October 5, 2026

Dear PASEF Athletes, Parents and Coaches,

On behalf of the PASEF Board, I am thrilled to welcome you to the 2026-27 season! Registration is now open!

We have transitioned from the classic TeamSnap platform to TeamSnap ONE. You will need to download the new TeamSnap ONE app. For any technical issues with registration, please see the TeamSnap ONE help page.

For those of you who are new to the program, congratulations on joining the best ski and snowboard race program in our region! You are also joining a tight-knit, supportive and very fun community of parents, coaches and athletes who enjoy our unique and intense camaraderie during the winter months and beyond.

I am honored and excited to launch my first season as Board President of this great organization. I know that Jocelin Schultz and Ryan Hamill are equally as excited to join Kim Saltzman and Austin So on the PASEF Board. We have been meeting regularly since April in preparation for the coming season. PASEF is very fortunate to be on such solid footing and we can thank the work of the prior Board as well as our deep and tenured Coaching Staff. We are confident that the club has the leadership in place to ensure stability as we welcome three new Board Members and a new Head Coach. Simultaneously, we plan to focus on both short term and long term growth and improvement while capitalizing on the positive momentum of PASEF and Camelback Mountain.

This season will also mark Keith Dickerson’s first as Head Coach. Keith was promoted to Head Coach during the off-season. He has 23 years of experience as a PASEF coach and has served as Training Coordinator from 2023-2026. This along with his 30 years experience as a high school teacher and many years of ski racing make him exceptionally qualified to lead our team.

Ted Satterthwaite and Dan Rusk will continue to serve as our Development Team Directors, with Ian Lipton and Joe Amato continuing as Development Team Technical Co-Directors and Rachel and Russ Williams as Development Team Managers. Maggie Hoffman returns as Snowboard Director. Kristin Cook accepted an expanded role as Operations and Administration Manager, and as of right now we are expecting more than 90% of our amazing coaches to return!

The Annual Fall Meeting will be held on Sunday, November 15, by videoconference. A meeting invitation will be sent to all athletes and parents who have registered with PASEF by November 13. We will review our program, introduce you to key people, and preview the upcoming season.

VOLUNTEER PROGRAM & VOLUNTEER FEE

For our newer members: We are a non-profit organization run entirely by volunteers, and we are independent of Camelback Mountain. We are parents committed to the development of our athletes in the sport of ski and snowboard racing. When you join the PASEF community, you are pledging to contribute to making the program better for all of our kids.

The success of our organization – and our very existence – is wholly dependent on volunteers. In past seasons each family was required to submit a check for a volunteer fee of $300. Parents who volunteered for 10 hours or more during the season would have their checks returned or destroyed, while those who preferred to pay the volunteer fee would have their checks deposited.

We are making a change for this coming season - We are asking all families to sign a volunteer agreement at registration. You will not be required to submit the $300 check.

You can and will read much more about the new policy in TeamSnap ONE. Prior PASEF Boards have tried to eliminate the need to collect the volunteer check as collateral with mixed results, ultimately returning to that system to ensure volunteer compliance. Dealing with the checks is a nuisance for the club and its families alike. We are confident that we can and will make this work, but if for some reason it does not, we will not hesitate to return to the prior policy and resume check collection.

Reasons we believe this change will work -

We are asking you to sign up for a volunteer role now, at registration, giving team leadership much better visibility of where we are covered and where we might be short. We will also have much more time to organize our volunteers ahead of the season making volunteering an overall more pleasant experience.
We had a very high percentage of families volunteering last season, which signals a very high level of buy in team wide. We are confident that our returning members will buy in this season at those same or greater levels and that our amazing team culture around volunteering will influence new families to join right in.
We are offering Development Team families expanded opportunities to volunteer. Development families are now able to volunteer for all the same roles as race/discovery team parents.

I want to be clear: When you join, you become a member of PASEF, and your membership comes with the responsibility to take ownership of the quality of the program. It is in our organization's by-laws that every family is required to volunteer. 100% volunteer participation is the goal and will be required to ensure our coaches are free to do what they do best, coach!, and to ensure that we host two high quality races at Camelback this season and a great internal race at the end of the season for our Development Team.

It is important that we host efficient and well officiated races. We expect the other mountains we visit to do the same. We want our athletes to be proud of their home mountain and to be excited to host their PARA friends and peers for races. We also want to shine a great light on PASEF and Camelback to visiting parents and coaches. This all takes dedicated volunteers.

Volunteering can be hard work but there is no better way for a parent to learn this sport, no better way to gain perspective on the tough conditions your children face as racers, and no better way to connect with other PASEF parents. I look forward to seeing you on the hill.

REGISTRATION PROCESS

-First, register with USSA.

Prior to registering with PASEF, all athletes, parents and coaches must register with the U.S. Ski & Snowboard Association (USSA) for the 2026-2027 season. This is required for insurance coverage, which we obtain through the national governing body. You can register online at USSA.

Athletes on the Ski Race Team (including the Discovery Team) and Snowboard Race Team must register as “Competitors” in their respective discipline.

Athletes in the Development programs and parent volunteers should register as “General Members” or “Volunteers” (as applicable) unless they are required to obtain a higher class of membership (e.g., Alpine Officials).

-Then, register with PASEF.

You cannot register without a USSA registration number (see above). Program participation is on a space-available basis, and there has been a high level of pre-season interest in all of our programs. We encourage you to register early to secure your spot and take advantage of the early-registration discount which is offered until 10/31/26.

PASEF coaches, please contact Keith prior to registering for the 2026-27 season at [email protected].

SKI TEAM INFO AND PRICING

-Alpine Ski Race Team.

PASEF’s Ski Race Team is designed for expert skiers competing in local, statewide and regional USSA-sponsored events. Membership on the Race Team is competitive and by invitation only, based on an athlete’s performance against objective criteria established by the U.S. Ski & Snowboard, as determined by our senior coaching staff.

Preseason training begins with a 6-day camp between Christmas and New Year’s. Regular training is held on weekend days from late December into March, with optional Friday evening sessions from 6:00PM - 8:00PM during peak race season. The official start date to the season is dependent on mountain conditions. We will communicate the date as soon as we can.

There are two divisions within the Ski Race Team. The Competition Team comprises those racers who are ready and willing to compete in USSA-sanctioned events. The Discovery Team comprises racers who are still developing certain key skills. Discovery athletes are members of the Race Team and train on the same schedule as the Competition Team. Discovery athletes may be encouraged by their coaches to compete in USSS races alongside the Competition Team. Coaches will continuously evaluate Discovery athletes for promotion to the Competition Team.

Athletes new to PASEF ages 6-12 as of 12/31/2026 should register and try out for the Development Team unless they have prior race experience (see more on the Development Team below). Athletes new to PASEF ages 13 and up as of 12/31/2026 or athletes ages 6-12 as of 12/31/2026 that have prior race experience must first try out for the Alpine Race & Development Team. Tentative dates for tryouts are: 12/12, 12/19, 12/20, 12/26, 12/27, 12/28, 12/29, and 12/30. These dates are subject to change based on terrain availability on the mountain. New athletes will indicate their preferred try out date during registration.

In order to try out for the Alpine Ski Race Team, athletes must first register with PASEF. If an applicant is not accepted into the Development, Discovery or Race Team based on his or her evaluation, registration fees will be refunded.

Program Costs (season pass not included):

Until October 31: $1,300 ($1,100 Training Fee + $200 PASEF Dues)

After October 31: $1,500 ($1,300 Training Fee + $200 PASEF Dues)

-Ski Development Team.

The Ski Development Team represents the future of the Ski Race Program. The Development Program is open to skiers 6 to 12 years of age who can comfortably ski intermediate trails (those marked with blue squares), are capable of getting on and off ski lifts independently, and demonstrate an interest in becoming competitive ski racers.

Ski Development is an intensive training program, and athletes must be capable of putting in full training days. The Development Team trains Saturdays and Sundays for 9 weeks beginning the first weekend of January.

Athletes who wish to join the Development Team must first try out. Tentative dates for tryouts are: 12/12, 12/19, 12/20, 12/26, 12/27, 12/28, 12/29, and 12/30. These dates are subject to change based on terrain availability on the mountain. New athletes will indicate their preferred try out date during registration.

In order to try out for the Ski Development Team, athletes must first register with PASEF. If an applicant is not accepted into the Development Team based on his or her evaluation, registration fees will be refunded.

Program Costs (season pass not included):

Until October 31: $1,200 ($1,000 Training Fee + $200 PASEF Dues)

After October 31: $1,400 ($1,200 Training Fee + $200 PASEF Dues)

SNOWBOARD TEAM INFO AND PRICING

-Snowboard Competition Team.

Under our Snowboard Director, Maggie Hoffman, the Snowboard Competition Program will offer a blend of three event disciplines: boardercross, freestyle and alpine. Membership on the team is at the discretion of the Snowboard Director. Preseason training begins with a 6-day camp between Christmas and New Year’s. Regular training is held on weekend days from late December into March, with optional Friday evening sessions from 6:00PM - 8:00PM during peak race season.

Athletes who wish to join the Snowboard Team must first try out. Please contact Maggie Hoffman, Snowboard Director, at [email protected] to coordinate try outs.

In order to try out for the Snowboard Team, athletes must first register with PASEF. If an applicant is not accepted into the Snowboard Team based on his or her evaluation, registration fees will be refunded.

Program Costs (season pass not included):

Until October 31: $1,300 ($1,100 Training Fee + $200 PASEF Dues)

After October 31: $1,500 ($1,300 Training Fee + $200 PASEF Dues)

To summarize your action items:

Renew your 2026-2027 USSA membership ASAP (athletes, coaches and parents)
Register for your PASEF Ski Team or Snowboard Team - early bird ends 10/31/26
Buy your CBK season pass - CBK announced prices will increase on 10/19/26
Mark your calendar for the REMOTE Fall Meeting on November 15
Mark your calendar for this season’s races - https://www.paracing.org/schedule

We look forward to seeing you at the Fall Meeting, and here’s to a great 2026-27 season!

Regards,

Mike Conway
President

26/27 Registration

Camelback Ski and Snowboard Teams