Twenty-two Vancouver Island cross-country skiers from Strathcona Nordic Ski Club joined more than 300 other competitors from across BC for one of the key events in the race calendar at the first Teck BC Cup of the season, hosted by the Caledonia Nordic Ski Club in Prince George, January 27-28.
Caledonia is a fantastic venue which is a regular stop on the racing circuit, including hosting the Canada Games in 2015. Like many ski venues, Caledonia has struggled with snow conditions this winter, but got a reprieve 10 days before the event with a good snowfall and cold weather. The trails team did an excellent job setting up fun but challenging courses, which were very spectator-friendly; warm weather made for a great atmosphere, and the forecasted rain did not materialize.
The event featured a Freestyle Technique Sprint race on Saturday, and a Mass Start Classic Technique race on Sunday. In the U10 category, Aiden Kapalka of Comox and Harper Harmatiuk of Courtenay had strong placings. Kapalka pulled off a third place on Sunday, while Harmatiuk finished second.
U12s Bjorn Bohac and Owen Racicot, both of Comox, finished with solid results both days; Bjorn advancing to the Sprint semifinals on Saturday.
U12 girls Leila El Amiri had a good semifinal performance on Saturday and a second-place finish on Sunday, while Ella Moore had strong sprint and sixth-place classic race. Lexi Kapalka proudly waved the SNSC flag with strong finishes in both races.
In the U14 category, Ben Galik of Royston and Reed MacInnis of Qualicum Beach had strong 10th and 14th placings on Saturday and 11th and 14th placings on Sunday, respectively.
Clara Harmatiuk of Courtenay held her own in competitive races on both days.
Owen Meldrum of Campbell River had a breakout 11th-place in a very competitive classic race and made it to the finals in Saturday鈥檚 sprints finishing sixth overall.
The U14 Girls-2 category was dominated by Amelia Moore of Comox, who skied away from the competition to win Saturday鈥檚 sprints, and had a decisive win in Sunday鈥檚 Classic race, finishing fourth overall in the combined U14/U16 mass start race. Linnea Wolf and Zainab El Amiri, both of Victoria, had strong races, with Zainab placing top-10 on Saturday, but crashing out during Sunday鈥檚 technical descents 鈥� fortunately with no injuries.
U16 boys Cameron Meldrum of Campbell River and Everett Wells of Victoria raced to strong results, Meldrum advancing to semifinals in the sprints, and a respectable 13th place in the mass start. U16-1 girls saw Annika Bohac of Comox with a strong qualifier and advancing to the semifinals, and some solid skiing on Sunday. U16-2 Girls Gillian Galik qualified first in her sprints and powered to third place in the sprint finals despite a fall on course. Galik also finished third in the classic race, overcoming a broken pole. Talia MacPhail-McGrady of Comox had a strong sprint day making it to the final and finishing in fifth overall; Sunday she finished in a solid eighth place.
U18 Gavin Chatterton of Campbell River edged out his competitors in a picture-perfect boot-slide to win the sprint finals and outpaced a number of his rivals with a very solid second place on Sunday in his category (and third overall).
U18 Girls Carly Ram of Courtenay fought to a second place in Saturday鈥檚 sprint finals but was brought down at the start of Sunday鈥檚 classic race and unfortunately was forced to retire with injuries. Madelaine Galik of Royston continued her return to racing after an early-season illness with gritty races both days, fighting back toward race shape.
SNSC racers continue their season at the Teck Coast Cup, held at Mt. Washington on 3-4 Feb, and Teck BC Cup #2 in Whistler 10-11 Feb.
For more info: https://www.strathconanordics.com/
