Fourteen local cross-country ski racers represented Vancouver Island and the Strathcona Nordic Ski Club at the prestigious Haywood NorAm race in Vernon before Christmas—and they all enjoyed fantastic results.
The sprint race on Dec. 19 challenged both racers and wax technicians with changing conditions and a good amount of fresh snow throughout the morning, but the athletes showed they were prepared and rose to the challenge.
Notable results included two medals for the Strathcona Nordics: Tallon Noble -gold medal in Juvenile Boys; Madeleine Guimond – bronze medal in Juvenile Girls.
Saturday's conditions were excellent with another accumulation of snow on the Sovereign Lake trails. Local racers performed well once again with Tallon Noble continuing his winning streak, taking gold in the Juvenile event. Ross Lamon, Connor McGrady, and Matthew Salmon also put in solid performances, with four racers finishing top nine in the Juvenile event.
On the girls’ side, Madeleine Guimond also continued her solid weekend performance with a credible seventh place, and young Emmy Stapff, racing up in the Juvenile category, had an excellent race finishing top nine in the Juvenile event.
The Strathcona Nordics racers were in Prince George for the BC Cup #1 races on Jan. 3-4. You can follow the racers on StrathconaNordics.com.
In other news, a pre-Christmas dump of snow, excellent cold (for the Island) conditions and mostly bluebird skies made for a fantastic Teck Regional On-Snow camp held at Mount Washington on Dec. 27-30. Fifty-five athletes participated in a variety of activities including the annual classic team relay, ski-athlon and the new and very popular hill climb/slalom team relay race.
The Strathcona Nordic Ski Club and Cross Country BC were fortunate to have the assistance of Callaghan Valley Training Centre head coach Chris Manhard for a portion of the camp. In addition to working with the various race team groups, Chris led the whole group in a series of fun and challenging dynamic drills, agility activities and a super series of sprints. The words: “Can we do that again” was a constant refrain for the remainder of the camp!
In addition to on-snow training and activities athletes also gained considerably from a series of visualization and mental skills training sessions and are looking forward to applying those skills to upcoming races including the Teck BC Midget Championships which are being hosted Feb. 7-8 by SNSC and Mount Washington.
Meanwhile, the Nordics still have some spots available in their 10-week cross-country programs, which focus on fun, technique, and social skiing.
The adult recreational program is for those who wish to improve their technique (classic and skate) and fitness through a season of coached sessions. Participants meet on a weekend morning and are coached by qualified club coaches. You can register for Saturday or for Sunday sessions and choose the beginner, intermediate, or advanced group.
The Youth Rec, SNAP, and Rabbit programs also have a few spots available. These programs focus on the FUNdamentals of skiing and help youth and children develop confidence, build overall motor skills, and get the kids out skiing on a weekend morning with a group of peers. Here, you can also register for Saturday or for Sunday sessions.
Programs begin Jan. 10. Visit StrathconaNordics.com to register and to learn more.
– Strathcona Nordic Ski Club