The Bulkley Valley Nordic Centre celebrated the Spirit of the Mountains Festival with the annual Marathon Weekend. The Marathon involves two days of cross country ski racing, the first day classic and the second skate.
This year’s event started off with a parade by over 80 members of the club’s Rabbits program for young skiers, followed by a mass start in the classic event on Saturday.
In the 17 km race, Valerie Laub took the top women’s spot. David Walker was the top male. In the 34 km race, Nellie Dow was the top woman, while BV Nordics coach Christopher Werrell came in first in the men’s race.
Sunday saw a smaller but dedicated group in the skate race.
Kaileen McCulloch finished first in the womens 17 km, with Gabriel Price winning the mens race. Dow took the womens 34 km race, while the top mens racer was Werrell. In the 51 km race, Teresa White was the top woman, while Peter Krause was the top man.
Keeping true to the spirit of the Marathon, several finishers either took part as a team, or raced both days. Krause won both 51 km mens races, and the overall marathon title. Len Vanderstar took second in the 51 km. Werrell was the top 34km marathoner, and Dave Bustard was the top 17 km racer. Dow was the top womens 34km marathon racer. Bill and Sarah Holdyk won the mixed team 17 km. Anne-Marie Findlay and Bill Price were the top 34 km mixed team.