Contributed by Doug and Brenda McQuair
“It was the powder!” came the loud cry when a coach asked the Nakusp/Lucerne Secondary School ski and snowboard teams what was the best part of their trip to Kimberley for the Secondary School Alpine Championships Feb. 28 to March 2.
And they were mostly right, but also what was impressive was how these 24 athletes worked together to raise the funds to get there, how they encouraged each other and represented our schools. These kids were one of the largest, friendliest groups attending from all over the province. We love to get asked “Where are you from?” “And where do you ski?” and we get to tell them- Nakusp/New Denver and at Summit Lake Ski Hill, just 15 minutes from our little towns. Their noisy cheers at the starting gate to their readiness to help with course take-down made an impact on Kimberley Resort’s chief of course, Steve Boava. He couldn’t believe how fast they took down the courses B-Net fences and race gates. It would have taken him a week but with approximately 265 athletes working together it took about an hour and a half.
Also impressive were the race results with Dylan Homis, having a fourth place finish after the two runs of Giant Slalom to help put the boys’ board squad in fifth place overall in the province. While Darnell Stephens topped the local boys’ board group in the board terrain cross run. Kathleen Fox and Amy Surina placed 13 and 15 respectively after the two runs on the girls’ snowboard GS course and then switched it up and placed with Surina in 13 and Fox in 15 after the board terrain cross run, putting their team in sixth place overall.
On the ski runs, Meagan Brown-Dahl had a great finish of 11 after the 2 GS runs while Taylor Aeichele placed 9 in the skier terrain cross event. The girls’ ski team placed fifth over all while Tyler Hascarl lead his group, placing the boys’ ski team in ninth overall.
The board coaches, Matt McKee and Chelsey Croffen, ski coaches, Doug and Brenda McQuair along with chaperones, Alistair Skey and Karen Surina were proud of their athletes efforts and would like to thank their course setter/mentor Susie Madden and everyone else who helped support the teams. A special thanks to the parent fund raisers and the following businesses who donated door prizes: Retallack Cat Skiing and Boarding; Nakusp General Store; Arrow Engraving; Village of Nakusp; Hewat Repairs; Fox Emergency Equipment.
Visit us online for a full photo gallery of contributed photos by the McQuair’s.
