BRANDON — The Nordic ski team at Otter Valley is building momentum going into this season.
Fourth-year head coach Devon Fuller was seeing improvement and focus in preseason as his team prepared for the season with 15 student-athletes, seven of whom are in the middle school.
There are no captains, but the team boasts three juniors, three sophomores and one freshman, plus four eighth-graders and three seventh-graders.
Many of the students are returning team members.
“The kids are getting better all the time,” Fuller said. “I have a handful that started in seventh grade and now are freshman and sophomores. They’re all coming back every year. They are energetic and it’s a lot of fun.”
Like rock climbing, cross-country or Nordic skiing is a sport that people can participate in throughout their lives, and that’s really the bottom line for Fuller.
“They’re obviously having a good time with it and honestly, that’s what we want,” he said. “We want them to have this sport to enjoy for the rest of their lives.”
With former coach Bob Clark assisting, the OV Nordic team is poised to take their enthusiasm to the course this winter.