JULIE MELANSON
For The Morning Star
With record participant numbers, Skeets Morel, Phil Villeneuve and Brian May made friendly competition of the Sovereign Lake Loppet Sunday with a photo finish so close it was separated by a mere split second.
Villeneuve, of Canmore, completed the 30-kilometre course in one hour, 16 minutes and 13.8 seconds, just ahead of Morel. May, who was pushing the two throughout the race, posted a 1:17:10.7.
Villeneuve and Morel, of Vernon, are very familiar racing against one another.
“When I first started racing nationally, Phil was one of the top skiers in the country and someone I looked up to,” said Morel. “It’s a lot of fun to still be competitive with one another and I look forward to testing myself against him anytime were on the line together, whether its running or skiing.
“The conditions were ideal for a skate race, hard packed and fast but not icy. The groomers and organizers did a great job to get the trails into perfect shape.”
With about one kilometre to go, the race was on, with Villeneuve pushing hard over the top of the last climb and Morel trying to stay in contact with him. Coming into the stadium, Morel was three to five metres back and in a sprint to the finish he closed the gap to make up all but five centimetres.
“Skeets and I were pretty evenly matched throughout the day so I knew going into the last few kilometres that it was going to be a hard push to the finish line,” said Villeneuve. “Skeets has always been a fast sprinter, so I definitely didn’t want the race to come down to a sprint. But despite me making a bit of a break on the last climb, he managed to close the gap back up on the final turn and make it into a 100-m dash to the line. Lucky for me I was just barely able to hold him off, at least enough to throw my foot ahead and take the win by half a boot (if not less).”
As a spring event, the Loppet is used by many participants as an event to get in shape over the winter, show off their ski fitness and prepare for a summer sports season ahead. For Morel, he’s been entering the loppets for fun, and to keep in shape. He and other Loppet participant, Mary Edgar have signed up to run the Chicago Marathon in October, so the loppets have helped him increase his fitness level. Villeneuve is also a runner in the summer.
Simon Craig is another participant who skis to cross train and gain fitness for cycling and running.
“I guess the overall fitness from cycling makes skiing more enjoyable/easier. They are two different sports but the intensity seems to be similar.
“The course was well groomed, well marked and suitably challenging. It suited novice and pro skiers alike. The descents and corners were not overly dangerous which made for a more pleasant race experience (since I’m not the best descender). The course seemed to flow and the conditions and grooming were superb as the fast times indicated,.
The Sovereign Lake Annual Loppet saw record registration this year, ranging in age from six to sixty. It was a combined event with the Teck Okanagan Cup, a new series of races designed to provide a low-key race experience for seven- to 14-year-olds which stresses participation and many awards.
Along with Sovereign Lake program kids, many of the SLNC coaches took part in the race. Head coach Darren Derochie finished third in the Masters Men 40-49, Emily Morel finished second in the Masters Women 30-39 behind fellow Sovereign member Sarah Purslow, and Mae Hooper placed first in Masters Women 50-59. Hooper’s daughter, Hannah Mehain placed first in the Juvenile Girls division 5km Free.
