Important Change: The event has been rescheduled to Sunday March 15 at 10:30 am. Registration now closes at 3 pm on Saturday, March 14. The event returns to Fernie for the third time. It takes place on Sunday morning March 15, 2020 at the Elk Valley Nordic Centre. The start time is set for 10:30 am. Looking for a challenge? This is the one, a long one but very casual. Excellent prizes, ride(s) on the Deer chair, a lot of yummy food and drinks. Prizes will be awarded for best costume and then as door prizes! You have the option to do either the full 50 km yourself (2 loops to the ski hill trails and back) or you can choose to do a single loop of 25 km. More details on our event page HERE
Wonderful weather was on hand for the Community Fun Races and its participants last Saturday. The trails had just been groomed and the overcast sky cleared enough for the sun to peek out during the event.
The Hot Chocolate Run was underway by 10:45 as planned and twenty-nine kids crowded the start line, each with an adult as their partner. The kids stopped near the bridge for hot chocolate while the adults completed the Lizard Lookout and Cedar loops before returning to the hut with their young partner. It was all over in thirty minutes. A selection of prizes awaited the young ones at the finish line.
This was followed by
a 12 km race done as a relay race or solo. Five relay teams drawn
from available youth and adult participants plus ten solo skiers took
part. Loud cheers from the crowd greeted the skiers at the end of
each 3 km lap. The fastest participant completed the full course in a
fast 42 minutes while others finished it in 73 minutes or less!
The event ended with
ten 300 m sprints by groups of kids, youth or adults. This fast
skiing by seventeen racers included a few falls but ended with smiles
at the finish.
Sam and Johnny organized the event and many volunteers lended a hand at grooming, stadium preparation, food preparation, hot chocolate station and safety patrol. The young Fernie Racers helped in the kids races as well. More photos in our gallery page.
All Fernie welcomes the Griz from March 6 to 8. Among the local activities, the SNOW-TO-ICE(cream) challenge is back again this year. Take a selfie at four different locations on the trails around Fernie inside of 72 hours from Friday to Sunday 7 pm. More details HERE. A special Griz Days Full Moon Ski & Social event closes the weekend. Meet at 7 pm at the Nordic Centre.
The club invites all skiers, young, adult, families, to our annual Fernie Community Fun race event on Saturday Feb 22 at the Nordic Centre. It is open to club members and non-members alike. The fun starts at 10:30 with the Hot Chocolate Run followed by relay and solo races plus short sprints to finish. It is totally FREE to participate. Read the details on our page (click to open).
Fernie skiers were very active in the past weekend of February 8-9 with a few events.
Full Moon Ski on Saturday
On Saturday twenty skiers gathered in the hut before starting on the trails under a very bright moon. The evening ended back at the hut for snacks, refreshments and a good time.
Morrisey Ridge seen from the Runt trail
Kootenay Cup races in Kimberley
The race weekend in Kimberley was the Teck Kootenay Championships, a tier 2 points qualifying race, so it was a higher level event than usual races for the team. The Fernie racers competed against other racers from several clubs, including Telemark, Sovereign Lake, Revelstoke, Canmore, Foothills, the Kootenay teams – Nelson, Kimberley, Black Jack and Toby Creek – plus Montana teams, Glacier Nordic and Seeley Lake. The weather was perfect and excellent snow conditions.
Eleven young skiers from the Fernie Nordic Racers team took part in the two-day event together with nine adult skiers from Fernie. Our team is coached by Jeff Williams. Overall the team had 28 starts in the classic and skate races. Race results may be found HERE. The current cup standings are HERE.
Ella (247) taking a fast corner in a sprint race
Meanwhile in Edmonton
Saturday was also the day of the 2020 Canadian Birkebeiner in Edmonton. Two skiers from Fernie completed the challenging course. Ron Lentz finished the 31 km tour race while Naomi Lentz did the 55 km race with a 12 lbs pack (5.4 kg) on her back. Congratulations to both!
A second place in her category for Naomi
More photos
from the Full Moon Ski:
Ski hill in the moonlight
On the lighted kids loop
from the Kootenay Cup races:
Classic 1350 m sprint with Kai Fait – 5th from left
Makaela Burt and Adele Stahl (U14 girls) in a classic sprint heat together
Anouk Burt (U14 girls) powering her double-poling for a strong sprint heat
Ella trying to stay warm before the start of the mass start Freestyle technique event
Coach Johnny showing perfect pacing through 15km of the skate race
UPDATE: Great fall weather on a cool Saturday morning. Plenty of mud also! Many families came to enjoy the wooded surroundings of the Nordic Centre while the young ones looked for pumpkins. About 500 hot dogs were served!
Join the Fernie Nordic Society for Fernie’s 5th Great Pumpkin Hunt, our annual autumn fundraiser event! Children 9 years and under (you don’t need to be a Fernie Nordic Member) are invited to scour the forests surrounding the Warming Hut at the Elk Valley Nordic Centre for their own pumpkin. When the search is finished, each pumpkin hunter can enjoy hot chocolate and roasted marshmallows by the bonfires. It promises to be a great morning of autumn fun!
New this year: Tickets to the event will be sold ahead of time. Come by Heaven Boutique on 2nd Avenue in Fernie to get tickets for your prefered time slot. For more details, check our Facebook page.
Two pumpkin hunters
This is an outdoor event, so please dress your children appropriately and bring camping chairs or blankets if desired. We’re tough Fernie folks so a little rain (or snow!) won’t deter us – but if the weather turns really gnarly, we may postpone it – check our Facebook page the day of for an update. In the past many families chose to bring wienies to roast on the bonfires and enjoyed a walk on the trails around the Warming Hut after the Hunt. Please plan to do this again! The Fernie Nordic Society thanks Our Sponsors for supporting this great annual event!
Our 5th Annual Great Pumpkin Hunt is planned for Saturday October 19, 2019 starting at 11:00 am at the Elk Valley Nordic Centre near the Mt. Fernie Provincial Park. The event should end by 3:00 pm.
