The Smithers Ski & Snowboard Club, along with Hudson Bay Mountain Resort, hosted the first Teck North Zone race of the season on February 10 and 11. They stepped in on short notice after the Quesnel race was sadly cancelled due to a lack of snow. The whole zone came together to make a fantastic race happen for these hard training athletes, with full volunteer rosters both race days, including many volunteers from the Ligntning Creek Ski Club and the Prince George Ski Club.
Day 1 brought blue skies and mild temperatures for the top to bottom giant slalom, with an ambitious schedule of two races (4 runs) for U14 to U19 athletes, and two races (2 runs) for U12 athletes. The wind picked up at midday to howling levels just long enough to have everyone worried, but subsided in time to allow for a phenomenal afternoon of fast skiing.
Day 2 was another busy day with slalom on the agenda. The weather and schedule held firm and the difficult slalom hill made for entertaining athleticism. With just enough snow to work with, coaches and course crew did a great job getting the course set, and surface ready to go for the action-packed day!
Everyone in the North Zone had a fun weekend showing their northern spirit and all the new Smithers Ski & Snowboard Club infrastructure to visiting BC Alpine leadership Graham Cope and Keven Dubinsky. Thank you to everyone who took part. We are dreaming of future races on these slopes!
Next up is the “Ski the North NGSL Festival“, February 17 and 18!
~ Report submitted by Cormac Hikisch, President, SSSC
