On September 17, 2003 FWSA was privileged to be an invited participant in the kick off of the newly formed Congressional Caucus on Skiing and Snowboarding. The Caucus is an informal, bi-partisan group of House members who ski and snowboard. They also have an interest in the issues facing snow sports. The bipartisan coalition's aim is to "promote the health and physical benefits" of winter sports and ensure the financial health of the country's ski resorts. The politicians also set goals to deal with land management, transportation, wildlife, education and housing in ski-resort communities. This, of course, lines up well with FWSA’s Public Affairs interests. Representatives Mark Udall (D-CO) and John Sweeney (R-NY), who will help promote its efforts, sponsor the Caucus.
The setting for the kick-off was the Canon Office Building, next to the Capitol Building in Washington DC. The theme of the event used for the kick off was “Winter Feels Good” (WFG), a program sponsored by the National Ski Areas Association (NSAA) and the SnowSports Industries America (SSIA). Recognizing the need to act upon the widely publicized obesity epidemic, the ski industry will use the WFG Program to begin pushing the physical benefits of winter activity. We all know winter sports offers a wide variety of physical possibilities to people during that time of year when they are inclined to be the least active. While the program is specifically directed at an adult audience it hopes to ultimately reach kids by influencing parents, educators and lawmakers. David Ingemie of the SSIA said “Our goal is to dispel the myths about winter sports being too cold. We want people to get involved with winter activities in a way that makes them feel comfortable, and in a way that can improve their lifestyles.” FWSA has recently established a goal of increasing and enhancing its support of youth and family focused winter sports activities.
Former Olympic and world alpine champion Diann Roffe and current moguls Olympic moguls silver medalist Shannon Bahrke (Tahoe City, CA) helped introduce the caucus and debut the "Winter Feels Good" campaign. "It's pretty basic – get people involved in having fun during the winter," said Bahrke, a Silver Medalist in the 2002 Olympics and the '03 World Cup moguls titlist. "The idea is to support families and kids to get off their butts. There's so much to do in winter," she added. FWSA fully agrees. Roffe told the group, "Winter sports are good medicine for the mind and body." Roffe won the Olympic super G at Lillehammer in 1994 and Olympic giant slalom silver medal in 1992.
The Caucus kick off was preceded by a NSAA Board Meeting attended by:
Michael Berry, NSAA President
Kevin McCarthy, White Pass, WA
Mike Collins, Big Mountain, MT
Rusty Gregory, Mammoth, CA
Mike Shirley, Bogus Basin, ID
Steve Showalter, Massanutten, VA
Dave Crowley, Washusett, MA
Rob Kautz, Sugar Bowl, CA
William Jensen, Vail, CO
Jim Horton, York Snow
John Rice, Sierra at Tahoe, CA
Jerry Wahlin, Powder Ridge
The primary topics of the meeting included Climate Change/warming, CO2 legislation, ski area explosives overlapping, ownership of water on public land (particularly in the West), Sustainable Slopes Report, winter kids programs and HIPAA. On the HIPAA issue motorcyclists seem to be leading the way with Representative Scott McGinnis as the front man.
CONGRESSIONAL SKI & SNOWBOARD CAUCUS ROSTER
Mark Udall (D-CO - 2nd)
Jim Sweeney (R-NY – 20th)
Jeb Bradley (R-NH – 1st)
Dennis Rehberg (R-MT – At Large)
Jim Matheson (D-UT 2nd)
Jim Gibbons (R-NV – 2nd)
Loretta Sanchez (D-CA – 47th)
Chris Cannon (R-UT - 3rd)
John Doolittle (R-CA – 4th)
Bernie Sanders (I-VT)
John McHugh (R-NY – 23rd)
Doug Ose (R-CA – 3rd)
Jim McGovern (D-MA – 3rd)
Jim McDermott (D-WA –7th)
Barbara Cubin (R-WY – at Large)
Earl Blumenauer (D-OR – 3rd)
FWSA States Represented in the Congressional Caucus on Skiing and Snowboarding:
Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) http://www.house.gov/blumenauer/
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Portland:
729 N.E. Oregon Street
Suite 115
Portland, OR 97232
(503) 231-2300
Fax: (503) 230-5413 |
Washington, DC:
US House of Representatives
2446 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
Fax: (202) 225-8941
(202) 225-4811 |
John T. Doolittle (R-CA) (Aide Jason Larrabee), http://www.house.gov/doolittle/
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United States House of Representatives
2410 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
202-225-2511
202-225-5444 (fax) |
Granite Bay, CA Office
United States House of Representatives
4230 Douglas Blvd
Suite 200
Granite Bay, CA 95746
(916) 786-5560
(916) 786-6364 (fax) |
Doug Ose (R-CA) (Aide Anja Kelsey), http://www.house.gov/ose/
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Washington Office:
236 Cannon HOB
Washington, D.C. 20515
Phone: (202) 225-5716
Fax: (202) 226-1298 |
California Office:
4400 Auburn Blvd., Suite 110
Sacramento, C.A. 95841
Phone: (916) 489-DOUG/3684
Fax: (916) 489-4911 |
Loretta Sanchez (D-CA), http://www.house.gov/sanchez/home.html
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Washington Office
1230 Longworth House Office Bldg
Washington, D.C. 20515
Phone: (202) 225-2965
Fax: (202) 225-5859
9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. EST
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District Office
12397 Lewis Street, Suite 101
Garden Grove, CA 92840
Phone: (714) 621-0102
Fax: (714) 621-0401
8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. PST |
Jim Gibbons (R-NV) (AideCory Kennedy), http://www.house.gov/gibbons/
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Washington D.C.
Congressman Jim Gibbons
100 Cannon House Office Building
Washington D.C. 20515
202-225-6155
Fax: 202-225-5679 |
Reno:
400 South Virginia Street, Suite 502
Reno, Nevada 89501
775-686-5760
Fax: 775-686-5711 |
Las Vegas:
600 Las Vegas Boulevard, Suite 680
Las Vegas, Nevada 89101
702-255-1651
Fax: 702-255-1927 |
Congressional Committee Heads
Mark Udall (D-CO) (Aide Bryan Howard), http://wwwa.house.gov/markudall/contact.htm
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Westminster Colorado Office
8601 Turnpike Drive #206
Westminster, CO 80031
Phone: (303) 650-7820
Fax: (303) 650-7827 |
Minturn Colorado Office
291 Main St.
P.O. Box 325
Minturn, CO 81645
Phone: (970) 827-4154
Fax: (970) 827-4138 |
Washington D.C. Office
115 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
Phone: (202) 225-2161
Fax: (202) 226-7840 |
Jim Sweeney (R-NY) (Bill Rayball), http://www.house.gov/sweeney/
Chief of Staff: Chris Fish, Communications Director: Kevin Madden
416 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
Phone: 202-225-5614, Fax: 202-225-6234
Clifton Park Office 939 Route 146Suite 430
Clifton Park, NY 12065
Phone: 518-371-8839, Fax: 518-371-9509
