- Bob strikes gold at Alberta 55+ Winter Games
This past weekend I was a competitor in the Alberta 55+ winter games held in Lethbridge and the Crowsnest Pass. It was the first time I’ve been to the Allison Chinook cross country ski area and I must say it was a lovely place to ski. The tracksetter said it has been a low-snow year, but we had pretty decent conditions for the races.
As for the trails themselves, the Allison Chinook ski area has 31K of groomed trails that offer quite a good variety of easy-intermediate-challenging trails. Occcasional spectacular views were a bonus. Allison Wonderlands.
The Games were a lot of fun, especially for the cross country skiers. We had perfect weather and the organization was excellent. There were two events, a 5K and a 10K classic race, in four different age categories for men and women. I was skiing for Zone 2 which is the rural area around Calgary, and we took home 11 of a possible 16 gold medals. (There are a total of eight zones in Alberta.) Alberta Games Results
Anytime someone asked us where we were from, and we’d say Canmore, the questioner would nod with a knowing look on their face. Coming from Canmore, it’s expected that we would be good skiers. Click here to see more photos.
It looks like we’ll be getting some much-needed snow over the next few days. Hopefully some of the areas such as West Bragg and Ribbon Creek will be rejuvenated for the balance of the winter.
The Cookie Race(Kananaskis Ski Marathon) is on tap for this Saturday. You can do a 15K, 24K, or 42K. Hmmm, maybe 24k this year? Next day, on Sunday March 1, is the Lake Louise Loppet where you can ski a 10K or a 20K. Both races are a lot of fun and the snow/trails should be excellent. The weather forecast is calling for high temps around 0 and sunny skies. Looks like it should be a great weekend. Click the links on the sidebar(Fun Races & Loppets) if you’re interested in registering for either of these races.
