Strathcona Nordics racers Alec Stapff and Avalon Wasteneys finished a successful winter 2014 season with two additional gains. Eighteen-year-old Stapff was accepted to the Winsport Training Academy in Canmore, Alta. Sixteen-year-old Wasteneys finished second in Canada for the Junior Girls category and was named to the National Talent Squad.
Wasteneys was selected by Cross Country Canada as a top junior for the National Talent Squad program for 16- and 17-year-olds and offered extra training at National Development Centres to help prepare her for elite racing. Wasteneys also continues to train 11 months of the year with her regional team, the Strathcona Nordics Junior Racers.
Stapff joins the Winsport Training Academy in Canmore as he prepares to train and compete in 2015 at the elite Junior Men's level. Stapff, who will continue to call the Strathcona Nordics his home club, leaves his regional team to join the new team in Alberta.
At 18, Stapff has been racing and training on Mount Washington for more than six years. Moving to the training academy, where he'll also be pursuing post-secondary studies, means Stapff has additional costs in his pursuit of excellence at the elite level. Stapff has prepared a sponsorship package, which offers benefits to local businesses and individuals. For more details, contact Stapff at alec.stapff@gmail.com.
Both Wasteneys and Stapff are saddened by the recent loss of their beloved ski coach Dave Battison. As they move forward in their racing careers, they take with them many skills and lessons learned during the thousands of hours they spent training with Battison.
Stapff says, "Dave was an inspiration, not only to his peers and athletes but to his friends. He coached the highest level of elite athletes right down to kids of the youngest age. He will be missed all across the Island, as well as Canada and even the world. He touched so many lives and changed people for the better."
To learn more about the Strathcona Nordic Ski Club, visit the website StrathconaNordics.com.
– Strathcona Nordic Ski Club