
January 27, 2022 · 0 Comments
By Brian Lockhart
After a slow start to the ski season in Southern Ontario, there is now plenty of snow covering the trails at Monora Park.
The Mono Nordic Ski Club hosted its first event of the season on Saturday, January 22, when they held the Southern Ontario District (SOD) Paraffin Race Series event on the trails.
Full COVID-19 safety protocol were in place to keep racers and spectators safe. That also meant the entire event was held outdoors with no access to the park pavilion this year.
The race was scaled down from previous years to accommodate pandemic guidelines. There was Masters or Open category this year.
There were four different courses used throughout the day.
Racers under the age of ten did 1.5 km route.
Those in the U12 category raced a 2 km route.
In the U14 / U16 division, a challenging 3.5 km route was followed.
Racers in the top age group, U18 / U 23 took on a 6.5 km trail through the woods and hills.
“The race was a tremendous success,” said event organizer, Rene Beukebeoom. “We had over 100 athletes representing eight different cross country ski clubs in Ontario. For many kids it was their first ski race in two years and for some their first race ever. You could see the excitement on the kids’ faces just to be participating and racing. The trail conditions were excellent. It takes a lot of people to put on this event and we had many Mono Nordic member volunteers help make the day a big success.”
The Paraffin Race Series brings skiers from all over Southern Ontario to experience a variety of different clubs and racing events.
The race series only permits NF-paraffin ski waxes. This keeps skiing to a basic level and competitive.
The series is coordinated by the Southern Ontario District and is intended to provide athletes with opportunity to race at local events to gain experience on a variety of trails.
This race series is specifically targeted at athletes between the ages of eight to 14 so they can see what racing is all about, however athletes of all ages and experience are encourage to come out and give it a try.
Participants in the series earn points that are totalled at the end of the year.
At the end of the season, those points earn awards and prizes for the athletes.
Two of this year’s events had to be cancelled due to pandemic concerns.
There are four more races planned at ski centres in Ontario.
Events are planned at Georgina Nordic, Hepworth – Bruce Ski Club, Mountainview Nordic, and the Georgian Nordic Club.