Trackset this morning and 86% good
10K up Redearth Creek. Mar 9, 2010
The meadow at Shadow Lake Lodge with Mt Ball in the background. Mar 9, 2010
Shadow Lake Lodge and cabins. Mar 9, 2010
The trail to Shadow Lake was snowmobile packed. Mar 9, 2010
The 3K to Shadow Lake is a narrow, winding trail through the forest. It’s only about a metre wide, so you don’t have much room for error.
Gorgeous scenery along Redearth Creek(Copper Mtn). Mar 9, 2010
The weather forecast is calling for warm temperatures, so it’s hard to say how long this trail will stay in good shape. When conditions deteriorate, if you can reconcile yourself to removing your skis and walking for the first 2K, the remainder of the trail should still be fairly decent.
The trail approx 1/2K from Shadow Lake Lodge. Mar 9, 2010
I ran out of time, so I didn’t get a chance to go further and see Shadow Lake. It was already after 5 pm, so I had to start back down. The trail to the lake is about a further 1K, and it was covered with deep snow.
If you haven’t seen them yet, the Lake Louise loppet results are posted here
Loppet results: Calgary ski club
Where else could you finish a race in such a beautiful setting?
A skier approaches the finish line of the Lake Louise loppet. March 7, 2010
It was a gorgeous day with good snow conditions yesterday in Lake Louise for the loppet. The lake was frozen and free of slush so we were able to do the initial 2K right on the lake. The only complaint I had was that the temperature warmed up considerably during the race, rendering my wax job insufficient for proper grip. My friend and nemesis, Peter Neumann, passed me at the 6K point and went on to win the gold medal in our 10K race, one minute ahead of me. Hey, Olympian Chandra Crawford only beat me by 10 minutes!
With the additional Ks on the lake, it turns out that the 10K was actually 11K and the 20K event was actually 21K.
John Morrison approaches the finish line at the Lake Louise loppet. March 7, 2010
One of the neat things about the loppet is the “Wooden Ski event” where skiers dress the part and of course use wooden skis. It adds a lot of colour to the day:
Skiers on wooden skis cross the finish line at the Lake Louise loppet. March 7, 2010
At the awards ceremony, some of the other participants posed for this next photo. It never fails to bring a smile to my face when I see Ian cross the finish line with that Boer War era pipe in his mouth:
Participants in the Lake Louise loppet's "Wooden ski Race." March 7, 2010
The three of us, better known as Team TNT took home some hardware with Cheryl winning a silver medal in her race:
Bob with silver, Cheryl with silver, and Peter with gold in the Lake Louise loppet. March 7, 2010
A big thanks to all the volunteers from the Calgary Ski Club who work many hours, organizing, shovelling snow to build the ramps(I know, I used to do it) and construct a fantastic course for us to ski on.
According the weather forecast, it looks like there’s some much-needed snow on the way. Don’t forget about the Western Canadian Masters Championships at Golden, BC starting on Friday. Read more western-canadian-masters-championships. A family-friendly, more casual event will be held on Sunday at Emerald Lake. John Morrison, one of the local groomers, reports that the snow on the lake is in great shape.
Steve Riggs provided the following photo and report on Mt Shark:
Mt Shark. Mar 7, 2010. Photo courtesy of Steve Riggs
Hi Bob,
I’ve been concentrating on backcountry skiing for the last few
weekends, but for a change of pace, we xc skied at Mt. Shark on Sunday.
The recent grooming and tracksetting remain in great shape throughout the network, with hardpacked spring conditions.
We found that Swix universal klister worked quite well, and that the
snow surface in general did not soften up too much during the
afternoon, keeping things fast.
The trail down to the Spray River beyond Watridge Lake would be
recommended only for xc skiers with nerves of steel, or sturdy metal-
edged touring gear- it was very icy.
Cheers,
Steve Riggs
Filed under: Golden, PLPP(Peter Lougheed Prov Park), Ski Race | Tags: Elk Pass, Golden, Lake Louise, PLPP
This warm weather has everyone concerned about the condition of the trails. Are conditions still good at Elk Pass? I see they groomed and trackset it yesterday.
Don’t forget, it’s the Lake Louise Loppet tomorrow(Sunday March 7).
This event next weekend in Golden looks like fun and it sounds like they’ve got snow Western Canadian Masters Championships
Filed under: Kananaskis, PLPP(Peter Lougheed Prov Park) | Tags: Elk Pass, Kananaskis, PLPP, Pocaterra, Tyrwhitt, Whiskey Jack
Snow and cooler temps needed
If any of the wax technicians from the National Ski Team are reading this, we need your help:)
Trails in Peter Lougheed Prov Park are icy. Slushy if they’re in the sun. It was very difficult getting any kind of grip wax to work properly, and it’s the same on all trails in the park. Waxless skis didn’t perform very well either.
Klister might be the only thing that would work right now. I’ve rarely used Klister, and there are many different kinds, so I don’t know what to suggest.(Update: see comment below for suggestion)
We checked out Elk Pass, Whiskey Jack, and Pocaterra. Same conditions all over. Talked to a skier who was on Tyrwhitt who reported it to be very soft. The thermometer at Pocaterra said +8, the one in my car said +12. It’s not bad if you like double-poling most of the time.
The Weather Network is calling for 2-4 cm of snow on Thursday…let’s hope it materializes. Environment Canada’s forecast isn’t quite so promising, calling for no snow and a high of +5.
Mt Shark was groomed and trackset last night, but getting there is not much fun right now with the muddy conditions on the Smith-Dorrien.
Geez… this is a depressing report. Would everyone please put their summer tires back on their vehicles…that’s a sure way to make it snow!
I am only guessing, but I would imagine it’s colder at Lake Louise and the conditions are probably a lot better. Anyone been there lately?
XC Skiing exceeds all expectations from Olympic Games report card
There’s an interesting article in the Herald today, grading the various events in the Olympics, based on what was expected and what was delivered. XC skiing received a much better grade than what was expected. It also gives the amount of money contributed by OTP(Own the Podium). Here’s the report:
What was expected: We expected close in a few events but no cigars.
There was some hope that someone would pull a rabbit out of a hat the way Chandra Crawford did in 2006 in Turin but nobody was expected to get a medal.
What was delivered: A spectacular effort. There were a number of top-10 finishes, including three in the men’s 30-km pursuit. Devon Kershaw and Harvey finished fourth in the team sprint and, on the final day, Kershaw was fifth, missing the podium by just over a half-second in the 50-km mass start.
OTP: $1,183,280. Expected grade: C Final grade: A-minus.
For event-by-event analysis, see Games report card
I received this email from Nancy. Can anyone help?
“Hi bob,
Do you have any information about the ski conditions in Waterton? The official reports are pretty lame and I just wondered if you had more detailed information.”
The finish of the men's 50K at the Olympics. Feb 28, 2010
Well-done to all our Olympic athletes. The Canadian men’s cross-country ski team has risen to a whole new level. My heart goes out to Devon Kershaw who missed the podium by .6 seconds after racing superbly for 50K. You and your teamates made Canada proud.
Skier George Grey also had a great race, finishing 18th, and within 42 seconds of the winner. He summed up Kershaw’s performance best, “Being so close to a medal is heartbreaking, but being fifth place at the Olympics is outstanding,” he said. “Canada’s there.”
Jack Sasseville, the colour guy on the broadcasts, had this to say about the Canadian men:
“ the Canadian men’s team had a fantastic Olympics. They had six top 10 individual finishes including 4th place finishes by Devon Kershaw and Alex Harvey in the team sprint, a 5th by Kershaw in the men’s 50km, Ivan Babikov had a 5th in the 30km pursuit and an 8th in the 15km freestyle, while George Grey and Alex Harvey were 8th and 9th respectively in the 30km pursuit. Add a 7th place in the men’s relay – also a Games best ever result – and you have a great Olympics for the Canadian men.”
Read more Sasseville Olympic report
Read more 50K race report
Filed under: Kananaskis, PLPP(Peter Lougheed Prov Park), Ski Race | Tags: Kananaskis, PLPP
Surprisingly good conditions for the Cookie Race
Cheryl wins a silver medal in the 24K Racer event at the Cookie Race. Presenting the medal is Sean Huggins-Chan from the Foothills Nordic Ski Club. Feb 27, 2010
It was a wonderful day of cross-country skiing fun in Kananaskis Country yesterday. This was the warmest day I can ever remember for the annual Kananaskis Ski Marathon, more affectionately referred to as the “Cookie Race.” Race-time air temperature was around zero, and it warmed up to +5 by mid-afternoon.
Considering how warm it’s been, the trails were in pretty nice shape, but with such warm conditions there was lots of consternation and pre-race guessing about wax. Many waxing recipes were being suggested for optimum performance. Some skiers had arrived at Pocaterra with Klister already on their skis and from what I heard, it worked reasonably well. The Lifesport waxers were suggesting “Start purple.” I was able to raid Cheryl’s well-stocked wax kit(only for this one occasion) and used Swix VR-55 which is a silver/purple wax rated for 0 to -3. It performed very well. I had good grip throughout the whole race without any icing.
After a day of heavy use, I imagine the trails will be somewhat glazed today(Sunday), and it will take something pretty sticky to get good grip. If you’re descending Packers, be prepared to encounter some areas of “sugar snow” on a few of the downhills.
I’m extremely proud of Cheryl for winning a silver medal in her 24K Racer category. My friend Peter, who is in the same category as me, beat me by four minutes and won a bronze.
Peter and Cheryl display their bronze and silver medals from the Kananaskis Ski Marathon(Cookie Race) in front of the Pocaterra Hut. Feb 27, 2010
If you are a regular reader of SkiHere.ca, you’ll know that one month ago Peter, Cheryl and I (known as team TNT) won our category at the Lake Louise to Banff loppet. Now you know who the weak link is on that team!
Congratulations to all who participated. You can see the full results here .
Next Sunday, March 7, is the Lake Louise Loppet
Filed under: Kananaskis Village Area, Ribbon Creek | Tags: Kananaskis Outfitters, Kananaskis Village, Ribbon Creek
Recently trackset trails at Kananaskis Village. Feb 21, 2010
Lynn Bowers sent in the above photo and gives this report:
“Skied Kananaskis village trails on Sunday. They had hardly been used since grooming and tracksetting on Saturday. Although snow was sometimes thin despite the 20 cm dump that Nakiska was said to have received, Terrace, Link, Ribbon Creek, Kovach and Aspen trails were in very good shape.”
Kananaskis Outfitters
The trails leading out from Kananaskis Village are where I first tried cross-country skiing. I rented some waxless skis from the rental shop in the Village Centre. The rest is history…I’ve logged over 10,000 K in the intervening 12 years. If you are ready to give it a try, you can rent skis from Kananaskis Outfitters in the Village Centre. The owner, Michelle, has sent the following info about her business:
“We pride ourselves in offering high quality rental gear at competitive prices. In 2009 we started offering guided tours (hiking, snowshoeing) and lessons (Nordic skiing, mtn biking and canoeing) to families and large groups.”
For rental rates, and more info Kananaskis Outfitters winter
