Today was the annual Overlander Ski Marathon. It’s one of the races we target each year for our kids and the club kids to participate in. It’s a smaller, local race (held at Stake Lake near Kamloops) that is not part of an organized race series for the kids. However, it’s attached to an adult Loppet series taking part at the same time.

Each year we take approximately 10-13 skiers plus a few coach racers and a good handful of parents. This year would have been a big year for the Barriere Outdoor Club (the North Thompson Recreation Society) except that kids were toppling like dominoes to various bugs…Katie and Helen were unable to race (Chris stayed home and further reduced our coach racer numbers).  Levi Kempter (6) had an unfortunate bout of projectile vomiting last night and Lauren Tremblay (9) underwent surgery a few weeks ago and presented herself as an animated spectator who will soon be back on the race course! Jacob Peterson was also feeling under the weather! The Smiths were spending a downhill ski weekend at Sun Peaks (gone to the dark side!)

Despite our diminshed numbers the kids were awesome! Several skiers moved up into new age categories, making them the youngest skiers again in their divisions. And they still posted fabulous times! Others became the oldest in their age categories and walked away with placings.

Building a cross country ski racing team became a given several years ago when many of our club skiers were graduating from the “Jackrabbit” program. It was either implement the “Track Attack” program (racing), or send kids on their way at 10 or 11 years with no club program to keep them interested in the sport.

After two years and much training by Chris and me (to a Learn To Train Level) and the upgrading of skills by several other coaches (all graciously funded by our parent organization, The North Thompson Recreation Society) the coaches pulled together a complete ski lesson program under the new provincial standard, the SDP, including a racing component, which Chris and I have been building up ever since.

I am thrilled to say that with a great group of wonderful kids and their parents, we have nudged our way onto the racing scene, with our first BC Cup on the January 9/10 weekend in Kelowna, BC. It, like today, was FABULOUS.  Loudspeakers, concessions, starting guns or gates, cow bells, race bibs, hot chocolate, and lots and lots of really good racers!

I was very impressed by the club skiers who waited so patiently for me to cross the finish line today and who cheered me on. To me this is the essence of a racing team. Racing is competition (a good thing) but it’s also patience, learning, goofiness, respect, and the ability to win and lose graciously. In another post, I’ll post some goofy pictures of an informal ski day we spent at Sun Peaks (with no snow at our own trails we went…higher to find some).

For now, in no particular order, some pictures from today’s race. Way to go everyone!

O.K., Blogger put my picture first! I placed last again in my age divison (10k-women 40-49). The last time I raced was two years ago. LAST year I had gained just a bit too much weight to feel able to do a good race, so by this year I had dropped 20 pounds and decided I was back in. I believe that if I am teaching kids to race, than I need to practice what I preach! As such, I know how to teach losing graciously! Personal goals are what matter to me and this year I shaved off a few minutes and finished the race still able to walk!