Founder’s Cup Race Teams

2022 Founder’s Cup Ski Race Team Captains & Club Racers

FOUNDER’S CUP SKI RACE 

Race Entry (per person, 7 racers will join their captain to form a team of 8)

• Race on a Founder’s Cup team with one of 4 Olympic Medalists – $600
• Race on a Founder’s Cup team with one of 4 Alpine Captains – $300

Team Race Entry Includes: Welcome gift, breakfast, open ski with your captain, lunch, ski race & après party. Not included for any racers: alcoholic beverages, concert tickets, WPP after party tickets, Epic lift tickets (required for any racer without a season pass).

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

8:00am-9:00am- Team Breakfast with your Captain & Team Racer Registration

9:00am-12:00pm- Open ski with your Captain and practice runs on the Race Course

12:00pm-1:30pm- Lunch for all Team Racers

1:00pm-1:30pm- Race Course closed for maintenance

1:30pm-3:00pm- Founder’s Cup Team Charity Race (1 best of 2 runs. Show and Go)

3:00pm-5:00pm – Après Race Party at the Alpine Clubhouse

7:00pm- Live Performance by O.A.R. & Special Guests at the Spruce Peak Performing Arts Center (doors at 6:00pm)

10:00pm- VIP Concert After Party at WhistlePig Pavilion

THE OLYMPIAN TEAMS $600 / racer 
(note: 7 slots available per team with Olympian being the 8th team member). 

DONNA WEINBRECHT

Donna Weinbrecht is one of the most successful skiers to compete for the U.S. Ski Team.  She’s a three-time Olympian and has 46 individual World Cup wins.  In 2004, this New Jersey native was inducted into the U.S. Ski & Snowboard Hall of Fame

ROSS POWERS

A world champion halfpipe snowboarder, Powers took home a gold and bronze medal in the Olympics and a double gold in the X Games and is a two-time winner of the Burton U.S. Open.  He’s originally from Londonberry, Vermont, and now directs the snowboarding program at Stratton Mountain School. 

DIANN ROFFE

Diann Roffe burst onto the scene in 1985 when she won gold in the giant slalom at the World Ski Championships as a high school senior.  Over the next decade, the Rochester, New York, native racked up 36 World Dup top-10 finishes, and two Olympic medals.  Roffe- who was inducted into the U.S. National Ski Hall of Fame in 2003 – has focused on coaching a new generation of Olympic hopefuls, most recently as director of the junior program at Burke Mountain Academy. 

JULIA FORD

Julia Ford is a former member of the U.S. Ski Team, with whom she competed in 40 F.I.S. World Cup races and the 2014 Olympic Winter Games in Sochi, Russia. She is a two- time U.S. National Downhill Champion. Before joining the U.S. Ski Team, she was a multi-sport athlete at Holderness School.

THE COACH TEAMS $300/racer
(note: 7 slots available per team with your COACH being the 8th)

NICHOLAS HERRIN

Born and raised in Seattle, Herrin is the CEO of the Professional Ski Instructors of America and the American Association of Snowboard Instructors (PSIA-AASI), and former ski and ride school director at Telluride Ski Resort.  He also served as a member of the PSIA-AASI National Team, a group of elite-level ski and snowboard instructors who help develop and promote student-centered teaching tenets and education materials.

IGOR VANOVAC

Mt. Mansfield Ski Club & Academy Executive Director, Igor Vanovac brings an international love and appreciation for the sport of ski racing to our organization. Igor was born in Sarajevo and grew up skiing in the Balkan mountains. At an early age, Igor devoted himself to the pursuit of competitive ski racing. As his career went on, he was able to race on the FIS circuit, traveling all over Europe and competing against the elite racers of the world as a member of the Yugoslav national ski team.

In 1992, war came to his country and forced him to cut his racing career short. He left the country for Monaco, France and began to work for the Monaco Ski Federation. From there, Igor moved to Australia and New Zealand where he continued to build up his coaching experience. Eventually Igor moved to the United States in 1999, where he became the race program director at Mount Snow. Igor led the alpine program, as well as the race department team, for three years. He then went to the University of Massachusetts at Amherst to receive a BA in Sports Management and International Sports Development. At the same time, he worked as the head alpine coach of both the men and women ski racing teams, and led the UMASS women to the 2003 USCSA national title.

Igor joined MMSCA as the Athletic Director in 2004 and jumped quickly into the numerous responsibilities with his unrelenting energy and passion for the sport. Igor oversaw the construction and completion of MMSCA’s Clubhouse renovations and addition, as well as spearheaded efforts to make Main Street, MMSCA’s racecourse and training hill, a FIS-certified course. In June of 2019, Igor was appointed Executive Director of Mt. Mansfield Ski Club & Academy. Igor is dedicated to the organization’s growth and vitality, and is known near and far for his enthusiasm, positive attitude, and genuine candor. Igor and Micheline Lemay, who leads the Junior Program, were married on the mountain in 2008 and when not coaching student-athletes, they can be found on the slopes with their two children Sofija and Hugo.

JON SCHAEFER

Jon Schaefer began working at Berkshire East on June 10, 1980. He was born the day before. After a ski racing career, he returned to Berkshire East full-time in 2010, gradually taking the reins. He influenced the resort and region with year-round innovations and modifications to the business by aggressively expanding summer operations and developing renewable energy sources to power 100 percent of Berkshire East’s needs. In 2018, the Schaefer’s purchased Catamount Ski Area and began a complete renovation of the resort.

In March 2020, Jon made Berkshire East and Catamount the first mountains to close as the pandemic struck. Two weeks later, his team started Goggles for Docs—a cloud-sourced PPE effort that delivered almost 60,000 ski goggles to healthcare workers around the world. Jon and Goggles for Docs co-founder Mike Halperin (an ER physician) were named to Outside Magazine’s list of “Outsiders of the Year.” Jon then co-chaired the Outdoor Recreation reopening committee for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, helping to write operating guidance that spanned activities from zip lines to beaches and mountain biking—and skiing.

JOHN TEWHILL

John Tewhill has been a member of The Club’s team since its inception and has served a variety of roles in both our summer and winter seasons. Throughout his childhood, he raced in USSA youth events. He was a member of the U.S. Military Ski Team in Europe where he raced downhill, giant slalom and slalom in the Alps. John is an accomplished ski racer and one of the most experienced locals on our Stowe race hills.

FOUNDER’S CUP & BENEFIT CONCERT SATURDAY, JANUARY 22, 2022
SKI RACE | APRES PARTY | GREAT FOOD | SILENT AUCTION | BENEFIT CONCERT | & MUCH MORE

The 2022 Founder’s Cup is a benefit for Spruce Peak Arts – Our region’s curated window to the world, using the stage to expand perspectives and enrich lives.

Your support helps Spruce Peak Arts create accessibility to the arts, as well as enhance educational experiences for area students, families, and community organizations, all year-round.