Ava Mac ‘21, Managing/Copy Editor
This year, the Unified South Lyon Ski Team is being led by a new coach. After coaching for eight years, former coach Bobby Eccles left to become a full time Brighton police officer, calling for Michael Finch to step up to the skis and take lead of the team. Having previously coached through the youth program “XLR8” at Mount Brighton, Finch already has a lot of experience on the slopes.
That experience has greatly paid off, as the ski team has found him to be a great coach, although different in his methods and techniques than Eccles. “Coach Eccles was very into conditioning and pre-season strength, [while] Coach Finch focuses more on dynamic and flexibility,” team captain and senior Kelsie O’Connor said.
These differences also show in the coaches’ times on the slopes. “Finch [also] really likes to tone in on getting as much time on snow as possible, whereas Eccles didn’t really mind when we got on snow [as much],” O’Connor stated further.
Despite all these differences, the team can all agree, as sophomore Tom Cavanaugh said, “the transition between coaches has been [very] smooth” and as O’Connor added, “We are very lucky to have [had] them both.”
The team’s first meet of the season is Jan. 7 at Mount Brighton; join them at the slopes at 4 p.m. to cheer them on. We can expect a very rewarding season by the team with Coach Finch at the lead, and a very dedicated and skilled team ready to ski to victory.
Photo by Kelsie O’Connor
Lyon Life 