Hard to blame some of the local nordic ski crew for having mixed emotions this week.
At about the same time that nine local athletes were informed that they had been selected to represent the Northern Ontario District (NOD) at the upcoming Ontario Winter Games, Mother Nature was doing everything in her power to make “on snow” training far more difficult than it typically is during a normal month of December, weather-wise.
Thankfully, there are a few creative alternatives that these teens can utilize, so it was going to take more than a stretch of plus temperatures to dampen the spirits of the Laurentian Nordic troika of Keir Gauld, Chesley Godwin and Hector Loiselle or their Walden Cross-Country counterparts: Graydon Bain, Théo Chartrand, Austin Conroy, Maija Nener, Joshua Rioux and Callum Wiss.
While they may be linked by their love of cross-country skiing, the Sudbury nine represent a variety of backgrounds and pathways in the sport. “I started skiing last year with the school team (Lo-Ellen Park Secondary School),” said 15 year old grade 10 student Maija Nener. “After cross-country (running) season, Mister (Colin) Ward was kind of encouraging people to try it out.”
Turns out that Nener has taken to the sport far faster than most, likely in part due to her previous sporting involvement – even if the carry-over had less to do with the actual physical demands than an over-arching approach to that sport.
“Throughout my childhood, I did karate, but no endurance sports,” said Nener. “Karate helped me build discipline and learn how to set goals. I got my black belt, which was a lot of work. It taught me how to work hard which also applies to when you’re skiing and in the pain cave and you really need to dig in and work.”
Though cross-country skiing is still a relatively new endeavour to her, Nener is nevertheless able to tap into some of the knowledge of her older brother (Kai), with at least some family involvement in the sport. “My brother had been with the Walden team and my dad is a wax tech with the team, so it seemed like a good opportunity,” said Maija.
“It was kind of nice that Kai had gone through it a little bit because I knew what to expect.”
That same notion applies to Chesley Godwin, only ten-fold or more. The eldest of three children of former Laurentian varsity nordic ski coach Alison Godwin, the now 13 year-old grade eight lad admitted to first being on skis at the age of two, making his way over to club training by the time he was four.
Like all of the others, the Lo-Ellen Park student would love to see more snow on the ground, though he is able to tap into some of the same options that exist for off-season conditioning.
“I can practice skiing techniques with poles during the summer,” said Godwin. “You can do them for stationary practices, but I have done roller skiing many times and when you do roller skis, you are moving and working so you feel like you are actually training.”
It’s expected that most if not all competitors at the Winter Games will get exposure to both classic and skate style skiing, as well as racing at a variety of distances as well. “I am definitely more of a sprinting person,” said Godwin. “I’m not a big fan of going long distances.”
“I like the power and agility of sprinting. Because you’re moving really fast, you need good positioning to be able to get around people.”
Graydon Bain also comes from a highly athletic family, albeit perhaps more well-known for their love of all things cycling in the summer. First introduced to classic skiing in 2019, the 15 year-old Lasalle Secondary junior added skate skiing to the mix last year – though there are some constants to his approach, regardless of the style involved.
“When I go into a competition, I go in thinking to myself to just give it all I’ve got,” admitted Bain, who is feeling pretty good about much of the technical requirements of his sport. “I have to concentrate on poling to gain more speed inside my strides; everything else I am pretty good at,” he said.
“When you’re poling, you’re trying to keep your arms in so that you can get more power. At the beginning, I was putting out my arms, which wasn’t as efficient. I’ve been working on that and I’m sort of getting it now.”
With the Winter Games split over two weekends next month, the nordic ski component will run on February 10th and 11th at Ma-te-way Park in Renfrew. Prior to that, the entire local contingent will get a chance to race a little more in their own backyard with O Cup #3 set for the weekend of January 21st and 22nd, hosted by Walden Cross-Country.
Being a little younger, Godwin and any others who have not yet reached high-school competition will get to take advantage of the efforts of teacher Stefan Skogberg and others who will be staging elementary races, also in Walden, on January 24th and then in Capreol as well on February 16th.
Finally, one sad note in the world of local nordic ski as legendary national and international great Antero Rauhanen passed away on December 14th at the age of 90. Born in Finland but moving to Canada in his twenties, the long-time Sudbury resident would lay claim to Canadian and North American titles on multiple occasions, representing the maple leaf at a pair of World Championships.
