Nestled in Northeast Pennsylvania near the Pocono Mountains, USA member PPL Susquehanna has taken team building to a new level – this time, to the top of the mountain. Thursday evenings during the winter season, nearly two dozen members of Team Susquehanna and a few of their friends gather to compete in downhill ski and snowboard racing at Montage Mountain in Scranton, about 30 miles north of the Station.
This year, as they have for the past 23 years, Team Susquehanna hits the slopes. But this year, they do it as two teams. The young, quick, uber-competitive team called the PPL Nukies, is currently fighting for top spot in Montage Mountain’s Adult Race League.
PPL Nukies is comprised of fifteen members who, by day, serve PPL Susquehanna as outage schedulers, site design engineers, maintenance planners, the 77 year-old husband of a PPL Susquehanna retiree, as well as a father/daughter team (dad is one of the original members of the 1992 PPL Susquehanna team). On Thursday nights, some don their speed suits and freshly waxed skis and head for the top of the mountain, game faces firmly affixed.
“The ski team has been a great opportunity to network and meet people from other departments outside of the work setting,” said PPL Nukies Team Captain Kristin Buchholz, who serves as a Senior Assessor in Nuclear Oversight. “We are able to get to know each other more and it has made it easier when working with them at the plant.”
“I’ve also been dubbed the team ‘cheerleader’ – before the race, I send out the results of the previous race. I want to celebrate the team’s accomplishments and get them excited for the next race,” continues Kristin. “It’s very important to have a full team participate in the race so we can maximize our points. During the race, I watch team members’ races and give them pointers in the course – even wax skis before the race to improve our overall performance.”
The second team, the Susquehanna Nukies, is comprised of seven seasoned skiers – a mix of active and retired nuclear professionals from the Station – several of whom formed the first PPL Susquehanna ski team in 1992. Plant Manager Jeff Helsel is one of them. He joins original team members, site design engineers, a retired SRO – even a member of the current license class.
“Many an issue was discussed on the ski lift or in the car ride up or home,” said Jeff. “And it has helped with team building skills and with establishing relationships,” said Jeff. “Getting to know folks and how they interact and react helps establish how you approach things with them at work. And you can recruit some advocates for initiatives there, as well.”
One of the first members of Susquehanna’s 1992 ski team, Rob Breslin, who earned his Senior Reactor Operator certification in the late 80’s, has served in many roles at the Station, including manager of Chemistry, of the Refuel Floor, of Maintenance, of Outages, and of the Extended Power Uprate team. He continues to ski for the team as well as support the Station as a contractor.
Rob believes participation on the ski team makes each person feel more like a member of the Station team. And it reminds him of his earlier days at PPL Susquehanna.
“What I found is that the camaraderie and team spirit – beating the other teams – is a lot like pulling together to out-perform other utilities, and the personal relationships forged strengthen the teamwork back at work,” said Rob. “What reminds me of my days at the Station is how we played together and worked together, not wishing to let your teammates, or coworkers, down. Skiing on this team offers a tremendous amount of self-induced accountability.”
As a side benefit, a ski team is also a great way to recruit nuclear professionals to the Station. With a successful internship program at PPL (over the past two years, between 20 and 40 college students have been recruited to serve in capacities including E-plan, engineering, operations, maintenance, and communications at both the Station and in Allentown’s corporate headquarters), skiing is also an informal team building exercise which draws downhill racers and snowboarders to the Station and to the slopes.
“I was trying to get younger team members interested in the race league since we lost some team members to retirement last year,” said Kristin. “I wanted to get some new interest and so, by word of mouth, we ended up with a second team! It is so exciting to have about 22 people interested in racing.”
Work Management’s Jack Gutshall has a far less formal way of spotting and recruiting ski team members. “We look for the nutjobs,” he says with a smile. So why does Jack do it? Why does he race?
“Are you kiddin’ me?” he asked. “I love speed! Shooting the apex, hooking the gates, it’s just a great feeling.”
Watching Team Susquehanna members scream down the mountain this evening (it’s 12 degrees), you get the feeling that these folks really care about one another. When they finally pile into Montage’s bar and grill for camaraderie and steaming pasta from the resort’s buffet, it becomes clear. They’re good friends. They ask one another about their performances that night – connecting with one another on a personal level.
“Actually, it’s just a good group of people who come out to ski,” said Jack. “There’s always been a friendly competition among us, and between our teams and others, but it’s more than that.”
And this night, PPL Nukies Team Captain Kristin Buchholz returns to the table where more than 15 team members have gathered. Amid plates of food, frosted lagers and laughter, Kristin shares the news that she’s earned fifth place honors (out of a field of close to 80) for her evening’s run. A fitting tribute to the 23 years of skiing Team Susquehanna members have given to the mountain, to the Station, and to each other.
Fifteen of the 22 members of PPL Susquehanna’s Montage Mountain Adult Racing League teams joined together recently for great racing, camaraderie and food. This year is their 23rd season.
PPL Susquehanna’s Jack Gutshall and Rob Breslin warm themselves recently following a night on the slopes at Montage Mountain.