Sinister Sports, the organizing arm behind the Black Spur Ultra Race, coming up next weekend in Kimberley, say that as of now, the race is a go.
READ: Black Spur Ultra
READ: Kimberley under evacuation alert
“We are planning to proceed with the Black Spur Ultar,” said Kelsey Cox, Assistant Race Director. “We are doing so with the utmost caution and there are many considerations.
“We have been in touch with the Regional District of East Kootenay, the City of Kimberley Fire Department, and Kimberley Alpine Resort.”
There will be some changes to the race.
Approximately 1.5km of trail on Leg 2/5 (Toad) is off limits due to the evacuation order in the RDEK. Note that this section of trail is at the east end of the evacuation area, and the fire is at the far west end, which is over 20km away.
“As such the current plan is to run the Legs 1/4 and 3/6 back to back; so 1-3-1-3-1-3. If the evacuation order is lifted, we will then determine if we are able to run leg 2/5 as well.
“While the City of Kimberley is under an evacuation alert, there is no imminent risk and the Fire Department representative says we are free to continue as planned. Obviously, the situation is fluid and fire conditions can improve or worsen daily.
Cox is optimistic that there are a few showers in the forecast for the coming week.
“This may help improve the situation, but it is not the deciding factor,” she said.
“Smoke continues to be variable. This morning was bad but it changes regularly. As there is no monitoring station in Kimberley, AQHI is subjective. If smoke is persistent or worsening, we will take this into consideration.
“Due to the nature of fire situations, we cannot say definitively what the next week will bring. We will revisit the situation daily and let everyone know as new information is available.
“Our goal is always to put on the best possible events, and if the situation worsens over the next few days, we will revisit the decision to continue.
Sinister Sports will provide another update on Monday.
