It was a weekend of attaining top times for eight members of the Salmon Arm Ice Breakers Short Track Speed Skating Club at the B.C. Championships in Abbotsford.
All skaters who attended posted some personal best times in their races, which ranged in distances from 3,000m to 200m sprints. Skaters who posted fast enough qualifying times to attend the event include: Phoenix Nash, Jack Isaac, Aila Norlin, Nathan Bastiaansen, Devyn Hughes, Maddy Feist, Lincoln Thurgood and Ila Isaac.
It was a gruelling two days of competition, with 11 hours of competitions running Saturday, with each skater on the ice for six races of varying distances including both sprint and endurance races. On Sunday, which saw skaters take to the ice at 7 a.m., there were 400 m final races, combined with longer distance points races and relay competitions.
One of the youngest skaters to attend, Ila Isaac, earned a bronze medal for her division, while her older brother Jack posted times that earned him a place on the B.C. squad for the upcoming Can West Short Track Championship, which pits skaters against the top competition from Western Canada. That event will also be held in Abbotsford in two weeks.
The Ice Breakers skaters also posted times that filled all four positions on the Interior relay team for their division. This saw Bastiaansen, Hughes, Thurgood and Ila Isaac race against teams from the Coastal division and the Northern division for a first-place finish.
“I’m very proud of all our skaters on their performance,” said Ice Breakers coach Rick Hofmann.
The Ice Breakers skating season will wind to a close just before spring break. For more information on the club, their website is www.salmonarmspeedskating.com.
