Methow Trails wins grants for training
A new class offered this upcoming year at Liberty Bell High School has the Methow Valley written all over it.
Starting this fall, Chris “Flash” Clark, a former coach of the Methow Valley Nordic Team, will teach a cross country and mountain bike trail-building course at Liberty Bell, in partnership with Methow Trails. Some 12 to 16 students in grades nine through 12 are expected to enroll, Superintendent Grant Storey said.
The students will learn about trail design and construction, maintenance and safety, Bob Winters said.
Methow Trails hired Winters, a former Methow Valley Elementary School principal, to help develop the trail-building course with a grant from Career Connect Washington.
The class, part of the school district’s career and technical education (CTE) program, is unique, Winters said.
“It’s the only one like it in the whole country,” he said. “It’s pretty exciting.”
Students may be able to earn a certificate that could lead to jobs at major ski areas around the country. They could also work right here in the valley, as Methow Trails typically hires 10 to 15 trail groomers each ski season.
Methow Trails has found it harder in recent years to fill that seasonal but essential job, Executive Director James DeSalvo said.
“We have this problem we need to solve,” he said. Groomers at one time stayed with Methow Trails for more than a decade. Now, in some cases, they last only a couple years.
“Internally, we had a little bit of soul searching: Who can we get to work for us?” DeSalvo said.
He hopes those new recruits can be found among the valley’s younger population.
While on the one hand, cross country skiing appeals to “an older population,” as DeSalvo said, the sport also attracts a large number of Methow Valley youth. The school campus has its own trail system, and the kids’ Nordic Team boasts more than 100 members in a school district with less than 750 students, Winters pointed out.
Storey said the new course’s impact on the community will be significant.
“Helping develop a local workforce in these areas supports organizations that care for our public lands and recreation infrastructure, while creating meaningful career opportunities for our students,” the superintendent said.
CTE is growing
CTE is a bright spot at Methow Valley schools, at a time when districts around the state are cutting programs to balance their budgets.
For now, the new trail-building class isn’t costing the district anything for curriculum development or the teacher’s pay, thanks to a pair of grants.
In addition to the $227,000 grant from Career Connect Washington, a program started by former Gov. Jay Inslee to provide educational opportunities that lead to high-demand, high-wage jobs, Methow Trails received a $46,000 grant from foundry10, an educational research organization based in Seattle.
Some of the foundry10 grant will cover Clark’s salary as the class instructor. His role is part time, as he is offering one class that meets an average of five and a half hours a week.
Clark — those who know him call him “Flash” — is an avid trail user and volunteer trail builder, Storey said. He’s been in the valley since 1996 and owns a contracting business with his partner Katharine Bill, specializing in custom, energy-efficient homes.
“His combination of technical expertise, community involvement and passion for the outdoors makes him an excellent fit for this program,” Storey said.
The school district has been able to expand its CTE offerings during tight budget years by partnering with local nonprofits.
In addition to the new trails class, supported by Methow Trails, the district recently started a health care careers program with the Methow Valley Elder Care Coordination Network.
Liberty Bell High School students may be able to fill positions as Nordic trail groomers.
“By partnering with industry and community organizations, we can create specialized CTE opportunities that would be difficult for a small rural district to offer on our own,” said Storey, who is both the superintendent and the district’s CTE director.
Storey and Methow Trails officials said they hope to find more funding for the trail-building class, so it can continue beyond the 2026–27 school year.
WVC connection
Another educational offering is coming out of Winters’ work at Methow Trails — this one through Wenatchee Valley College (WVC).
Methow Trails staff will teach a continuing education, noncredit course titled “Snowcat Operations and Winter Grooming Operator Training” over one weekend in January or February, Winters said.
The course will involve two classroom sessions at the Methow Trails shop in Winthrop and two night shift ride-alongs with a groomer. Topics will include safety, ski trail conditions, machinery settings, grooming strategies and techniques, and other elements of a groomer’s job. Students will even get behind the wheel of a snowcat, to get a firsthand feel for what trail grooming is like, Winters said.
WVC and Methow Trails are in discussions to offer additional classes in future seasons, on how to maintain and fix ski-operation vehicles, trail building and events management.
The class is available to people of any age, beyond high school level. They will pay a tuition fee to enroll.
“Those are the folks that are going to be prime candidates to come work for us at some point,” DeSalvo said. “Also, those folks are the prime candidates for the next generation of trail advocates, and nonprofit advocates of what we do.”
As a nonprofit, Methow Trails is uniquely positioned to offer this hands-on education that prepares young people for careers in the ski industry, DeSalvo added. The industry leaders don’t have the bandwidth to offer high school or college-level coursework in their field.
“We’ve talked to [Stevens Pass] a little bit about what we’re trying to do,” DeSalvo said. “They’re excited about it.”
