by Brandi
2. March 2010 18:05
How could I not start off talking about what was one of the greatest days in Canadian sport’s history? On Sunday the resort was basically at a complete standstill as everyone waited with pounding hearts for the outcome of the overtime period of the gold medal hockey game. Suddenly the tension was broken and the entire village erupted! The Canadian Men’s hockey team had won Olympic gold on home ice. What a way to end two weeks of outstanding achievements by our athletes. With a record setting gold metal tally we showed the world what Canadians are made of.
Here on the mountain other competitors were also out to prove their resilience last weekend. It was time for Helly Hansen’s Big Mountain Battle. I’d been looking forward to the event all year and was stoked when big, lovely snowflakes begin falling the previous day. But I was totally shocked in the next morning to learn 27cm had fallen and it still wasn’t letting up. My first instinct was to forget the competition and hit all my favourite powder spots until my legs gave out.
But in the end, I knew I had to try. Course maps were posted online the day before with checkpoints and hikes. I had a plan and I had a partner and I didn’t want to wait another year to give it a go. We signed in, received our Flaik GPS units which would track our every move on the mountain, and headed to the start gate.
One hundred and two people, the largest group Helly Hansen had this year, was ready to give it their all for a chance to win an all expenses paid trip to Aspen Snowmass. It was a Le Man’s start, and soon after plunging into the powder to race round the Mid Mountain Chapel it became apparent to me just how difficult the conditions were going to make this already challenging race.
Team Lombard was ready to go!
Teams discussing their action plans
The pros were out of there before I could even strap in, but even if you weren’t Mr. Hardcore it was a great race. Relying on how well you knew the trails and how hard you could push yourself was satisfying. Although it was a competition, everyone was friendly and just out there for the experience. The best part for me was the waist deep powder turns after the Mid Burf hike.
Walking through the finish
After finding the finish, many soggy people gathered around pints and barbequed burgers in Memories restaurant to celebrate personal determination. Third place went to Team Jackson, with a time of 2 hours and 25 minutes and were rewarded with some gear. Second place winners, Captains of Compost walked away with two super cool GoPro HD digital headwear cameras for their time of 2 hours and 22 minutes. Two Sun Peaks’ locals, Brian and Ben (aka Team North and South) took first place, with a time of 2 hours and 17 minutes and can look forward to competing with all the other resort winners in Aspen at the end of the month. Good luck guys! Check out the top ten course and hike times here.
The winners with thier new Dakine luggage bags to haul their gear to Aspen Snowmass at the end of March
There were also mad giveaways with awesome prizes just for competing. There was Helly Hansen gear, roof racks, and t-shirts just to name a few items. A bonus was logging on to the flaik website to see all your race stats. It was definitely a day I won’t forget for a long time and one that will inspire me to prepare harder for next year.
Here is video of last year’s race. If anyone has pics of footage of last weekend’s race let me know and I’ll post it here.
Also, just a heads up: If you see people walking around the resort this week dressed like they may be visiting from the future, don’t be alarmed. They are competitors in the Subaru Velocity Challenge FIS World Cup Speed Skiing and will be competing on Headwalls from March 4 to 7. If you think you rip, wait until you see theses guys!
Keep Riding,
Brandi
