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Day 2 by Kayla and Ben
Today the Alpine Skiing competitions at Canada Winter Games began with the SG race. After a fast inspection is was clear that the course, set by Nancy Jo, was as challenging as possible on the limited terrain. Out of the start hut the head wind were extremely strong; therefore, an aggressive start to your run was vital to carry speed into the key section of the course. The course dropped off onto the pitch two gates from the start. This short two gate slope was vital to carry speed onto the extremely long flats. The SG had a minimum vertical drop of 200m, but it spanned over 80 seconds duration.
The women's race started off with Kayla Benbow out the gate first. Down a clean track she managed a strong run and waited anxiously at the bottom for the rest for the girls to finish. In the end she finished third behind Lauren Lattimer (National Development Team) who won with Emily Hamill, (Alberta Alpine Ski Team) one hundredth behind. Daniel Poleschuk, back from injury, started her comeback today with no problems. Rachel Walker finished second for the BC crew in 16th while Charlotte Whitney and Anastasia Skryabina put in a good fight today against the strong Atlantic winds.
On the men's side today we had a strong showing in the top ten. Throughout the race the medal standings changed often. Ben Chaddock led Team BC with a gold medal in today's SG. Marcus Waring finished in fifth and Robbie Dixon closely followed in seventh. Dustin Fraser and Graham Kraft had a good showing in a competitive field. These results will help Team BC collect flag points towards the overall Canada Games standings.
Everyone put in a good effort and Team BC came through with strong finishes. This competition is a different experience than most 'run of the mill' ski races. Last night we experienced another event and saw Team BC kick some butt in the boxing ring. Tomorrow, after a day of slalom training, we are going to see some other events and cheer on Team BC.