This week, XC Ottawa will travel
to Thunder Bay, Ontario, to take part in what is for many the most exciting
and fun races of the year; the 2006 National Championships. Many
other countries have their National Championships in January, but Canada
has traditionally held theirs at the end of the season, to allow those
touring in Europe to come back and race. I like having Nationals at
the end of the year; with most of the hard racing behind us. It’s
a relaxing week, where you can race hard with nothing to lose.
I also like that a lot of the top guys are just back from Europe and
are either sick or really tired, which provides a stellar opportunity
for the domestic guys to step up!! This year, I think we’ll
have a few recent Olympians in the mix, which should provide some extra
motivation to kick down.
XC Ottawa is looking forward
to a good week at Nationals. The club relay is Sunday, and XC
Ottawa will have two strong men’s teams and one women’s team ready
to go for that skating race. Tuesday and Wednesday is the pursuit,
which is still run in the old-school two-day format, a 10k time-trial
classic on Tuesday and a pursuit 15k skate on Wednesday. Friday are
the sprints, skating, and Sunday is the ultimate race of the year, the
Nationals Championships 50k, which happens to be in classic format this
year.
Nationals this year is at Lappe
Ski Club outside of Thunder Bay. Lappe is a legendary ski centre in
Canada, and apparently they have tonnes of snow this year. I have
heard rumours that they’ve extended the height on their epic final
hill, the aptly-named Grunt. In an exciting twist, the sprint races
will take place in a park downtown; apparently the course has been carefully
prepared and will feature several elevation changes onto plateaus of
differing heights. Should be a great, downtown course!
We will post updates and pictures when possible. The official National Championships website is www.skinationals.com
Stay tuned!
- Thunder Bay Weather
- Lappe Nordic Centre (Webcam?)
- Sibley Ski Tour
- City of Thunder Bay
- National Team Development Centre
Race Schedule
Sunday March 5
Canadian College and Universities National Championships (CCUNC) RelaysClub Challenge Relays (Boys/Girls)
Club Open Relays (Men/Women)
Tuesday March 7
Short Distance - Classic (5km - 10 km)Interval Starts, Lappe Nordic Centre
Wed. March 8
Medium Distance - Freestyle (5 - 15 km)Mass Start, Lappe Nordic Centre
Friday March 10
Individual Sprints QualificationsElimination Heats