Over 160 skiers from the Coast zone ski clubs braved the elements to compete in the 2025 Tyee Cup last weekend at Grouse Mountain.
Young ski racers from Sasquatch, Mount Washington, Whistler Mountain Ski Club, Grouse-Tyee, Seymour persevered through cold and wet conditions on the first day and then a Pacific downpour on the second day.
“We were challenged by the conditions and only able to run a one-run glalom on Saturday and a stubbie slalom on Sunday … but we did it!” said Kathryn Odre, Grouse Mountain Tyee Ski Club president.
A huge thanks to everyone: our sponsors (especially those who provided some impressive and much appreciated swag!), Grouse Mountain Resort, coaches, parents, volunteers and the athletes who inspired us with their resilience and team spirit.
The smiles and fun couldn’t be dampened by the weather.
A special thank you to the Chief of Race, Kris Johnson and Chief of Course, Magda (her and her team of slippers and course workers were amazing keeping the track in reasonable condition!)
Ski racing is alive and thriving in the West Kootenays! A large contingent of 150 ski racers between 8-14 years-old were treated to an impressive one-day event at Whitewater Ski Resort.
The resort provided FREE lift tickets to the racers and as well the Whitewater Ski Team waived the entry fee for all skiers from the West Kootenays clubs: Red Mountain, Salmo, Phoenix and Summit.
100 percent free event.
“Having no cost races is a long-held tradition with our club and we have maintained this free lift ticket tradition successfully through many changes in ski resort management over the years,” said Dylan Henderson, Whitewater Ski Team Program Director. “This year was another amazing celebration of ski racing,” he added.
The festival format featured 5 skill stations: Distance Jump, Speed Trap with big rollers, Skier Cross, Super G, Dual and Slalom. All participants receive a certificate with their jump distance, top speed, and time from the SG and as well awards were presented the fastest times for U12 and up for Super G and Dual Slalom. Every participant gets a ribbon according to their team placing.
In another interesting twist, there were club awards presented based on a formula of first to fifth based using times from top U8, U10 and U12 from each club. The coaches also had fun, taking their groups from station to station in an order of their choosing and repeating their favourite stations as many times as they chose.
This was the final event of a great four race series for Whitewater. Red Mountain held a Dual GS in January, Salmo a Super Combined Sl/SG, and Phoenix a Dual Slalom in February.
“Athletes and coaches commented on how much they love being able to move from station to station without having to wait in line at the start,” Henderson said. “Stations closed at 1pm and coaches were able to take their kids and explore the wild terrain of the Whitewater until the awards at 3:00. What a day!”
In the photo at the top is the Whitewater Ski Team “Yeti” doing some crowd surfing. This Yeti represents the Whitewater Ski Team team values: Respect, Community, Development, Grit and Fun.
In typical Mother Nature fashion, the mighty race crew at Sun Peaks were challenged but ultimately persevered to deliver some great racing on the OSV run during a FIS BC Cup race series last week.
Sun Peaks Resortprovided a spectacular backdrop for the races, with beautiful bluebird racing on the first two days (giant slalom) with BC Ski Team member Baptiste Cais claiming gold and silver medals in the men’s races, with BCST teammate Alexa Brownlie taking the wins in both women’s races. See the full results at the button below.
Heavy snowfall on Tuesday night added a complexity layer, with the race crew and coaches challenged with removing over 20 cm’s of snow from the race track. Blue sky and sun again returned for the final day of slalom racing on Thursday.
“The track was in great shape in the GS events and then we got hammered with snow overnight. A big shout out to Sun Peaks Resort who at the last minute delivered us six cats to quickly clean up the slalom hill.”
Jeff Robinson, Chief of Race (Shadow)
“The Sun Peaks Alpine Club ROC was well-prepared to host the event and conditions for the first two days of GS could not have been better,” said Graham Cope, Chief of Race. “The conditions for the slalom races proved challenging but all parties pitched in to make sure that racing conditions were safe and fair. Congratulations to the ROC, coaches, athletes, and volunteers for a successful race series.”
There’s nothing quite like a bluebird day and a firm race surface … especially at Red Mountain Resort!
The Red Mountain Racers hosted another beauty of a race series, at the Teck Kootenay Zone Round 3 on March 1 & 2. The race was well attended by 177 athletes in the U12, U14, and U16 age groups from both the East and West Kootenays. All age groups had an opportunity to race slalom and giant slalom over the two days with two ROC’s running simultaneous events.
Early birds were treated to a beautiful sunrise and bluebird sky during the day and solid snow conditions. The two courses held up throughout the day.
Red Mountain Racers can’t thank all of the wonderful volunteers enough for their commitment to early mornings and hard work. And of course a big thank you to Red Resort for their commitment to alpine racing!
Sunny skies, wide smiles, and great attitudes were prominent in a well-organized Coast zone race series last weekend at Cypress Mountain Resort.
Over 100 volunteers worked behind-the-scenes and on the race courses, pulling off two days of slalom racing for 140+ U14 boys and girls. The race ran down Bowen Face, next to Midway Chair, at Cypress. Beautiful weather made for a comfortable time on the hill, though snow conditions required extra effort from the course crew to maintain.
“A record number of racers competed at Cypress Mountain this weekend. The sun accompanied us all through the weekend, and our course crew and a high number of volunteers helping out contributed to a successful event. It was great to see everyone helping out, and to see our team performing and skiing to the best of their abilities. Top ten and podium results are proof of the level of our racers. A big thank you to Cypress Mountain and all sponsors that support us throughout the season,” said Raul Anguita, Program Director.
A big thank you to Helene Tremblay for these incredible images!
Race Organizing Committee
TD: Carmen Kirshenblatt
Chief of Race: Virginia Abbott Race / Kim Mohr
Admin: Clara Cheong
Chief of Course: Ian Campbell
Chief of Gates: Jaret Lang
Chief of Timing: Kaveh Afshari
Chief of Volunteers: Andrea Vigna
Incredible Event Photos
A special thank you to Helene Tremblay for sharing these photos at no charge. She spent hours and hours editing these this week. She’s worked on so many we needed two albums!
The Big White Ski Club hosted the Nancy Greene Ski League Okanagan Zone Finals at Big White Ski Resort, last weekend, welcoming racers from Sun Peaks, Apex, and Vernon.
The first day of racing had the U8 racers take on the dual glalom course under perfect conditions, complete with smiling faces and sunny skies. Lucy Moose (the Big White mascot) even came out to cheer on the kids. Each racer completed two runs, showcasing their skills and enthusiasm for the sport.
The next day featured the U10 and U12 racers, who hit the course under equally-stunning weather, with sunshine and above-zero temperatures for spring like conditions. A speed trap added an extra thrill to the day, and all participants, coaches, and families enjoyed a BBQ lunch.
This event was also an important training opportunity for our Race Organizing Committee, which featured many new volunteers stepping into key roles. Their hard work, along with the dedication of coaches, parents, and officials, made the event a success.
A huge thank you to everyone who participated, supported, and helped make the Okanagan Zone Finals a fantastic experience for all!
Photos courtesy of Samuel Finch and Gavin Crawford
