Quebec school gives new life to old skis

It was during a visit to the 2014 Snowboard Jamboree at Stoneham Mountain Ski Resort, north of Quebec City, that a light bulb went off for François Boucher.

The phys-ed teacher noticed a bunch of broken snowboards that had been tossed in the garbage.

Boucher had been looking for a way to launch a ski and snowboard program at Chanoine-Beaudet high school, the school where he teaches in Saint-Pascal, Que., in the Lower St. Lawrence.

With limited school funding and ski mountains hours away, the phys-ed teacher had a hard time finding ways to raise the money.

But once he saw those discarded snowboards, Boucher started brainstorming with his students to find new uses for them.

SkisRécup — a name that plays on the French phrase for "what you can recycle"  — was born: the students began transforming old skis and snowboards into coffee tables, benches and coat racks.

"Since 2015, we've been raising around $1,500 annually — enough to take the students on seven ski trips each year," Boucher said.

The program raises enough to pay for the transportation and ski lift costs for the 35 students who participate.

Boucher, who previously worked as a ski coach, knows how expensive it can be to get to ski resorts.

"I really wanted to make sure children from less fortunate families would get to enjoy this sport," the teacher said.

No piece left behind

Skis and snowboards contain metal, resin, fibreglass, wood, glue and plastic, making them particularly hard to recycle, said Boucher.

"When ski companies and people throw away their skis or snowboards, they don't realize that these objects don't disintegrate. They stay permanently in landfills."

Recycling every component of the skis and snowboards became central to SkisRécup's vision.

"We try to reuse everything — we don't buy any screws; we re-use the ones from the skis," said Boucher.

Ten students enrolled in the program spend their lunch hours at the SkisRécup workshop.

They are part of a specialized learning program that aims to help students with learning difficulties.

Under the supervision of their gym teacher, the students take off the bindings, sort through the skis, sand and paint wood, and assemble the benches.

There are hundreds of skis lined up in their workshop. Several of the student-run business's partners now send them used equipment, including Ski Town in Brossard and the Canadian division of ski manufacturer Rossignol.

"It takes two to three weeks for the whole team to do a bench," said Boucher. "A lot of dedication and ingenuity goes into it."

The students are also commissioned to make custom pieces using people's personal skis. Boucher said these signature pieces are often intended for buyers' cottages.

Ski resorts also put in special orders.

Learning skills, staying in school

The program has become so popular, Boucher regularly sees students standing in front of his door, eager to join.

"Students get a sense of security here. It helps them feel part of a community, creates a sense of belonging," Boucher said.

It was exactly that team spirit that convinced Édouard Beaulieu to sign up.

"Working at the shop looked fun, and I get to hang out with my friends," he said, "I love to snowboard, and I thought recycling skis was a great way to lower the cost of skiing."

When Jérémie Lajoie joined the team, he was excited to trade the classroom for a workshop.

"I wanted to do something other than mathematics and French, understand how to sand, repair, build furniture, and how to work in a wood shop," he said.

Boucher said the program has helped students who don't necessarily enjoy the traditional school setting.

"They are kids that want to join the job market early and want to do physical tasks."

Boucher said one of his students who was having a particularly hard time following the curriculum came back to thank him after leaving school in Secondary IV.

He had found work in a wood manufacturing shop right there in Saint-Pascal.

"He was so proud — he was going to have a family, a car and everything he needed — it was something," Boucher said, clearly moved by the story.

SkisRécup already has a few contracts lined up for the season. Boucher hopes the venture will inspire other schools to include technical and professional programs in their curriculum.

"Not everyone wants to do post-secondary studies, become doctors or professors," he said. "Schools need to support a wide range of individuals exercising different professions."