More than 60 cyclists got a grand tour of the Southern Lakes region while taking on one of the Yukon’s longest running bike races.
The 2023 riding of the Southern Lakes Yukon GranFondo took place June 3. This was the 17th year of the race which follows the South Klondike Highway and the Alaska Highway through Mount Lorne, Carcross, Tagish and other communities in the region south of Whitehorse. McClintock Bay Adventures near Swan Haven served as the start and finish line for this year’s race.
Sixty-two cyclists took on the roughly 170-kilometre course solo, in pairs or in teams of three to five, with a separate category for family teams.
The fastest overall time was logged by Michel Marceau, the only cyclist to crack five hours with a time of four hours and 57 minutes. The second-place finisher in the male solo category was Vincent Lapierre who was six minutes off Marceau’s pace. Hudson Lucier was three minutes behind LaPierre, good for third place.
The solo female category saw a first-place tie with Verena Konig and Heather Clarke crossing simultaeneously five hours 21 minutes after setting off. The next solo female to finish the race was Jodie Pongracz with a time of six hours 41 minutes — It was a tight race for the podium spots as third-place finisher Pam Booth was only a minute behind.
The fastest female duo was “The Green Bones,” Lauren Ray and Emilie Stewart Jones who cruised across the finish line in six hours 12 minutes. Team “Hehehe” placed second as Harriet Stanford and Emily Jones cycled the course in seven hours 20 minutes. Again, the run for second place was close, as third place team “Three Guardswomen,” with Leah Garparovic and Amaya Chen An-Hall, was a minute behind the team in front of them.
The men’s duo win was taken by Micah and Caius Taggart Cox or “Quad Size Large” who timed out at five and a half hours. “Butterfly Babes,” the duo of Levi and Kai Bruce, was the only other team to finish in this category, with a time of six hours 11 minutes, good for second place.
The mixed duo of Erika Mah and Darcy McCord finished in six hours 40 minutes
The fastest team was “GHVFD Chiefs,” Michael Setterington, Chris Reynolds and Martin Fry. They finished in five hours 49 minutes. Next up was the four person squad “Hope We Make It To The Wedding.” That team, with Susan Rogan, Hans Gatt, Emilie Herces and Julien Revel riding closed out the race in six hours 13 minutes. “Arctic Fire,” Jeff Bond, Glenda Koh and Lise Farynowski, placed third at six hours 19 minutes.
In the family team category, “Gears n Cheers” placed first with a time of six hours eight minutes. Its riders were Jocelyn Land Murphy, Ed Gillis, Sitka Land-Gillis and Heron Land-Gillis. Family team “The Hive,” Yanik Freeman, Cynthia Freeman, Greg Freeman and Frank Oblak, finished in six hours eight minutes. “The Robinson Roadies,” Maeve McMannus, Gayle Corry, Dawn Lammer and Tori Vollmer, finished in seven hours 15 minutes.
Contact Jim Elliot at jim.elliot@yukon-news.com
