The new season is just around the corner for the Whitehorse Cross Country Ski Club and it should be ranked as one of the most exciting to date.

Several projects related to the 2007 Canada Winter Games are now underway, which means improved trails and a better bridge through the stadium, said Mike Gladish, the club's manager, in an interview Tuesday.

'Work is going on in the ski stadium, just south of the multiplex,' he explained. 'They're developing a sprint course and start and finish areas. There's going to be a lot of slide slopes and areas for kids on skis to play on as well.

'The stadium is being transformed into a more interesting, ski-friendly area.'

Several short loops, ranging from 2.5 to five kilometres, are being created on the ski trails behind Mount McIntyre, some for skating races and some for classic each have different standards. The club had to make one and a half kilometres of new trail, but the rest of the work will use existing trail.

Some dangerous trail intersections are also being eliminated and high traffic areas will now be wider and safer, said Gladish.

'There's been work going on for three or four days and we've got probably 10 more working days to go,' he said, adding the clearing of trees has been going on throughout the past few months. 'We're hoping to have it done by October 15th, when we hold the ski swap.'

The work in the stadium has been delayed, due to the fact it's being done in conjunction with the multiplex and because of the expense behind it, said Gladish.

'The stadium won't get done until the end of November, which is sort of an inconvenience, because we won't have a bridge for the first month or so of the season.

'It's a very expensive project. One of the reasons for the delay is we've been having trouble getting the money allowed for it. We originally budgeted around $70,000, but it's ending up costing about $170,000.'

But, said Gladish, it's worth it because the long-term benefits of a new stadium outweigh the hassles. The bridge is needed for the 2006 Northwestel Western Canada Championships, which the Whitehorse club will host in the middle of March.

'Once the bridge is up, we should be ready to host the Westerns,' he said.

In the meantime, skiers will have to either ski through the stadium or walk across the road, in the absence of a bridge. They can also ski back around, using Olympic trail.

Despite a mild fall, snow on the mountains has added to the anticipation of the new ski season and the first event for the club the annual ski swap is just a few weeks away, Oct. 15.

'That's usually our big kick off,' said Gladish. 'This year, we're trying to make it a little more attractive.'

Club memberships are now on sale, available at Coast Mountain Sports, Sportslodge and at the ski base at Mount McIntyre.

'The only unknown for us every year is the snow,' said Gladish. 'Obviously, last year we had an amazing season. I don't expect two perfect seasons in a row, I just hope we have a good season this year.'

Grooming on the trails begins as soon as the snow starts to fall and skiing usually starts by mid-November. Last year, skiers were on the trails at the end of October. The earliest the season has ever gotten underway is October 16th, which was in 2002.

No matter when the opening day is, Gladish expects it will be a successful year for the club, with a good board, positive changes with the stadium and trails, and the Westerns on tap for March.

'(And) we have a very big training squad,' he added, about the competitive skiers from the club. 'It's impressive to see 30 kids in the summer. I think we can expect some good results and I think we can expect to be very proud of the people who represent us.'