About

The Bill Koch Youth Ski League (BKYSL) offers Nordic ski programs for youth 13 years and under.  The league is based on local club participation and involvement, but you can also be an at-large member of the New York State Ski Racing Association – Nordic, Inc. and receive the same benefits as you would through a club.  Depending on facilities in your area you may be able to try cross country skiing, ski jumping, Nordic combined, ski orienteering, even tennis ball or air-rifle biathlon.

The program is named for Olympic silver medalist Bill Koch.  Bill, a native of nearby Vermont, began skiing in the early ’70s in a local ski club and was an active Nordic combined skier before turning his efforts toward cross country ski racing.  In 1976 he shocked the ski world with a silver medal in the 30 kilometer event at Innsbruck, Austria.  A few years later, he won the World Cup series.  He is often credited with starting the “skating revolution” that so dramatically changed cross country skiing in the 1980s.