With this year’s Nordic ski season coming to an end, skiers and championship organizers alike have been trying to salvage what’s left of the season’s snowfall — but it hasn’t been easy.
This year, the organizers and athletes at the Canadian Colleges and Universities Nordic Championships have been faced with the challenge of grooming trails, maintaining ski routes and adjusting to weather conditions. Abnormally high temperatures are making it increasingly difficult to do so.
Both men’s and women’s Ravens Nordic ski teams earned a spot amongst the best skiers in the country at the championships as a result of their recent second-place finishes at the Ontario University Athletics championships.
Ravens skier Matthew Brown said weather conditions in Mon- Sainte-Anne, Que. haven’t made things any easier for the athletes.
“Best weather for skiing is approximately -5 C with relatively dry snow and sunny. In Saint-Anne the past few days, it’s been approximately 10 C with slushy and wet snow,” Brown said. “Because the snow is really slushy, skiing times have been slower than usual.”
Despite the warmer than usual conditions, organizers have been grooming the trails as usual. New snow cannot be artificially produced because of the heat.
“They have enough of a base from previous snowfalls, so they haven’t done much to compensate in terms of grooming,” Brown said. “They are grooming to the best of their abilities but it’s nowhere near ideal conditions.”
Athletes, in turn, have been forced to compensate with the use of specific wax, Brown said.
“We have to make adjustments in terms of waxing. You have to prepare your skis to deter water and dirt, so that means more structure,” he explained. “It’s a long and complicated process that involves waxing and testing several times before you get it right.”
But Ravens head coach Chris Mamen was still optimistic.
“The skis were all fast [on March 19]and the athletes seemed to respond very well to the stickier than normal wax,” Mamen said. “It does take some extra caution and skill to ski on ‘klister,’ like cold maple syrup, since the extra grip it provides in wet snow can actually be detrimental if snow accumulates on the skis.”
The heat won’t be letting up anytime soon, according to weather forecasts. Skiers and coaches are preparing for upcoming races with this in mind.
“The rest of the week looks like much of the same,” Mamen said. “The athletes will look forward to skiing in what feels like quicksand — this is where I’m glad I’m coaching instead of racing.”
