LEAD -- Thanks to the Rapid City Downtown Optimist Club, scores of youngsters have learned the basics of skiing.

The service club sponsored its seventh annual Learn to Ski Day at Terry Peak Saturday, helping 20 children from the Big Brothers/Big Sisters program learn new skills for skiing.

“A lot of these kids have never skied before,” volunteer organizer Nate Larson said. “It’s great for them to get outside.”

Dominic Christensen of Rapid City is one of those children who boarded a bus, loaned by the Rapid City Club for Boys, at 7 a.m. Saturday to make the trip to Lead. “I like to play in the snow. I tried snowboarding, but the snowboard broke,” he said of his earlier experience. He had never tried a pair of skis before. Christensen said his primary goal for the day was to learn to come to a stop effectively.

When the group arrived at Terry Peak, they found a layer of freshly fallen snow on the slopes, a perfect layer of powder twinkling under the sun-drenched sky.

Larson and Jarrod Koppmann, both of Rapid City, are the primary organizers of the event. They both have a passion for skiing, and Larson said they enjoy the opportunity to share the experience with local children.

Larson said students have a formal ski school at 10 a.m., followed by lunch, then about three hours of afternoon skiing with volunteer guides from the Optimist Club, Black Hills Ski Club and Big Brothers/Big Sisters.

“At the end of the day, the kids have so much fun they don’t want to go home,” Larson said.

He said donations from the Black Hills Community Bank, Wells Fargo Bank, Peak Sports, Edge Sports, Scheels, J. Scull Construction Service, M&G Oil Company and B&L Bagels offset the costs of ski rentals, fuel and snacks. Terry Peak Ski Area also discounts the costs for the use of the facility.