Canadian Championships - The Dogtooth Dash Race

This weekend Kicking Horse Resort, in Golden BC, hosted the 2nd annual Dogtooth Dash Ski Mountaineering race.  The last race on the Canadian calendar this year, and the Canadian National Championships, made it the race everyone was looking to do well in.  The course itself was almost exactly the same, but did have a 250-300m longer climb, to make sure the times weren't too quick.

The event was a success as usual.  Kicking Horse held a pre-race dinner during the race meeting, and also an apres ski during the awards after the race.  The Canadian Team was there ready to go, and pumped to race again, since nobody has had the chance to race while being back in North America.  

The course started out with a classic Le Mans style start, everyone running around the Eagles Eye Restaurant before clicking into their skis, and blasting down to the first transition.  From there, a quick transition, the Canadian Team seperated from everyone else, pulling out front.  Reiner Thoni, James Minifie, and myself were out front with Ian Gale and Jeff Colvin right on our heels.  At the top of the first climb hitting the transition, everyone arriving nearly at the same time, we dropped down a steep chute with great snow, and held it together to the next ascent.

Melanie Bernier was on fire again this race, up front, and battling it out with James Minifie and myself.  We continued winding our way through the 2nd ascent, and down the giant mogul field descent, to our 3rd and longest climb.  Hammering up, we discovered the Jeff Colvin had bailed, and was forced to pull out due to a head injury.  A good reason to pull out, but we felt bad, as Jeff was passing a lot of people and really moving fast.  He is okay now in case your wondering.

(Photo Above:  Terminator Peak bootpack)

Arriving at the bootpack, feeling trained up to climb since Pierra Menta, but still feeling the lungs on the climb.  We continued up, racing through the start/finish area, to drop back down into Terminator Peaks section of the Course.  Moving fast, getting through the flat sections to the switchbacks, we were bootpacking again before long.  All the way to Terminator, trying to stay close to the redline, but unsuccesfully, and over it, continued through to the sketchy ridge descent, and into a great little chute.  

The last ascent was hard.  Retracing the 2nd last we had just done, hitting the bootpack and vearing right to the finish line, the red line and anaerobic threshold well below me, came across the finish line in 4th.  A hard race, and yes World Cup races are hard, but this race does live up to it.  Reiner and Mel, took the overall Canadian Championships title for the 2010 season, wrapping the Canadian Circuit up.  (Photo Left:  Reiner and Mel the Canadian Champions)

Now with the racing season over, Team Canada had our end of season BBQ and Team meeting, some people going on to race the Esplanade Epic, and others including myself are concentrating on some ski mountaineering objectives.  A great end of season race, and a great way to suffer.  (Photo Right:  Billie Velisek the BBQ master)

Ski Theory would also like to send Martha Burly, who was out getting her racing gear and strategy sorted at the Dogtooth, good luck in the Patrouille Des Glaciers in Switzerland which will be happening in a few weeks!

Results here.
More video here.