YKSSC takes the health and safety of all of our skaters, coaches and families very seriously. Due to the closure of all City of Yellowknife facilities (as of Wednesday, March 18) and to limit the spread of novel coronavirus (COVID-19), the Executive has made the difficult decision to cancel the remainder of the 2019-20 season, effective immediately.
YKSSC encourages skaters and families to take care of themselves and others by washing hands thoroughly, staying home if ill, helping neighbours in need, and social distancing where possible.
Stay tuned for our year end party and AGM, which we will have when we can all socialize again
Northwest Territories Amateur Speed Skating Association (NWTASSA) is accepting applications for a part-time sport administrator. Click here to download the job description. To apply, please email NWTASSA president, Alex Clinton at aclinton@theedge.ca. Closing date March 10, 2020.
The NWTSSA will host annual territorial-wide meet for NWT Clubs on February 29 – March 1, 2020. This ability meet included all ages and abilities of skaters. Registration is now open and will close February 14, 2020.
Mark your calendars for the NWT Champs Meet, scheduled for February 29 – March 1in Yellowknife. This meet is hosted by the NWTASSA and brings together all territorial clubs for an exciting two days of racing! Stay tuned for more details on volunteering and registration, which will likely open at the end of January.
AWG Trials for the Speed Skating NWT Team are happening Friday, January 24 (6:00 – 9:00 PM) and Saturday, January 25 (8:30 – 11:30 AM). Come out to Ed Jeske arena to watch some great races and cheer on our skaters!
If you are interested in helping out, we are still looking for some volunteers to make the Trials run as smoothly as possible. Martin will be holding an Officials course for anyone interested on Thursday January 23 from 7:00 – 9:30. Please contact Martin for more information.
On Saturday, November 30, 2019 the Club will be hosting its first meet of the season for all ages and abilities of skaters. The Ability Meet Information Flyer and Registration Form can be found on the Ability Meet page of our website. You can fill out the registration form on your computer and email it to ykspeedskating.reg@gmail.com or if you prefer you can print it out and give it to Jody or Myra. Deadline to register is Monday, November 18, 2019.
The registration fee of $20 (Rockets are FREE!) can be sent via EMT to ykspeedskating.regs@gmail.com. Please be sure to use the password “yellowknife” and indicate which skater your transfer is for. If you prefer, cash or cheque (make out to YKSSC) can be given to Jody or Myra.
Many volunteers are required to run this meet (set-up, timing, recording, lap-counting, water, runners, etc) so we need your help! Training and direction will be provided on Friday evening (November 29). If you are interested, please email Martin.
Thank you to Jana Dunn who is our Food Coordinator this year! If you can help us feed our volunteers on the Meet day, please send her an email.
As a fundraiser for the kids who travel to out-of-town meets, we will have a 50/50 Draw and Silent Auction during the Ability Meet. We have asked all skaters who travel to provide a new/used in good condition item for the Silent Auction. Please support their efforts and make some bids! If you are interested in contributing anything to this fundraiser, thank you very much and please let Martin know.
Interested in our club or have a friend who is interested in trying speed skating? Registered skaters will be invited to Bring-A-Friend to their regularly scheduled class and we will be inviting the general public to try out our club as well.
Bring-A-Friend Ages 8 – 12: September 22, 12:30 – 1:30 for SS2 and 1:30 – 2:30 for SS3
Bring-a-Friend Ages 6 – 8: October 19, 11:00 – 12:00 and October 20, 12:00 – 1:00
Open House Ages 8 – 12, Ed Jeske: September 22, 1:30 – 2:30
Open House Ages 6 – 8, YK Arena: October 19, 11:00 – 12:00
Coach Kerry will be holding an information meeting for parents with children in SSII, SSIII and Senior Comp who are interested travelling to out-of-town meets this season. This meeting will be held at Ed Jeske Arena, Sunday, September 29, 1:30 – 2:00pm.
A list of out-of-town meets will be provided at this meeting for you to consider. Other topics of discussion: we will ask who is interested in attending out-of-town meets and which ones, who might be interested in chaperoning and what those requirements are, and more. This is a great time to ask questions! If you can’t make the meeting and are interested in attending out-of-town meets this season, please talk to your coach and express your skater’s interest!
Fundraising helps to off-set the cost of out-of-town travel! If your skater is 10 or older, they can travel with the team to out-of-town meets. Throughout the year we will have fundraising opportunities for skaters and parents to participate in.
We have Co-op bagging dates already chosen! October 12, December 22 and April 11. All of these opportunities help off-set out-of-meet travel costs! More information will be provided soon to travelling skater families. To sign up for fundraising opportunities, please email Justin, our Fundraising Coordinator.
We have a variety of Club speed skates to rent! Skates are typically for SSII and SSIII skaters. We are excited to announce we just received 10 brand new pairs of skates sized 35 to 40! We also have limited smaller sizes suitable for SSI although they are not required at this level. The rental fee is $125 for the season plus a damage deposit of $125 (to be returned at the end of the season).
Skaters who need to rent speed skates can try on and pick up rental skates before the season starts during the following times:
Wednesday, September 4 from 7:00 – 8:00 pm
Thursday, September 5 from 7:00 – 8:00 pm
Tuesday, September 24 from 7:00 – 8:00 pm
Thursday, October 1 from 7:00 – 8:00 pm
Skates are rented from our locker room at the Multiplex (back room of the Ed Jeske ice surface). Please contact ykspeedskating@gmail.com if neither of these scheduled times work and you need to make other arrangements. Greg Skauge will continue as our Skate Coordinator this year. Thanks Greg!
As noted in our Skate Rental Policy, renters take responsibility for the proper care, maintenance and safe handling of the skates and blades during the rental season. It is recommended skates are sharpened monthly or every 5 -10 practices depending on skater’s size, ability and care of the blades. Your skates can be sharpened by one of our older skaters. If you need contact information for one of the Competitive Skaters (they sharpen skates for $10!), please look on our Facebook page or contact us for more information.