with each other the whole time. But if you need a friend, we can talk to each other. We know how each other skis,” says Ceci.
The Clancy sisters were also on the field hockey squad together in the fall — their first time being on the same field hockey and ski team. Maddie helped her sister out on the mountain and made sure she was all set with her gear.
“I would have been so lost for racing if Maddie didn’t do it already,” says Ceci. “There are so many little things that I didn’t know with racing in general.”
And for parents, it’s nice having their children on one team.
“There’s no complicated logistics for parents of who to go watch as they’re on the same hill,” said Jo Poole.
Despite the sport’s highly competitive atmosphere, coach Amy Brooks says she has not had any issues between siblings — though in prior years there have been rivalries between brothers.
“Most of the group that I have now, there’s none of [that] I’ve noticed. It’s more supportive, and part of that is because a lot of them are brother-sister,” says Brooks.
Camaraderie
Since before Brooks’ time with the team, there’s been a focus on camaraderie and making it an inviting and fun environment. The 67 athletes on the current team are almost evenly split between boys and girls with a range of experience in ski racing.
Alpine ski racing is a no-cut sport, and the varsity squad comprises the top six boys and girls. There are several sets of siblings within varsity, says Henry.
All the siblings told The Bridge they learned how to ski from their parents.
“Ski racing is not a common sport,” says Juniper. “Once a family gets into it, the whole family gets involved. I think it’s really shown through the high school team.”
A lot of the work in the preseason is to help the team members get to know one another.
Brooks has been increasing competitiveness during dryland training, which involves games like freeze tag and relay races. One day it snowed, but the mountain wasn’t open. The team went sledding together, Theo says, and there’s a photo of the Remingtons on a sled together.
“Our team can be more relaxed and moderate sometimes, but we can also ramp it up. It’s fun to have a day off and have fun with our team,” says Theo.
Throughout the season, the team works to deepen their bond — not only by training together, but gathering for dinners before races, playing soccer games against each other, and carpooling after practice.
“The ski team is its own type of family. The siblings seem to mix in perfectly with that,” Brooks says.
