NOTES FROM THE HEAD OF SCHOOL
 
Early this morning a lone bus pulled out of the parking lot. This one was occupied by our U14s and their coaches, it was packed to the gills with ski gear, and it was destined for Boston's Logan Airport. It's departure marked the closure of our dorms, and the official transition to winter for GMVS.
 
In preparing for the westward migration of students and coaches, we also take stock of our fall -- what we learned and accomplished over the last 10 weeks. As individuals, all of us had highs and lows, successes and failures. The same is true for our institution.
 
We ought not dwell on our disappointments and failures, yet we must reflect upon them remembering that the mistakes we make, add value. For without failure, we may never learn. At the same time, we must celebrate our successes, both collectively and as individuals.
 
So, in the spirit of celebration, my top-10 list from the fall as presented to students and faculty during last week's Assembly:
  1. The emails students send to one another. They are always appropriate and they always bring a smile (sometimes outright laughter) to my face.
  2. Empanada making in Chile. Students taking advantage of their international travel experiences beyond the skiing isn't always easy, but it's always valuable.
  3. Clubs on campus. Debate Club and Green Team are back in action due to the initiative of a few students. GMVS is what you make it.
  4. Un-savable saves made by Markus in goal for the boys' soccer team. The lone senior on the squad, Markus kept us in the hunt time after time.
  5. Spirited, and sometimes dirty athletes. Students embraced the GMVS ethos of adventure and Vermont's inclement weather for mountain bike races and the Blueberry Lake Triathlon (among other outdoor workouts of course.)
  6. Compassion -- for one another and the broader community. Never was this more obvious than at last month's service for former classmate Everett Merriman where students laughed, cried, and hugged in honor of his memory.
  7. The girls' soccer team scoring and winning. After a winless (and scoreless) 2017 season, the girls' soccer team found the net this year -- multiple times.
  8. The 6:00am time slot of the Kelly Brush Spin-a-Thon. Abundant with positive energy and fast pedaling, we raised over $50,000 for the Kelly Brush Foundation in the name of Stop the Bleed.
  9. Watles riding in Italy. If you haven't seen the GMVSxc Instagram videos from the Nordic skiers' adventures in Mals, you should really check it out.
  10. Footloose -- it speaks for itself. Legit musical theater at a ski academy? Nearly 50 students involved, theater helps make the GMVS magic.
But, what about _________ you ask? I bet it was captured by students and staff who expanded upon my top-10 list as follows:  
 
Congratulations to the entire GMVS community for an outstanding fall here on campus. As we look ahead to the competition season, let's think snow!
 
GUMBIES SHINE ON THE STAGE OF FOOTLOOSE 
 
On Thursday, October 25th at 7:30pm the curtains opened to

On stage at GMVS!
 
a raucous group of high school students cutting a rug to the tune of Footloose. As they kicked off their Sunday shoes and "cut loose," the audience became enamored with story of Ren McCormack (played by Nevin Vilandrie '20) and his quest to bring dancing back to the town of Bomont.
 
At times humorous, poignant, and witty, but always fun, the show brought the entire GMVS community together. Some of the most memorable on-stage moments included the interaction between Willard, the slow-witted teen with two left feet, (played by Carl Kellogg '20) and Cowboy Bob (played by Justin Shafritz '22) in "Still Rockin," "Somebody's Eyes" featuring Rusty, Urleen, and Wendy Jo (played by Sophie Rosen '19, Mackenzie Laurion '19, and Anna Duffy '19), the love scene of "Almost Paradise" sung by Ren and Arial (played by Ariana Turner '19), and of course, the touching self-reflections performed by Reverand Shaw (played by Blake Piper '18) and his wife Vi (played by Grace Hubbard '20).
 
In the words of theater Director David Kent, "October was a busy month putting Footloose together. Our cast was about twice the size of the original Broadway production. It was a challenge but it came together nicely just in time for our first performance on Thursday. Both cast and crew saw the hard work pay off each night with audience laughter and standing ovations. Well done everyone!"
GMVS STUDENTS BOND IN SMALL "FAMILIES"  
   
During Orientation at the beginning of the year, the senior class felt strongly that they wanted to build a sense of community and an ability to bring together students across grades, ski groups, day/boarding, and nordic/alpine.  One of the ways they hoped to do this was to commit themselves to leading "families." The idea of families began a few years ago and had a senior or two leading a randomly assigned group of students to be part of their "family." This year we revealed families during Gala weekend and a fierce trivia contest ensued.  
 
Seniors Carla Barata and Hannah Gray shared, "We like families because it gives the younger and new kids at school someone to help them integrate. It also helps us to hang out with people outside of our grade and ski groups, and make new friends when we otherwise wouldn't have. We think families bring the community together and the family games are always fun events to be a part of!"
 
We look forward to events throughout the year that will give these families the opportunity to spend time with one another, compete in games, share stories, ask questions, and overall contribute to the community feeling that makes GMVS such a special place.  "Families" are an awesome example of a student driven and led initiative!

Copper, Colorado
ALPINE ATHLETES TAKE COLORADO
 
All GMVS U16/19 Alpine athletes are in Colorado enjoying the bounty of new snow and outstanding training conditions. U14s will arrive shortly to join the fun. Copper and Loveland are our training hosts -- and they so far are exceeding our high expectations.  

We leveraged our purchasing power at Copper by offering our lodging and food dollars in exchange for exclusive use of Ptarmigan trail for multiple sessions per day. In addition to Copper's Ptarmigan trail, we are enjoying great free skiing at Loveland Basin and gate training on Switchback trail at Loveland Valley. As a premier partner at Loveland Ski Club, we have priority access to varied pitch training lanes that suit all of our needs.

The hardworking alpine coaching staff gains invaluable support from other folks in our community. Teachers Cathy Plas, Kerry Jackson, Olivia Transue and Christine Van Alstine are proctoring study halls and tutoring kids as needed. They, along with Director of Student Life Jenny Brennan, are also providing valuable logistical support to our camp. Athletic Trainer Miles Derrick is busy helping kids stay healthy and ready for training. Sam Jackson is back in a reprise roll as an alpine coach, working this time around with U19 boys. PJ Dewey, boot-fitter extraordinaire and owner of Racestock Sports, is on hand to work with Scott Kennison on equipment related issues. When we say we are bringing the show on the road, we are not kidding.

As for the kids -- they are happy, busy, engaged, progressing in their skiing, and looking forward to a great competition season.  
THE SENIOR ENGLISH DEBATE
by Mackenzie Laurion '19

The senior English class debate has long been one of GMVS students' academic rites of passage. This year we have 21 students enrolled in Sam Jackson's Critical Writing and Reading class, which is separated into two different sections competing against each other. Each team examined the question of whether "student athletes, competing for NCAA institutions, participating in major revenue producing sports, should be compensated for the time and effort they commit to athletics." We flipped a coin to decide whether we would be preparing and arguing in favor of, or against, compensation.

Taking place over two back-to-back class periods, the seniors' debate was an organized, mature, and thoughtful discussion. Each member of the two teams had a specific role to play within a five minute time period, including the opening statement, rebuttal, cross-examination, and closing statement. Sam invited three other staff members to judge our debate and to determine which side won. In spite of good performances on both sides, it was the judges' belief that the team arguing against compensation had the stronger case.

The debate was a unique experience that required hours of preparation for both teams. Throughout the process we learned and practiced valuable skills, from research to forming arguments, finding and organizing evidence, and a lot of collaboration among our group of peers. I really enjoyed this opportunity and it is definitely an academic event rising seniors can look forward to.
GMVS OUT AND ABOUT!
 
We are excited to get out and connect with alumni, alumni parents, current parents, families and friends who share the GMVS bond. We hope you will join us at any of the events shown below. Let's build the Gumby recognition together!
 
NYC Norwood Club  --  Nov. 14, 6:00-9:00pm
Re-connect with GMVS alums and meet some new ones! We'll be joined by Head of School Tracy Keller, Director of Student Life Jenny Brennan, plus Board of Trustees Chair Josh Slocum '94 to get an update on the latest from Bragg Hill.  Drinks and light bites will be on the school. It will be a great way to ease into the holiday season.
 
 
Killington World Cup  --  Nov. 24 & 25
An official event sponsor, GMVS will have a table in the base area. Stop by for a hot chocolate, meet our corporate sponsors and win some great swag! On Sat. Nov. 24th listen to Michael Franti, and then head to the Pickle Barrel for Après Ski from 3:30-7:30 pm hosted by the Kelly Brush Foundation.
 
The Killington World Cup Committee has a limited number of VIP tickets available for purchase. VIP tickets help fund winter sports programs in the area, are partially tax-deductible, and will give you premium viewing from the comfort of a warm tent complete with open bar and gourmet food. For more information or to purchase tickets, please contact Lynn Boynton at [email protected].
 
 
Birds of Prey World Cup at Beaver Creek  --  Nov. 30 - Dec. 2
Join GMVS alumni at the Coyote Cafe on Saturday, December 1 from 3:30-5:30pm for a drink on GMVS.
 
 
Annual Holiday Party in the Valley  --  (December Date TBD)
Ring in the winter and holiday season with the GMVS community. Enjoy hors d'oeuvres and drinks (cash bar).
Location TBD.
 
 
NCAA Championship at Stowe Mountain Resort and Trapp Family Lodge  --  March 6-9, 2019
Come watch GMVS alums race at the NCAA Championship at Stowe Mountain Resort and Trapp Family Lodge Cross Country Center. On Friday, March 8 join GMVS for hors d'oeuvres and drinks at Cork from 4:00-6:00pm. 
 
 
Alumni Winter Carnival  --  March 29-31, 2019
Building off of last year's success, this super fun event will include skiing at Sugarbush, alum/club ski race, lodging, welcome cocktail party, campus tour and drinks, dinner hosted locally. New ideas welcome!
 
PHOTO OF THE WEEK

 
Frosty Campus with Sweet Looking Trails on the Mountain. - Jere Brophy
A FEW SNAPS FROM OUR RECENT ADVENTURES
 
Check out great photos of GMVS activities on SmugMug, a photo-sharing website where we post pictures from races, games , camps, theater and other weekly campus events. The website is gmvs.smugmug.com and the password is GMVScommunity. Enjoy! 
 
Hit the ground running this morning, literally!

Travel to Colorado camps.
 
U16 boys at Loveland.

G7 Art Class

Halloween in Hobart - Commitment to character was outstanding.

 
SAVE THE DATE!
 
November 4-19 
 Colorado Training
November 23-24 GMVS at the Killington World Cup
Dec. 19-Jan. 2 Holiday Break
 
GMVS ONLINE STORE

Check out our logowear (Big Truck hats, hoodies, and t-shirts) and gear up to support Gumbies around the world as the season continues. Order HERE!
 
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