Winters in northern Michigan are harsh, and that’s a fact.
Coming from sunny Southern California to the gloomy weather was something that required a leap of faith. I don’t regret it one bit. One of the things I still haven’t learned is strapping up a pair of snowblades and roaming down the slopes.
High school skiing is a big deal in northern Michigan. The number of championships between Traverse City Central, Traverse City West and Petoskey could feed families.
Being a die-hard Pittsburgh Steelers football fan, I missed out on the “Steel Curtain” days with Hall of Famers like Joe Greene, L.C. Greenwood, Ernie Holmes and Dwight White, but covering and watching high schools collect championships has been cool to see.
Each high school has its own story that makes their dynasty it special.
Petoskey has been winning Division 2 state championships since the 1980s — 37 team titles and 40 individual state titles. The West and Central dynasty began when they were at Traverse City Senior High School. When the schools split, they were dueling on the slopes every year in the Division 1 state championships.
Skiing is also a good bonding activity for those who don’t have a winter sport. As I said, the winters are brutal, so sometimes mental health isn’t at its greatest. It’s no secret that mental health has been a topic that can be scary to talk about, but being active is something I’ve learned helps.
I’ve been wanting to write about the ski program, but wasn’t too familiar with the ski world. After living in Traverse City, it was time to give a few programs their flowers.
Central has a long list of skiers who’ve come through the program to win state titles, but more recently, senior Quinn Gerber placed runner-up in the Division 1 state championship. She already has several individual state championships.
West has the Lewandowski family, who seem to be one of the best ski families in northern Michigan. Caleb Lewandowski held his own, and now his four siblings have taken the family name to new heights.
Petoskey has been unbelievable. With Central and West dominating Division 1 skiing, it’s hard to top what the Northmen have done since the 80s. I love to talk about those three ski teams with my friends who aren’t familiar with the sport to give them an example of a school that knows how to win.
The coaches know skiing has brought the local communities together. Schools downstate are familiar with Traverse City Central and West because of their sports and ski teams.
Skiing maybe isn’t the most popular high school sport, but all those championships mean something. It’s cool what each of these programs has done and continues to do.