Annual Club Fundraiser Has Begun!

CLICK HERE TO DONATE Donation deadline is March 31.

Black Jack Ski Club is fundraising for the finishing touches on our new lodge. The final "Finishing Phase" includes non-slip flooring, a commercial kitchen, furnishings, paint for the basement and more.

Thanks to the Nordic Canada Annual Club Fundraiser, you can make a donation and receive a charitable receipt. Depending on your donation, you also receive sponsorship acknowledgement. If you have a corporation, please consider a corporate sponsorship. 

Gold Sponsorship (over $10,000) receives acknowledgement on the donor wall along side other major donors such as Columbia Basin Trust and the Regional District of Kootenay Boundary.

Silver Sponsorship ($5000-$9999) receives a plaque of recognition on an 8 foot table in the warming space.

Bronze Sponsorship ($2000-$4999) receives a plaque of recognition on a bench in the warming space.

Less than $2000 receives an invitation to the Grand Opening Celebration coming in the Spring.

The construction of the new day lodge has been four years of hard work and dedication from club volunteers and community members. We sincerely appreciate DJM Construction for their amazing leadership. Please contribute to help make our new day lodge into an amazing space for us all to enjoy. 

Tour De Soup! Monday February 16th

Its Official! The Tour De Soup is Back For another year.

It will be happening on Monday February 16th at noon. Once again trail fees are waived for that day but we are asking for Donations to our Skier Development Program in lieu of trail fees. There will be volunteers ready at both the main Trailhead and the Biathlon Trailhead that will be ready to collect donations.

Restaurants donating soup are still to be confirmed but there will be soup at all 4 cabins!

We are also going to have our electronic rifles set up at the Biathlon Range for all to try at noon.

Black Jack is Looking for a new Race Director!

We are currently without a Race Director on our Board right now. If we are unable to fill this position we will not be hosting any races next year or in the future until the position is filled. This includes our annual Al Fisher Loppet!

If you want to see Black Jack continue to host races then we will need to fill this position.

The Race Director is a volunteer position that is responsible for helping facilitate the race schedule here at Black Jack. You would help to organize and hold races in conjunction with our Awesome Race Organizing Committee. You would have lots of support from our current board that would help you transition into this role.

If you are interested or would like more information please reach out to Pat at generalmanager@skiblackjack.ca

TRAIL PSA

would like to do a little PSA about the trails right now. We are very obviously not in optimal snow conditions right now. In fact I would hazard to guess that this might be the least amount of snow Black Jack has ever had in mid January at the lower trails. So please do not ski something like you might have in the past. Things are changing hourly out there with this weather. Creeks are opening up, snow is melting and there is dirt on trails.  So please don't go flying down a downhill if you are not able to emergency stop or if you haven't taken a close look at it already that day.  

And please check the Nordic Pulse Grooming Report or Check in with the kiosk for trail closures before skiing.  In the last few days we have had to close Ophir and Hemlock due to exposed creeks and rocks on the trail.

Thank you to everyone as lets hope we are back to normal winter conditions soon!

Hemlock is OPEN!!!!!!!!

We have some Big News! We have finally been able to open Hemlock and Biathlon Connector!

Getting Hemlock reopened has taken us over a year of work. There are so many people to thank for all their help in getting it Reopened. A huge thanks to George Edney and the team at BC Timber Sales for getting all the danger trees logged from last years tree falling episodes. A huge Thanks to our Brad, Leif, Gus and Devin for all their work in cutting trees and running the excavator to clear the trees from the years wind storm. And a huge thanks to our grooming team Brad, Steve and Keegan for all the work in grooming and getting it ready.

It is going to look much different than the last time it was open. Much of the trail was logged this summer to make it safer and wider. On the north end of the trail there are some big slash piles that will be removed next summer. Please use caution as there still isn't that much snow on the trail and there is still lots of open creeks that depending on how much water flows today may be open and require a crossing.

Biathlon connector is also open! Keegan put in a huge effort last night and built a snow bridge over Hanna Creek, So now you can start your ski at the main trailhead and head up to biathlon! Please use caution on the connector as well as the creeks may open up. That also means that Keegan got the Snowcat up to Biathlon and was able to groom all the trails up there with it.

We still need more snow to open up Rawhide, Tramway, Jeldness and Mugwump and lots of trees need to be removed before we can open viewpoint. But please know we are working on it and will do everything we can to get them open.

Hope to see you out on the trails!

EVENT NOTICE JAN 3&4 at Biathlon

This weekend on Saturday January 3 and 4 we’ll be hosting the BC winter games zone trials. These are practice and qualifying race for the BC winter games taking place at the end of February.

Both days events will be happening at Biathlon. While we are not closing the trails at Biathlon to the public we highly encourage you to ski at the lower trails during the events.

On Saturday January 3rd the Biathlon Skate race will begin at 1 pm. The range will be in use during the race. The race will be completed by 2. Set up for the race will begin around 10am.

On Sunday January 4th the classic cross country race will begin at 11 am. The race will be wrapped up 1pm.

On Sunday

December 26- Nordic pulse not working

Happy Boxing day! Unfortunately we are having some issues with our Nordic pulse grooming app. I am sorry about that. It won’t seem to update on multiple different devices.

Everything at biathlon got groomed this morning expect for extra round and viewpoint. It turned out great! Cold temps and a bit of fresh snow really helped out and the trails turned out really well! So come on out and burn off some turkey!

Dec 21 - kiosk is back open

The kiosk is back open tomorrow! We have power again. Come and get your rentals and passes before heading up to biathlon. It’s open from 8am- 4pm. The skiing at biathlon is amazing right now.

We are also working hard on clearing the lower trails of all the trees that fell during the wind storm - check out the second picture of aqueduct! Brad and Keegan made tons of progress today cutting and moving the trees off the trail with the excavator. If anyone is looking for an adventure ski we would definitely appreciate it if you were to go for a ski up aqueduct or Gibbards and help remove the branches on the trail. But be warned- there isn’t much snow so don’t bring your best skis. We need another 10 cm of snow to start grooming the lower trails. A huge thanks also to Steve, Peter and Ben for grooming and clearing more trees at Biathlon this morning.

And a reminder - Sunday morning is jackrabbit programming between 9:30-11am. The parking lot will be very busy with kids then so either time your ski before or after this times.

See you out on the Trails!

December 19 Tail Update

Biathlon trails have been cleared of all the fallen trees and are currently in the midst of being groomed (check out the 2nd pic!). A big thanks to Bob, Peter, Keegan and Brad this morning for all the help cutting and clearing the trees. We cut over 30 trees! We haven’t cleared tall Timbers or extra round yet but will get to those trails in the coming days.

Please be careful out there still as there are some danger trees on the trails. We will need to get a faller in to clear them.

There is some bad news too from the storm. The lower trails got hit really hard. There are so many trees down and the power line for the night loop also got hit. So we are without night skiing til we can fix that. Please be patient. This storm is going to take some time to clean up from. We are going to close the lower trails until we can safely clear all the trees

Kiosk will be back open again as soon as there is power at Black Jack. Come and buy some 5 punch passes for Christmas gifts for people looking to ski at black jack over the holidays

We're Hiring: Kiosk Attendant

Black Jack Ski Club is seeking a PART-TIME kiosk attendant for the 2026 season.

The position is for 2 days a week on weekdays. Pay is $19/HR + you will receive a complimentary Black Jack Season’s Pass

The position is seasonal and runs from the beginning of January – March 31st snow conditions dependent.

Experience with the sport of cross-country skiing is a benefit but not essential. The position involves pass sales, ski rentals, snow shoveling and other trailhead tasks. Experience with customer service, a cheerful disposition, and ability for self- direction will be advantageous.

Please email a short letter of introduction telling me why you would be great for the job to Patrick at generalmanager@skiblackjack.ca before December 24th, 2025

December 6th - Ski for Free and Kiosk is Open!

Tomorrow is a big day At Black Jack!

To celebrate Rekindle and the start of the holiday season we will be offering Free Skiing at Black Jack tomorrow!

All day pass fees are waived for the day for all visitors so there's no better time to come and check out the trails. We are also going to open the Kiosk at the main trailhead tomorrow. Rentals and advice will be available from 8am-4pm as well as the opportunity to pick up your season's pass.

Keep an eye here and on Nordic Pulse about what trails are going to be groomed. The grooming team is out there working hard trying to get as many trails open for the weekend.

Also this weekend we have our Teck Regional On Snow Camp. Starting tonight at biathlon trailhead at 5pm we will have upwards of 80 people who will be here to ski at Black Jack through to Sunday. There will be kids from all over the Kootenays visiting so be sure to say hi to them when you see them!

AGM Remote Access Login Information

AGM Remote Access Login Information 

The AGM can be accessed via the Zoom link below.

Topic: Black Jack's Zoom Meeting
Time: Dec 3, 2025 07:00 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada)
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83975055532?pwd=XHao9TkWOqV3xFXDlfKJ6D6nqDFTHG.1

Meeting ID: 839 7505 5532
Passcode: 992992

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One tap mobile
+12532158782,,83975055532#,,,,*992992# US (Tacoma)
+13017158592,,83975055532#,,,,*992992# US (Washington DC)

Join instructions
https://us02web.zoom.us/meetings/83975055532/invitations?signature=EwARCYQwZusihK3qFFfRWSLaohjhtLHv1px3bfIqENw

Input from all members is welcome and encouraged.

Early Season Skate Ski Clinics

EARLY SEASON SKATE SKIING CLINICS

Click here to Register

These clinics are run by Instructor Lesley Beatson

Beginners:

Get a good start with proper technique instruction

Sunday December 14 and 21, 2025 9:30 - 10:30 am

Experienced skiers

Increase efficiency on all terrain

Saturday December 13 and 20, 2025 9:30 - 11:00 am

Cost

$85 for Black Jack ski club members

$110 for non-Black Jack ski club members

MINIMUM REGISTRATION

Minimum registration is 8 registrants per clinic.

If minimum registration is not met, the clinic may be cancelled.

Kiosk Opening Delayed until Dec 6th

We have made the decision to delay the opening of the Kiosk until Saturday, December 6th at the earliest. Due to the low snowfall and the fact we are only open at Biathlon Trailhead we will wait til next weekend to open the kiosk for rentals and pass sales. Next Saturday Dec 6th is rekindle in rossland and we will have free skiing for all who would like to participate!

If you do need rentals this week please email Pat at generalmanager@skiblackjack.ca to arrange rentals on a special basis.

Thanks!

WE ARE OPEN!

Ok time for the update you are all waiting for -

We Are Open!

but, and I cannot stress this enough, it is VERY early season conditions. The skiing is marginal at best. while we did get a decent amount of snowfall last night once it got packed and rolled it only amounted to a 5 cm base. That means there is some sporty skiing out there. I would not use your brand new skis , it is for sure rock skiing out there. But some skiing is better than no skiing. Your poles will punch through to ground but the rolled trail set up quite nicely and on my tester ski this morning it skied decently well and my skis did not hit ground. 
so, Yes we are open, but please use caution out there. The conditions are marginal at best and you will have to be quite sure on your skis when you are out there. 
Brad and Keegan rolled and packed iron sights , biathlon loop and George's trail. The biathlon loop got track set but iron sights and George's did not. 
a big thank you to both of them for putting in big hours this morning to get something open and groomed. 

I would recommended classic skiing over skating. I didn't skate this morning out there but I would think there's a chance you may touch ground when pushing off with your skis. 

biathlon parking lot is NOT PLOWED, 4x4 recommended 

I will be out there tomorrow morning starting around 830am to hand out memberships and sell day passes. Remember you must be a member or have a day pass to ski at black jack. 

thanks everyone for you patience and hope to see you out on the trails!

2025 Teck Regional Snow Camp (Kootenay) Notice

See Below for the Camp Notice and The schedule for the Teck Regional Snow Camp Happening at Black Jack from December 5-7.

CAMP NOTICE

SCHEDULE

2025 Annual General Meeting

Black Jack SKi club’s 2025 annual general meeting

This year’s Annual General Meeting will take place on:

Wednesday, December 3, 2025

In the Lily May Room at the Miner’s hall

1765 columbia ave in rossland

Start time: 7pm

Can’t make it in person? Join our zoom link by clicking the link below:

AGM ZOOM LINK

Come and hear a summary of the past season and a preview of what’s to come this year. If you wanted your voice to be heard and have ideas about how to to shape the club this is the opportunity to provide your input.

We are looking for 3 new board members. The positions we are looking to fill are:

• Secretary

  We are looking for someone who is organized, concise and can help keep a meeting on track. This person is the official records organizer, scribe, and general administrative housekeeper. Not included in this is anything financial. Those duties fall to the treasurer who then hires a local accountant for support. There is a great list of duties with some approximate time commitment at this link Secretary Description.

• Race Director

  In this role you are the coordinator between Cross Country BC/ Nordic Canada and Black Jack when planning Black Jack's race schedule. Black Jack always hosts the Loppet towards the end of the season and usually one Kootenay Cup and is in a good position to host other larger events such as BC Winter Games qualifiers, Westerns (formally Noram's) or Track Attack championships depending on the year. The race Director communicates the dates and possible races with Black Jack's Race Organizing Committee, to which your involvement  is optional. For example, the former race director was sometimes heavily involved in organizing races and other races she was away and didn't partake at all. Hosting races comes at a financial cost, so in the role you will apply for grants specific to race hosting like  the BC Hosting Grant for larger events, and reporting race budgets, revenues (through fees), and costs to the board.  Finally, the Race Director is also responsible for organizing Officiating courses every couple of years.

• Trails Director

  The trail position is now somewhat less operational since paying for a full time GM, but there are important duties that help the club run smoothly between the seasons. These include coordinating annual trail maintenance (brushing), planning and developing new trails including proposals, grants, contracting, volunteer coordination. All the while you would be maintaining a close working relationship with our GM through the winter and summer to support trail operation/maintenance decision making. Of the three opportunities, this one is a bit more scalable, and you will often find other members pitching/taking on “pet” projects (eg. Trail maintenance, development projects, granting opportunities sign updates etc..), in which case you would be a key contact to help ensure their efforts stay in line with our club plans.

  If you are interested or would like more information on these positions and what the volunteer roles entail please email our GM, Patrick, at generalmanager@skiblackjack.ca for more information

  We will also be voting on the proposed constitution change:

  Proposition: to remove Section 9.1 of the CONSTITUTION OF THE BLACK JACK SKI CLUB SOCIETY (Club) which states "The Association must maintain a minimum balance of $30,000." See Club constitution and proposed amendment in red strikeout at link below. 
  
  Definition: The constitution as currently written, requires the Club to maintain a balance of at least $30,000.00 ($30K) in unrestricted funds under a consideration to protect Club solvency. 
  
  Present Condition: During a grant application process, the group(s) assigning funds will often review Club finances to determine viability, and will evaluate the balance of restricted versus unrestricted funds in Club accounts. If during this period of financial review the Club maintains a robust balance sheet of unrestricted funds it provides an impression (albeit false) that these unrestricted funds could/should be allocated towards the project in question, thus weakening our grant application. While being constitutionally bound to keep a balance sheet of $30K in unrestricted funds was initially designed to protect Club solvency, it negatively impacts the Club in two ways; (1) misleading narrative for third parties reviewing Club finances, and (2) restricting access to those funds when needed by the Club.
  
  Recommendation: Removal of section (9.1) will afford greater financial discretion for the Board of Directors and Treasurer to execute the fiscal management of the Club, without diminishing overall financial governance, while better meeting immediate financial needs.
  
  This proposed amendment will be voted on at the AGM.  
  

• Black Jack’s Constitution and Bylaws are posted on our Archive page.

• Miniutes from the board meetings are also accessible from our Archive page.

• Black Jack Ski Club is a society under the BC Societies Act. The board must have at least 3 and no more than 11 members (Part 5 of the Bylaws). Required positions on the board are President, Vice President, Treasurer, and Secretary, with the remaining board members as Directors at Large.

• All voting members in attendance at the AGM are entitled to vote for the board members.

We Hope to see everyone there!

Full Moon Toonie Skis are Back for 2026!

Full Moon Toonie Skis are Back for this winter! If you don’t have a season’s pass at Black Jack here is your opportunity to come ski for only $2!

The Dates for this season’s Toonie skis are:

• Wednesday December 3rd

• Saturday January 3rd

• Sunday February 1st

• Tuesday March 3rd

Keep an eye on our social media for more information!

BC Winter Games Trials

Trials to determine the athletes who will represent Zone 1 (Kootenays) at the 2026 BC Winter Games.

Only open to athletes born in 2011 and 2012.

BIATHLON - SATURDay January 3, 2026

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CROSS COUNTRY - Sunday January 4, 2026

Classic Technique, Interval Start

MAPS

Cross country course maps below are updated for the new race location at the Upper Trail Network (Biathlon).

• YOB 2011 course map (2 x 2.5 km)

• YOB 2012 course map (2 x 1.75 km)

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Visit tourismrossland.com for local accommodation options.

Volunteer for Winter Games

VOLUNTEER FOR THE 2026 BC Winter Games

Coming to Rossland, Trail & Castlegar!

February 25 – March 1, 2026

The BC Winter Games is an incredible event with over 1700 athletes, coaches, and officials coming to the region! We need 1,600 volunteers to help make it a success.

There are volunteer opportunities in every area of the Games. When you register to volunteer, you choose the area where you’d like to help.

Cross country skiing and biathlon will be at Black Jack.

Please consider volunteering for these events!