October 2023
Hi all new, returning, potential volunteer instructors, as well as CADS devotees,
I hope everyone is enjoying the fall weather. I am reaching out today with three points, as we lead in to the ski season.
1) Register!
For all returning and new volunteer instructors, please complete
your registration on Snowline as soon as you are able. This is
pretty easy, and we are here to help!
We are working to establish the program for the 2023-24 season. In
order to do this, we have to know how many volunteer instructors we
will have; this will allow us to confirm how many skiers we can
accept. The more volunteers, the more, and more diverse, skiers we
can accept.
2) Sterling Backcheck via Snowline
CADS National requires that volunteer instructors have a
criminal record checks in place, and the national policy is to
recognize these for three year periods. If you have have had a
check in place within the last three years, you do not need to
request a new check.
There are two options for meeting the police check requirement:
a) CADS NCD is recommending that the regional clubs use Sterling Backcheck. This service is available through the Snowline portal. Simply look at your Profile page, select the “Crim Check” box on the left, and click on Sterling Backcheck. This service is simple to request and complete online, and costs $25.00.
b) If you prefer to select “Edelweiss Crimcheck”, you will require a letter from me that you would then take to your police station. They will then provide you with a letter, which you would upload to Snowline. Please email me if you would like to take this approach, and I will provide a letter.
3) Organizational needs – help!
CADS Edelweiss is a volunteer run organization and we are always looking for support. CADS National and CADS NCD offer a range of training experiences too, to develop your skill sets.
At this time, our steering committee has a need for:
- Scheduling/pairing leads. You will pair instructors with skiers, and you are are central to planning and managing the execution of weekend program. These positions are based at the CADS desk, and are not on-hill. You get to meet everyone, solve problems, learn about skills and dispositions, and a lot more. At least two positions needed asap!!
- Treasurer: you would advise on the division budget; provide oversight and accounting of daily ticketing; track fundraising goals and outcomes; advise on banquet planning; and account for organizational expenses. We are not a complex club, and will benefit from your oversight!
- Fundraising lead and sub-committee: you would lead a few key initiatives, including planning the year end banquet. You would have the support of the coordinator (me) and treasurer.
Please reach out if you have other volunteer interests or ideas.
Also – Ski Show October 21-22. CADS NCD will have a table!
Sep 2023
Hello CADS community!
I hope everyone’s end-of-summer is going well. I am looking forward to another year with CADS Edelweiss. I have a lot of information to share in this email, so please read carefully. I am glad to answer questions and provide clarifications should they be needed.
To orient yourself, I invite you to review the following sites: CADS National website, https://cads.ski ; CADS National Capital Division website, https://www.cads-ncd.ca ; CADS Edelweiss website, https://www.cads-ncd.ca/contact-cads-ncd/edelweiss.
This year the season will run eight weeks, from Saturday January 6, 2024, to Sunday February 25, 2024.
New this year: Participants will have the option of selecting one 2-hour block (a.m. or p.m.); or two two-hour blocks (a.m. and p.m.) on the same day. Pricing is being finalized and is expected to be $200 per block.
We will set a day for fittings for any new or returning participants requiring gear. Please reach out to me if you need gear.
Instructions on how to get started are included below, along with additional club details. If there are issues with Snowline, please reach out to myself and Joe Gratton, CADS-Edelweiss Registrar, joe.gratton60@gmail.com.
I look forward to getting the seasons started, and please let me know if you have questions.
Sep 13, 2022
A new CADS Edelweiss coordinator has stepped forward to oversee the upcoming season and his name is Randy Innes. He is a parent of one of our participants Sarah Bernstein who has been with the program for two years, one before Covid and last season. It is fantastic that he is willing to take on this role and even after being fully briefed he is still committed. He will need the full cooperation of all of those in the program to make sure it runs smoothly. Julie and I will still be at the hill this season to assist but will leave as much as possible for Randy. Below is Randy’s first Google Group message to kick-off the season. Randy’s email address is randyinnes@gmail.com.
Hello CADS community,
I am pleased to be starting as CADS Coordinator, and I look forward to seeing you on the hill. This year the season will run eight weeks, from Saturday January 7 to Sunday February 25, 2023.
Here are some key dates to start the season:
Volunteers: Let me know if you are interested by September 30 by signing up on Snowline https://cads.ski. Feel free to share the invitation to volunteer with your communities, as volunteers are always needed. This year there may be a need for a police check, and we will clarify as soon as possible.
Returning participants should register through Snowline.com starting October 1.
New participants should register through Snowline.com starting November 1 once we have determined our volunteer capacity and ability to take on new clients.
Snowline is very close to being identical to last season with some small changes to make signing up easier. Most of your information has been retained from last season but make sure you check it thoroughly.
Additional information on the upcoming season will be coming soon.
March 9, 2022
The End of My Era
For a number of reasons, my time as the CADS Edelweiss Coordinator has come to an end. The main reason is that Julie and I will be moving on in the next couple of years following our retirements to Campbell River on Vancouver Island. So the challenge goes out to everyone currently with CADS Edelweiss for a successor as I have not been able to recruit my replacement.
As far as I can determine my first year was 2016 with a couple of years with just the Sunday program before that. Doesn’t seem that long but time flies when you are having fun. I will continue as a volunteer with the program and continue conducting training and Course Conductor duties but will not continue as the CADS Edelweiss Coordinator.
I believe that the Coordinator duties and responsibilities will be greatly reduced now that we have completed the painful tear of introduction of Snowline. I say painful as we all had to learn together what Snowline can and can’t do and have been able to use it quite constructively. Also Joe Gratton who volunteered to be the Registration Guru had agreed to stay on next season. He did a superb job and understands Snowline very well and will be a great asset to have returning. Now that everyone has used it once it will be much easier going forward.
The new CADS Shack will hopefully get a bit more insulation added this summer and have new siding added in order to keep it safe from the elements and less costly to heat for the next 20 years.
I have pretty much completed all of the end of season paperwork so now is the best time to pass the torch. Anyone interested please feel free to contact me and we can discuss the duties in more detail. Time to start the planning for the coming season in 2023.
Thanks to everyone that has volunteered to assist and it is a long list. Now it’s time for a new Coordinator.
January 5, 2022
CADS Edelweiss will commence this Saturday 08 Jan at 10:00. Below is the new instructions for operating within the Covid rules for the ski hill and for CADS.
Quebec/Edelweiss Rules
- Double vaccinated for daily or seasons passes
- Masks in all facilities
- Bathrooms and pro shop are accessible without double vaccine
- Rental and ticketing area are open without double vaccinations
- Cafeteria is open for take out only
- No food or drinks in the lodge
- No bags in the lodge
- 20 minute warm ups allowed in the new section of the lodge, restricted number at any time
- No dressing or undressing in the lodge
- Masks are only “encouraged” for lift lines and on the lifts
Additional CADS rules
- Masks are required in lift lines and on the lift (balaclava or neck warmer permitted)
- We will do our best to ride the lifts with only CADS folks
- Masks in the CADS shack
- 4 people max in the CADS Shack to get lift tickets and equipment
- Pairing are for the year (may be some exceptions)
- Hand sanitizer, nitrate gloves, masks and equipment sanitizer are available in the CADS Shack
- No CADS desk in the lodge this year
- Lift tickets will be issued from the CADS Shack (one person from a group to get them for all)
- The CADS Shack is basically an ATCO type trailer at the far end of the Edelweiss Lodge.
- Adaptive parking is available on the back side of the CADS Shack.
Suggested Ski Day Plan
Since there are no indoor spaces to eat it is highly suggested that a late breakfast be consumed, the ski day starts at 10:00 and continues through the lunch period. Snacks and drinks should suffice to get the participant and volunteers through the skiing period. The end time will be determined by mutual agreement of the volunteer, participant and parents/guardians. Short breaks for warming, rest and washroom breaks can break up the skiing into manageable segments.
Daily Program Procedures
- Snowline is being used for match ups this season. By Friday, the weekend pairing will go into the calendar in Snowline. Log into Snowline, select Schedule, select Lesson Calendar, select your lesson for more info.
- The progress books for returning skiers will be available in the CADS Shack on a table by the front entrance of the CADS Shack if required.
- You will get a Covid declaration form electronically the day before your program day. Complete it please before getting to the hill.
- Participants show up at the program start time 10:00 ready to ski unless informed otherwise.
- For Volunteers do not be alarmed if you are not listed in Snowline with a lesson everyone will be employed.
- Volunteers show up ready to ski a few minutes before start time to get equipment, check in and get lift tickets for your group. No need for everyone to check in just the lead instructor for the group.
- The match up board will be in the forward window of the CADS Shack for last minute changes.
- At the end of the day return all gear and sanitize it. For lead instructors complete the progress report in Snowline. More info on this before the weekend. Just doing the final checks but Snowline looks good as the source of Progress Reports.
- I think the minimal use of indoor facilities is key to a safe program and the Gov’t took care of that for us. This is certainly not a year for everyone but it can be a season for some.
- Julie and I will be available outside of the CADS Shack if you have questions or looking for people.
- This is less than a perfect scenario and the first week is controlled pandemonium so relax and everything will get sorted out as quickly as possible.
- CADS Cascade will join us at Edelweiss on the second weekend due to a couple complications on their side.
November 3, 2021
October 17, 2021
Well it’s that time of the year again when I send out the wishy washy email regarding the CADS Edelweiss program for the coming season. I was waiting to have a meeting with JS the Edelweiss hill manager which I did on Tuesday. Unfortunately the Quebec ski hills have not received any indication of any restrictions the hills may have to work under for this season. Those restrictions would be much like last year with the number of people allowed on the lifts, will the lodge be open to patrons, will there be restrictions on ticket sales and will the ski hills be eligible for subsidies to offset the reduction in capacity.
As you may have read yesterday CADS Nationals registration system is now open but the Edelweiss system has not been opened yet and will remain closed until a decision on out status for the season is made. The only exception would be if you desire to attend CADS Festival in Sun Peaks Mar 28 to 1 Apr it will be limited to 45 students and 60 volunteers. Go ahead and sign up with CADS National to reserve a spot. So if you are just signing up for Edelweiss do not register yet and if you want to apply for CADS Festival go ahead a register with National. You will have to complete the Edelweiss registration later on.
This year the Steering Committee’s mindset is that we will try our best to run a safe program this season which is different from last season mindset of trying to find a way to operate but without much hope of that happening. The large number of people being vaccinated in the NCR is a great start and the CADS National policy of vaccinated, tested or below 12 years old is a great start but we may further increase those restrictions as an added precaution for participants and volunteers. Given that CADS is not an essential service and the frequency of close contact while skiing there is the potential of restricting the program to those with 2 vaccinations. This would not be imposed lightly as CADS is a very inclusive organization but safety always has to take precedence. We will keep a close eye on vaccination levels, Quebec and Ontario Covid numbers, rules and restrictions imposed on the hills and the myriad of other considerations that have to be followed and keep everyone informed on the way ahead.
Volunteer Opportunities Below; (if able to help out please contact Jeff 613-884-3637 bouch1957@gmail.com)
SnowLine Registration Coordinator – The replacement for the previous registration system selected by CADS National is Snowline and will be used by National and CADS Edelweiss this season. Cathy Presseau has been looking after the registration system for us for the past 5 or 6 years and need a replacement this year. It does take an understanding of computer systems but not at the programming level. It is fairly user friendly but some computer understanding is necessary. Cathy will work with whoever would like to take this on and it is quite close to being set up for the coming season.
Saturday and Sunday Program Coordinators – For many reasons CADS Edelweiss is looking for two individuals to look after the Sat and Sun programs. The bulk of the work is doing the pairings on a weekly basis which will become much easier as there are functions in Snowline to help ease the workload.
2021 Season News
November 30
It is with a very heavy heart that I have to pass on the bad news that CADS-NCD Edelweiss will not be able to run a safe and inclusive program this year. With Sommet Edelweiss included in the Gatineau Red Covid Zone until 11 January 2021 we are unable to do any pre-season training for our volunteers and no on-hill CADS activities at all. These are the same restrictions for the hill run Ski School as well. The lodge in a Red Zone can only allow people to enter for use of the washroom facilities and ski lift restrictions of one person unless skiing within a family bubble will probably create very long lift lines on weekends. There are absolutely no guarantees that Edelweiss will leave the Red Zone after 11 Jan and the Quebec Social Contract Christmas rules may create another spike into the new year. We are fully aware of how important the program is for both the participants and indeed the volunteers but the risks far outweigh the benefits this year. 3 of the 5 CADS programs in the National Capital Region have cancelled for the coming season with two not making a decision yet. We wanted to let everyone know as early as possible so as not to harbour false hope that things may get better. We hope that everyone can return for the following season in 2022 when hopefully the world will be a bit safer for us all. Please get out and enjoy the winter in other ways and we’ll see you all next season.
October 13
No Decision Yet Regarding The Upcoming Season
It is pretty much impossible to make a decision yet on whether a CADS program can be run this coming season. We are still missing direction to the Quebec ski hills as to what their restrictions will be for their operation. Edelweiss is planning to open this coming season and they are in favour of us running the program there. If we are able to run a safe program it will need to look different. Having a large number of people in the lodge at one time will not be possible as there will be severe restrictions on capacity in the lodge. Most ski hills will be highly encouraging their clients to boot up in their vehicles, ski and snowboard then return to their vehicles and depart. Staggered, shorter sessions are most likely going to have to be implemented. So please stay tuned and cross your fingers that all Federal, Provincial and Sport restriction will permit our operation this winter in a safe and hopefully fun manner. We are just finishing up the Edelweiss Return to Snow Plan aimed at a safe and manageable CADS Program.
New CADS Shack
We have a new CADS Shack purchased and sitting in its new position at Edelweiss. It is a used 12’ x 60’ portable office building that is in need of some tender loving care. It was purchased from an auction and made it to the ski hill earlier this month. It has been stabilized in it’s current position and pretty much gutted down to the lovely wood panelling. It is in the accessible parking lot just outside of the new lodge addition. The bank was cut back to accommodate the portable and there is still accessible parking available. I’d send along a photo but best to wait until after this weekend when some new paint can be applied.
Vulnerable Sector Checks
The time has finally arrived that CADS like most other charitable and non-profit organization has mandated that all volunteers would need to have a Vulnerable Sector Check done. I’m sure a number of you have done them for other organizations and they are not specific to the organization but are generic so if you have one already that is OK. The Vulnerable Sector Checks are one part in the process of ensuring our skiers are kept as safe as possible.
2020 Season News
March 12
We are going to cancel the banquet in order to keep all of our very important people safe and free of the Covid 19 virus. I am starting to get a lot of people cancelling and I fear the number will get too high to make the event enjoyable. We will be reimbursing everyone as soon as we are able to get that done but it may not be immediately.
February 7
CADS The Real Mt Avila Bus Trip Info and Links to Registration
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Hello everyone, Please join us for our annual year-end ski trip to Mont Avila / Mont St-Sauveur which is a dual-mountain resort in St. Sauveur, Quebec. This is always such a fun trip! Date Sunday March 8th, 2020. Transportation Bus with two departure/return points in Ottawa – one in the west end and one in the east end. Times listed below. Cost $35 for CADS Volunteers and Participants $45 for friends and family Registration and payment Registration DEADLINE: February 23rd, 2020. You have a more than a month to register, please don’t wait until the last minute (which makes more work for the organizer). ***IMPORTANT*** Each person must register individually using the appropriate GoalLine form below. Must be individual registrations/payment in GoalLine in order to be registered and insured. Please do not try to get around this as it causes huge issues and a lot of manual work to fix You must pay by credit card to complete the registration in GoalLine. CADS Volunteers & Participants: (Ctrl + click to follow the link) CADS NCD Year-End Ski Trip Registration – Volunteers & Participants 1. Participants must arrange their own volunteer(s) to accompany them. 2. You will need your Access Code (which is also your CADS member number) from your initial Confirmation email, which may have been in your junk mail folder. If you can’t find your Access code, see the FAQ for how to retrieve it. Friends and Family: (Ctrl + click to follow the link) CADS NCD Year-End Ski Trip Registration – FRIENDS & FAMILY
Attachments FAQ – list of frequently asked question Departure · West end: 7:00am Eagleson Park and Ride · East end: 7:30am CFMWS Complex, 4210 Labelle Street, Ottawa, K1J 1J7 (same as last year) · Remember: this is the time-change day. Return · Depart hill at 4:30pm and arrive back in Ottawa around 6:30pm or 7:00pm depending on which end of town you are going to. Questions? · Check the FAQ document. · Ask your hill / program
coordinator or the trip organizer Nancy Keddy nkeddyn211@bell.net 61 · If you are having trouble
with the registration form itself contact Cathy
Presseau catherine.presseau@
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS: CADS YEAR END Avila BUS TRIP – 2020
How much does it cost? $35.00 for CADS members (volunteers and participants) $45.00 for non-members (family and friends) ***there is no discount if you decide to drive your own car, sorry. I’m a CADS member but I don’t have my Access Code to register. How can I get it? In the registration form, click the blue “What’s my Access Code?” link: It will send you an email with your access code. If you don’t receive it, check your junk mail folder. Can I register several people at once or do I really need to register each person separately? Each person must register and pay by credit card individually using the appropriate GoalLine form. Must be individual registrations/payment in GoalLine in order to be registered and insured. Please do not try to get around this since it causes huge issues and a lot of manual work to fix. Will the program be matching me up with a volunteer? No. YOU are responsible for organizing your volunteer(s). I’m a volunteer, but have not been asked to ski with anyone – can I go? Absolutely! You have no obligation to ski with a participant. I have a sibling/friend/parent who would like to come. Can I invite them? Yes. Friends and family are welcome. They will need to register individually and pay the $45 fee by credit card online. Registration Deadline? This trip is run on a first-come, first-served basis. Registration DEADLINE is Sunday February 23rd. What if the ski conditions are no good. Will you cancel? If it appears that the conditions have deteriorated to a point where it will not be safe/worthwhile, we’ll cancel and advise you a few days ahead of time. Will CADS be paying for my meals? No, CADS will provide light refreshments on the way to and the way back of St. Avila. Lunch is your responsibility. Is the Avila lodge accessible? Yes. There is an elevator to the second floor where the cafeteria and bar are located. The large locker room, ski shop and bathrooms are on the ground floor. How do I rent equipment? · If you provide us with the necessary information in advance as part of your online registration, you can get a special rate of $30.00. · Pay the trip organizer, Nan (or cash on the day of the trip but this makes a lot more trouble and work for the organizers so e-transfer before the trip is much preferred) · Equipment will be ready and waiting for you in the rental shop in the Mont Avila lodge. Still have questions? · Ask your hill / program coordinator or the trip
organizer Nancy Keddy nkeddyn211@bell.net · If you are having trouble with the registration
form itself contact Cathy Presseau catherine.presseau@ |
January 11 – EDELWEISS closed due to weather
As suspected the weather will not permit the hill to open tomorrow Sun 12 Jan so the CADS Edelweiss Program is cancelled.
Sandwich order for tomorrow will be delayed for next week.
January 10 – EDELWEISS closed due to weather
Edelweiss will not open tomorrow so obviously our program will not be able to proceed. Have a nice lazy day and sleep in.
October 24
Registration
CADS Edelweiss link was opened on 15 Oct as promised and there has been some activity on signing up but not enough. Please do that ASAP. For participants do it before the end of Oct as there is little tolerance to chase people to register. If you are returning sign up now. Sorry for the bluntness but far too many hours are wasted chasing people and we need to get organized for the season.
http://cads-ncd-edelweiss.goalline.ca/event-search.php
Make sure you have paid $40.00 for CADS Registration for everyone and the CADS Edelweiss fee for Participants. No not sign up under CADS Quebec or anywhere else in Canada, use the link provided and all will be fine.
Important Dates
Fitting Sat 23 Nov
New Volunteer Training Sat 14 and Sun 15 Dec (Same weekend as Pre-Course at Calabogie)
Tethering Clinic Sat 28 and Sun 29 Dec
1st Program Day Sat 4 Jan
Last Program Day Sun 23 Feb
1st Tue Training Evening Tues 7 Jan Instructors
Last Tues Training Evening Tues 18 Feb
Bus Trip to Mt Avila Sun 7 Mar
Banquet Sat 14 Mar
Special Events
Community Living Mon 27 Jan Calabogie
CHEO Day TBD Potentially Sat 29 Feb
SCI ON Day TBD Edelweiss
Ill and Injured Winter Sports Clinic Calabogie 03-07 Feb
CADS Festival Sun Peaks Sun 15 – Fri 20 March
Ski Show
The ski show was last weekend and we had tremendous support from all of the CADS NCD programs this year so we only had a very limited number of Edelweiss personnel manning the booth. Thanks to those that helped out and dropped by to say hello.
Edelweiss Lodge
It is moving along quite rapidly now and the word I have is that it will be completed and usable by Christmas. Like most construction projects until it is completed the date is an estimate but I have seen steady progress over the last month. We have all of our CADS equipment stored in a couple of 20 ft sea containers and we will be operating from them for this season. The new building will cost us approx. $30,000.00 for a nice outside, insulated, open building on a proper foundation of about 25’ x 30’. The old building was approx. 16 by 24 so this will be a bit bigger but we will work on the design over the winter. The intent is to have one big open space so we can use the centre for fittings and a small training area.
Golf Tournament
CADS Edelweiss was exceedingly fortunate to be the sole recipient of the profits of a golf tournament run on Sept 11 and organized by GR Networking. Shannon Desaulnier, one of our volunteers was the person responsible for getting us the funding. The golf tournament raised $7,500.00 and the money has been put into our account. It will help out immensely towards our construction but we still need a whole bunch more.
Scotch Tasting
The Scotch Tasting get together a couple of weekends ago was a great get together and raised $376.00 but more important was getting people together. Maybe Scotch wasn’t to everyone’s taste so maybe next time we’ll do a wine or beer and maybe we could get a few more people out. Ashley did a fantastic job of organizing.