While many college students will be spending their spring breaks traveling out of state to sandy beaches or visiting family, Kirsten Evers, a junior in graphic design, will be spending her spring break in Sun Valley, Id., in sub-freezing weathers.

Evers joined the club ski team at the beginning of this year and has had instant success. She has competed in ten races over the course of five weekends and has won every race, which including the Regional competition which propelled her to compete in Nationals in Sun Valley.

While Evers was not quite sure she would be able to win at first, she said after her first race she knew she could do more than just compete with the rest of the racers.

“I didn’t really know what to expect going into the first race,” Evers said. “But from what Camille [Sluder] told me, I knew that I had a good chance at being in the top three. I won the first race by [nearly] two seconds, and everyone kept saying, ‘Whoa, where did you come from?’ It was definitely an eye-opening experience.”

Sluder, a sophomore in chemistry, is one of the race captains on the team, and she was the only competitive female skier on the team last year.

Sluder said she was not only excited to have another female skier join the team, but when she was first introduced to Evers, she knew that she was special.

“When I first met Kirsten, I just asked her the typical questions we always ask,” Sluder said. “But from her responses, I could tell that she was going to be one of the best in the conference. I kept telling her that she wasn’t going to have any competition, and now that she’s going to nationals, I can say, ‘Told ya so.’ “

Evers has been a competitive skier for much longer than just this year. She is originally from Sammamish, Wa., and moved to Seattle.

While living in Washington, Evers was able to race at a competitive level that is simply not available in North Carolina. Evers said where she is from helped her a lot when she began skiing for the Wolfpack.

“I think [my success] has everything to do with the fact that I’m from Washington and had the opportunities that I had,” Evers said. “The top racers in this area didn’t have all of the coaches, hills, camps or even the opportunity to travel to some of the best mountains. I think that I appreciate those opportunities a lot more now.”

The team itself traveled to several mountains, such as Beech Mountain and Bryce Resort, to race competitively. But Evers and Sluder were the only two female skiers to travel to each competition.

Sluder said that while the trips themselves take some commitment to the sport, being part of the team itself is not much of a time commitment compared to some other sports.

“As far as the trips go, it can be time consuming. It is an entire weekend commitment,” Sluder said. “But as far as other time commitments, we don’t practice during the week and we only have one meeting each week on Tuesdays that don’t last very long. So if you want to give up five weekends to have an awesome time, it really is worth it.”

Evers said the trips are a normal part of ski racing, and that is what makes it fun for her.

“Anyone who has racing experience knows you have to travel sometimes long distances to get to mountains,” Evers said. “That’s what makes it fun. You get to know the people you travel with, and it makes you feel more like a part of the team.”

Though she has already committed five weekends of her time to the ski team, Evers will now also spend her entire spring break skiing in another state.

While it may not be where she planned on spending her break, Evers said traveling to Sun Valley should be a great experience.

“Nationals will take up my entire spring break,” Evers said. “But I get to train, which I don’t get to do here, and we’ll be in Sun Valley. I know a lot of people here think of resorts in Colorado when they think of skiing destinations, but Sun Valley is absolutely beautiful.”

Evers will travel to Idaho on Sunday and stay until the following Sunday. She will be competing in two races against the highest level of competition. While she may be traveling alone, she said she has a lot of friends that she has met while competing with the Pack.

But when she gets back, win or lose, Sluder said she can’t wait to work with Evers again next season.

“It’s great to have her on the team. It adds another level to our racing and she really has been like a mentor to me,” Sluder said. “She has so much training and she can give us all tips, which is great for anyone who wants to compete in skiing.”