“The Harvard ski team has been really helpful in providing that experience,” Carey said. “I think everyone’s had a really positive experience. We’ve had some people in the program that have been able to advance their rehabilitation on skis, which has been really exciting to see.”

But the veterans are not the only ones reaping the benefits.

Both City and Wiegand stress the ways in which the program has helped the Crimson’s skiers both technically and mentally.

“This is one of my first experiences [coaching],” Wiegand says. “You don’t realize what it is you’re doing until you try to teach someone. It’s a good opportunity to look at my own skiing.”

But more than that, the program has allowed Harvard’s Nordic skiers to remind themselves of the joys of their sport in the midst of the college season.

“Sports and being an athlete can be ... very self-centered,” City says. “We can get very focused on ourselves. I think it’s really important to take a look around every now and then. It sort of puts things in perspective.”

—Staff writer Christina C. McClintock can be reached at ccmcclin@fas.harvard.edu.