Club Race - Waiver Form

When reviewing the various insurance policies held by the club, the committee was very disappointed to learn that it was not possible to obtain cover for ski racing. The risk of a member seeking to sue the club in connection with a race is tiny, but if it did arise it could be ruinous.

The lift company already requires race participants to sign a liability waiver to protect the company. The club needs adult competitors to also sign a waiver form exluding liability for the club and waiving right to sue. Competitors under 18 will need to have their adult guardian sign their form.

Participants need to decide for themselves (or their child or minor under their guardianship) that the course and conditions on the day are suitable for their skills and abilities. There is no obligation or pressure for members to participate if they are not confident about the course or conditions, regardless of whether they have previously entered or said they intended to race.

You can read/download a copy from aacfallscreek.com/xDocs/Forms/Race_Waiver.pdf

All lifts are now open

International poma opened at lunchtime Thursday 27 July, so we now have all lifts open.

**BIG NEWS** International Poma is set to open at 1pm today! Making plans for the weekend? ALL lifts are turning at Falls 👊🎿🏂 #fallscreek #itsmymountain #fallscreeksnow #international

A post shared by Falls Creek Resort (@fallscreek) on Jul 26, 2017 at 6:41pm PDT

Ignition: Mountain Bike season opening celebration 18-19 Nov

There's still a lot of skiing and boarding to do this season, but we know that it won't last forever. Don't despair as spring brings patches of green and the sound of running water back to the mountain, Instead start planning you summer trip to Falls.

Mountain biking at Falls gets bigger every year and the Summer 17/18 season will kick off with Ignition weekend on 18 & 19 November. This weekend is supported by 4 local craft breweries Sweetwater (Mt Beauty), Blizzard (Dinner Plain), Bright Brewery and Bridge Road (Beechworth) so the beer hall alone will be worth the trip. Features of the weekend include Gravity shuttles, backcountry rides supported by shuttles, Flowtown night ride, demo bikes, drift trikes, skill sessions, tech sessions, mechanic, dinner & brekkie, street food.

To make it easier for people to attend, the usual summer minimum booking fee ($300) will be waived for this weekend, making it just $30 per night for members, $42 for guests.

Last year this event was sold out so don't leave it too late to book.

Details at ignitionmtb.com.au

More Blue Dirt information

Booking Officer contacts details are changing

Alan Long will still be our booking officer, but after many years Ken Long Tyre Specialists has closed so contact details will change.

From 15 July, contact details will be

Phone: 03 9328 4491 (unchanged but likely to change after the season)
Email: mrkflong@bigpond.com (unchanged)
Post: 24 St James Rd Heidelberg 3084
 and of course the online booking system lodgebooking.com.au/aac_falls_creek/memberPortal.php

This change also presented an opportunity to review the service provided. It is rare for bookings to be made by FAX or in person. Bookings by these means will no longer be available.

We wish Alan all the best as he enters a new stage in his career.

Winter is here and Summit is turning

It's been a slowish start to the season but gradually the base is building and runs are opening. It's been snowing on and off since Monday morning. Last night there was excitement as we saw groomers on village for the first time. Now all the lifts are turning except Lakeside and Inter. Tuesday was blizzardy with lifts on hold much of the time. Today there are lots of smiling faces: wind has died down and there's plenty of fresh stashes to play in.

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Saturday 22nd: Lakeside is turning too

Thursday 27th: and Inter means all lifts are open

Spa renovation

The gremlins have been paticularly troublesome, causing a few delays to the spa renovation.  The gremlins are now vanquished (hopefully)and it's almost at a point where we can open it. It's looking really good and we think you'll agree that it is worth the wait: new cedar panelling on the ceiling and walls, light grey non-slip floor tiles, pale blue spa tiles. The new shower and toilet can be completed after the spa opens, as can rock work on feature walls. The plumbing has also been improved to avoid external pipes and to improve access to some controls.

Racing success

Club members & guests have been competing in various events over the school holidays.

Firstly Sarah, Mia and Zara from St Catherines competed in Vic Junior Cross Country Sprints, with Zara winning the U14 division.

Then Ross B entered the Cranky Charlie cup for the first time and came away with the trophy

and the next day daughter Carla came 3rd in Division 2 of King of the Mountain

Congratulations to all our racers

Growing up in the lodge

Reeve is loving lodge life, coming out for a meet & greet most mornings and enjoying all the cuddles and attention

Working Bee

This year the working bee was a little different. Numbers were deliberately kept down to allow us to focus was on the spa renovation. The usual pre-season jobs were still completed, eg storing dry goods, kitchen spring autumn clean, weed control, firewood stacking. Firewood stacking has always needed a very big team, but the use of a builder's chute has let us get this big job done with less hands.

Thanks to all those who helped

AGM and Committee Positions

The AGM went smoothly. The committee was expanded to 9 positions. All past committee members were re-elected plus Lynn Cameron.

The June committee meeting elects the office bearers. These are unchanged from the previous year.
President: Nigel Cowie
Secretary: Bronwyn Sigmund
Treasurer: Michal Szkilnik

Lodge Supervisor: Justin Checcucci
Booking Officer: Alan Long
Membership: Garry Hayes
Marketing: Tony Ryder
Communications & IT: Jenny Hughes

Lynn Cameron will have a chance to learn the ropes before being assigned a role.

Eagle replacement for 2018

The lift company still needs formal government approval, but preparations are well underway for replacing Eagle Chair next year. The old chair is 37 years old and becoming a bit of a maintenance nightmare. Instead we will have a fast quad detachable. Changing the alignment has proved too difficult because of environmental issues so the new chair will start and end very close to the current load & unload. Ski traffic through the bowl area will probably neeed to go behind rather than under the lift.

While we daydream of new lifts opening up more terrain, the new Eagle should still be a boon to AAC members. We will be able to easily take beginner guests up to the ideal beginner slope at Monkey Bar (Playground) and our own journey up Eagle will be faster and more comfortable. Hopefully the new lift will also see a return to a more lively vibe in the village bowl.

Village news

No major changes this year but a few minor things of interest:

• There should be 2 village shuttles operating most of the time, compared to 1 much of the time last year
• Slight increase in number of parking bays and staff/resident parking moved out of Lower Slalom to make more room for guests
• Shuttle stop shelters have been turned around so snow drop is not onto waiting passengers
• If you order food to be delivered from the supermarket, you should get an SMS to meet the delivery
• Winchcat grooming rides are being offered by the lift company (not cheap)
• FCRM are planning a 33% discount on resort entry for 3+ nights in September