During the weekend’s Don Sumanik race series at Mt. McIntyre, cross-country skiers finally got a crack at the new Canada Winter Games racing trails.
The competition was tough and made for some exciting finishes, despite less-than-ideal conditions.
Icy sections and sparse snow added to the challenge as skiers negotiated the difficult terrain at high speeds.
Saturday’s freestyle races featured a mass-start in the stadium area, while Sunday’s classic races used an individual timed start.
Yukon Ski Team members Emily Nishikawa and David Greer took home top honours after the weekend series was finished. Both were awarded the Sumanik trophies for posting the best overall time for the two days combined.
“I was pretty happy with my race,” said Nishikawa after the trophy presentation on Sunday. Her strong finish in the classic (over a minute ahead of the next racer) made up for a disappointing second place in Saturday’s freestyle.
“I’d say today went a lot better than yesterday, I felt pretty good both days, but I took a couple falls yesterday.”
Bryn Knight ended up winning the freestyle, with Nishikawa six and a half seconds back after a dramatic downhill wipeout entering the stadium.
In the open men’s race, David Greer won Saturday’s race after duking it out for much of the 7.5-kilometre course with second place finisher Ray Sabo, then putting on the jets in Sunday’s 10-kilometre course, powering up the hills and taking the title by more than a minute.
“Saturday’s race was tougher, because of the mass start,” said Greer. “All my competition was right beside me — it was hard to get away.”
He’s not complaining though.
“The tougher the courses are, the more I like it,” he said.
The weekend’s results will be used by Cross Country Yukon as selection races for both the Arctic Winter Games to be held in Alaska, and the Canadian Nationals, which will be held in Thunder Bay.
Both of these race series are scheduled for early March.
The Sumanik races had already been postponed from their original December date, but organizers were anxious to test the timing systems and the new trails and athletes were anxious to test their mettle.
“The course was pretty good,” said Nishikawa. “I really like the new trails, they’re challenging. It would have been better with a bit more snow.”
The scant snow forced organizers to use the freestyle course for both races, abandoning the classic course that runs north of the wax room.
“It’s amazing we were able to host the races, considering how little snow there is,” said Yukon Ski Team coach Alain Masson.
“We’re hoping for a bit more snow before westerns.” Whitehorse will host the Western Cross-Country Skiing Championships in late March.
Saturday freestyle races (mass start)
Atom one-kilometre
1st Natalie Hynes
2nd Maggie O’Connor-
Brook
3rd Pelly Braun
Pee Wee Boys one-kilometre
1st Caelen McLean
Pee Wee Girls
one-kilometre
1st Morgan Paul
2nd Eliza Paul
3rd Kassi Wright
Mini Midget Girls
2.5-kilometre
1st Holly Bull
2nd Nesha Wright
3rd Marie-Louise Roy
Mini Midget Boys
2.5-kilometre
1st Anatole Tuzlak
2nd Trevor Bray
3rd Christopher Anderson
Midget Girls 2.5-kilometre
1st Janelle Greer
2nd Heidi Brook
3rd Dahria Beatty
Midget Boys 2.5-kilometre
1st Jeff Wood
2nd Knute Johnsgaard
3rd Fabian Brook
Juvenile Girls 5-kilometre
1st Brittany Smith
2nd Ziggy Reimer
Juvenile Boys 7.5-kilometre
1st Colin Abbott
2nd Logan Potter
3rd Nansen Murray
Open Women 7.5-kilometre
1st Bryn Knight
2nd Emily Nishikawa
3rd Sarah Murray
Open Men 7.5 kilometre
1st David Greer
2nd Raymond Sabo
3rd John Parry
Sunday classic races
Atom one-kilometre
1st Maggie O’Connor-
Brook
Pee Wee Girls
one-kilometre
1st Morgan Paul
2nd Eliza Paul
Mini Midget Girls
2.5-kilometre
1st Holly Bull
2nd Nesha Wright
3rd Mary-Louise Roy
Mini Midget Boys
2.5-kilometre
1st Anatole Tuzlak
2nd Trevor Bray
Midget Girls 2.5-kilometre
1st Janelle Greer
2nd Dahria Beatty
3rd Kendra Murray
Midget Boys 2.5-kilometre
1st Jeff Wood
2nd Knute Johnsgaard
3rd Fabian Brook
Juvenile Girls
3.75-kilometre
1st Ziggy Reimer
2nd Brittany Smith
Juvenile Boys five-kilometre
1st Nansen Murray
2nd Colin Abbott
3rd Logan Potter
Open Women 7.5-kilometre
1st Emily Nishikawa
2nd Bryn Knight
3rd Sarah Murray
Open Men 10-kilometre
1st David Greer
2nd Raymond Sabo
3rd John Parry