What do you think of three years for J3s?

[frameitinskis]

My son races out of Okemo and is a 13 years old J3. He is a first year J3 and one of the short ones. When I see 6 foot tall 14 year old kids racing my 5 foot 13 year old son, I gasp at the size difference. This year they decided to add make it a three year program instead of a 2 year program. Oh boy..... Even BIGGER competition! The only positive here is when he is a third year J3. Maybe by then, puberty will hit and he will be the 6 foot tall dude in skis.

 

[4aprice]

Once you get to the J-2 level the travel becomes much more. Thats the reason I was given for the move to keep J-3, 3 years. The drop out rate between 3 and 2 was very high and USSA wants to try and keep racers in the program. They actually are going to a system more like soccer. There won't be any J's anymore but U's as in U-16, U-18, U-21. I wish it had been implimented last year as my son is now a J-2. He could have used another year in J-3. Also before buying any racing equipment check the rules because there are changes coming and you wouldn't want to be stuck with equipment that was no longer legal.

Alex

Lake Hopatcong, NJ

 

[SkiFanE]

My girl aged out of J3 to J2 this year (will be 16yo soon). She originally did not want to do J2, as they are truly competitive and serious, and she is not so much. Racing for HS team is her #1 priority, we didn't even get her USSA membership this year. She likes the social aspect, the training and becoming a good skier. She decided to get back into the race program after thanksgiving since she learned one of her friends was returning. But our home mt ski program (GACP) said they would have let her stay a J3 if she wanted (for training purposes), but if she raced with USSA, she'd be a J2. I think that is the age you truly get serious, or you drop out...not much middle ground as the field becomes much tougher and stakes higher. Plus..yeesh...injuries...already some concussions, broken back and and other things within her group.

 

[dl]

3 years for J3s will not be on-going - it's a one time change. USSA is changing the age levels for ALL groups, not just the J3s. At the end of this season, they will switch from J3, 4, 5, etc. to U10, U12, U14, etc. What that means this year is that everyone will essentially gain an extra year of eligibility at their current age group. For example, my son is a second year J4. Next year he would have become a first year J3 however with the age change he'll stay in the "J4" group which will now be called U14. After the change is made, the age groups will be in 2-year increments just like they have been in the J classes.

As mentioned, one of the driving forces behind the change is getting skiers to be more technically proficient - essentially focus more on skills at the expense of gates at the early ages. It's also thought that it will let kids mature physically a bit more before they enter what we now call the J2/J1 world which is a lot more rigorous.

A good overview of the proposal can be found at http://www.ussaeast.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Age-Change-Simplification-ver3.pdf

A good overview of the skill changes can be found at http://www.ussaeast.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Age-Change-Document.pdf

 

[frameitinskis]

The injuries are scary! I get a knot in my stomach every time one of the kids go down. This weekend, one of the boys took out a gate AND the FENCE during a Super G! Thank god he was able to walk away. He took the broken poles home as a memento. Its very hard to watch as a mom but we need to support their ambitions no matter how much it scares the crap out of us!

 

[frameitinskis]

Thanks for the explanation. I did not quite understand that it is temporary. Now I get it. Probably a good thing for everybody. My son loves the sport and I think he will always be involved in skiing in one way or another even though he seems somewhat exhausted right now.