The first of three races in the 2019 Yukon Orienteering Championships was June 5 on the Grey Mountain biathlon trails when 74 participants took part in the middle distance championship.
The middle-distance discipline is a forest orienteering race with a typical winning time of approximately 30 minutes. Longer than a sprint race and shorter than a long-distance race, middle-distance races are held on very technical courses, requiring competitors to make decisions quickly.
This race had the additional challenge of the many different apparent paths, courtesy of the network of biathlon trails in the area.
A total of 12 participants raced in the expert category, a 3.2-kilometre course with 13 controls.
Fastest to finish was Leif Blake, with a time of 26 minutes and 31 seconds. Behind Blake was Caelan McLean with a time of 30 minutes and 20 seconds, and Bren Langbakk with a time of 32 minutes and 24 seconds.
The advanced category, a 2.6-km course with 11 controls, included 11 participants.
First to finish was Erik Blake with a time of 32 minutes and two seconds. Second place went to Jane Hollenberg, who finished in 44 minutes and 55 seconds, and third place went to Jeremy Johnson with a time of 45 minutes and 35 seconds.
The largest group of the day was the intermediate category with 35 participants racing on a 2.5-km course with 11 controls.
Top spot went to Virginia Sarrazin, who finished in 33 minutes and 47 seconds, followed by Pauline Gallinat with a time of 35 minutes and 46 seconds. The team of Selena Boothroyd and Scott Williams were third, finishing in 40 minutes and 54 seconds.
Lastly, the novice category attracted 16 participants who raced on a 1.1-km course with eight controls.
First place went to Stian Langbakk with a time of 11 minutes and 55 seconds, followed by Morel Graham and River Horne in second with a time of 12 minutes and 35 seconds, and Peter and Kevin Embacher in third with a time of 19 minutes and 29 seconds.
Next up is the sprint-distance championship race on June 12 in Hillcrest before the championships conclude with the long-distance race on June 19 near Chadden Lake.
Contact John Hopkins-Hill at john.hopkinshill@yukon-news.com
Novice results: 1.1 km, eight controls
1 Stian Langbakk 11:55
2 Morel Graham & River Horne 12:35
3 Peter & Kevin Embacher 19:29
4 Erik Embacher 19:38
5 Leslie van Tongeren 21:45
6 Tommy & Christine McConnell 23:51
7 Mallory & Krysti Horton 24:18
8 Henri & Dave Rogers 25:25
9 Sarah Johnson 25:25
10 Carl Embacher 25:25
11 Maura Glenn 26:40
Intermediate results: 2.5 km, 11 controls
1 Virginia Sarrazin 33:47
2 Pauline Gallinat 35:46
3 Selena Boothroyd & Scott Williams 40:54
4 Sheri Hogdeboom 42:51
4 Lenore Morris 42:51
6 Paxon Lipovsky 46:08
7 Kate & Pat Tobler 47:31
8 Krystal Karais 56:52
9 Iliana, Aurelia & Glenda Koh 58:05
10 Stian Langbakk 59:20
11 Adney Karais 59:22
12 Deb Kiemele 61:42
13 Kieran Horton 64:05
14 Helen Slama 64:45
15 Kala Emard 66:03
16 Eric Labreoque 67:16
17 Dianne Hart 68:45
18 Katherine Woodstock 71:39
19 Emily Kralisch-Sequin 72:29
20 Jonah McConnell 79:40
21 Aramintha Bradford 79:43
22 Finegand Bradford 79:49
23 Nesta Leduc 82:41
24 Ev Pasichnyk 87:46
25 Gwen Hogan 88:57
25 Beth Mulloy 88:57
27 Carl Turcotte & Rima Khouri MP (53:21)
Advanced results: 2.6 km, 11 controls
1 Erik Blake 32:02
2 Jane Hollenberg 44:55
3 Jeremy Johnson 45:35
4 Bruce McLean 49:46
5 Lara Melnik 55:40
6 Micah Hildes 72:29
7 Julianna Scramstad 73:55
8 Craig Brooks 96:10
9 Emilie Stewart-Jones MP (40:32)
10 Doug Hitch & Rene Dugrenier MP (126:01)
Expert results: 3.2 km, 13 controls
1 Leif Blake 26:31
2 Caelan McLean 30:20
3 Brent Langbakk 32:24
4 David Bakker 34:02
5 Pia Blake 36:20
6 Dave Hildes 41:04
7 Ben Hancock 48:11
8 Bob Sagar 67:05
9 Matthias Purdon 67:10
10 Brian Horton 73:10
11 Darren Holcombe MP (42:12)
12 Afan Jones MP (43:29)