It's all downhill for 100 Lampeter-Strasburg (L-S) High School students.

They are members of the school's Ski and Snowboard Club.

The outdoors sports enthusiasts spent Jan. 15 through 17 in Jay Peak, Vt.

"When we arrived, we had our night in, and then we went snowboarding and skiing the next day," junior Madelyn Lawler said. "Then I went over to the waterpark. That was fun. We were there for a couple hours. Then we went back. We slept and then skied again. We checked out early Sunday morning."

Club members take several trips each winter. Between 40 and 50 attend each expedition. They have also been to Jack Frost Big Boulder Resort in the Poconos, Roundtop Mountain Resort in Lewisberry, and Seven Springs Mountain Resort near Pittsburgh.

"I think it brings some of the school together," said junior Carter Peters, who is the club treasurer. "There are so many people that I met on the trips that I would have never met, and I feel like it connects seniors to freshmen, sophomores to juniors. Everyone gets to be with people they wouldn't normally talk to because of something they share as a common interest."

Junior Payton Laub added, "I just love that everyone from our school can go together and go on these trips together, so I can go with my friends and go to places that are a little bit farther than I would normally go to."

Madelyn, who enjoys snowboarding, said she decided to become involved with the club because of the influence of family members. "My brothers did it, and they always loved it, and they would take me on trips when I was little," she said. "I thought, 'Oh, there's a club; that's amazing.' All my friends were joining, so I thought, 'Let's do it.'"

She has not been disappointed. "I think it is a great time, especially when we go out on the mountains," Madelyn said. "We normally stay in groups two to three, but a lot of times we go out in like big groups and have such a fun time going down the mountain and being able to see everyone do their own little tricks."

Like many of the students, senior Jack Kirchner, the Ski and Snowboard Club president, did not know the school had this kind of group prior to joining.

Jack said some of his favorite parts of the trips are the bus rides, including the 10-hour excursion to Vermont. "They're fun," he said. "On the way there, everyone's excited and in a good mood. And on the way back, everyone is still in a good mood. There's never fighting on the bus or anything like that. Even though we had a long bus ride in Vermont, everybody had a good time interacting and having fun."

Other people on the mountains are surprised to come across a school club. "A lot of times, you meet people on the lift, and you start talking to them, and then you say that we're from Pennsylvania, and this is our school trip," Payton said. "They say how amazing it is that we get to come on these trips as a school. And it's just a really fun talking to people and learning where they're from and then getting to say we came up as a school."

The Ski and Snowboard Club meets occasionally through the school year to plan trips and discuss fundraising projects.

"I like that it gets students outside and active, and they socialize with each other," said Lindsay Shehan, who is a club adviser along with Justin Keefer and Christy McCanna. "It definitely teaches a lot of independence. It is a safe way for kids to take risks. ... In terms of fun activities for kids, you can see how excited they get to try something new. I really love that our club is a great place for beginners if they've never had the opportunity to ski or snowboard. We help make that happen. And for kids that have already grown up skiing and snowboarding, it's just a chance to be independent and go off with their friends, but in a structured environment at the same time."