1ST MASTERS INTERNATIONAL CANADIAN OPEN - REGISTRATION DEADLINE EXTENDED

If you hesitated past the former December 8, 2007 deadline to register for this first-ever international Canadian masters event, you still have a chance to sign up. Gregg Planert, meet coordinator for this February 9-10, 2008 competition at Calgary's Olympic Oval, has advised that the registration deadline has been extended until the end of January 31, 2008.

So far, about 50 skaters have entered, including a few Norwegians and one Russian, ensuring this will truly be an international event. Although not officially reported, it's also very likely some American masters have also registered. It would be great to see as many of our friends as possible from south of the border in the 2nd of 3 major masters speed skating events in North America this season - the first being the Ist Masters International American Open Sprint in Milwaukee's Pettit National Ice Centre on January 5-6, 2008. This series of events has been suggested by Brett Arnason (CAN) and Andrew Love (USA) as the "unofficial" North American masters championship.

For those uncertain about entering, don't be concerned with all this talk about competition and championships. This is also about achieving your own best times and these are the ovals on which to do it. In the 16th Masters International Speed Skating Games last February in Calgary, 93 international masters records were broken, in addition to hundreds of untold personal bests.

There is also a huge amount of camaraderie among participants in these events both on, and off, the ice as evident in Andrew Love's video, "We Are Family". If you love speed skating and want to meet (or re-unite with) other masters who are just as passionate as you about this great sport, Calgary is the place to be during February 9-10.

Friends in Calgary - February 2007 : Photo by Tim Reilly

Additional information and an entry form are available here. I hope to see you there.

BYTOWN MASTERS LONG TRACK MEET

Alicia Weiss, meet coordinator, sent the following message today:

Ottawa, January 12-13, 2008 is the place to be!

On Saturday, January 12, the Ottawa Pacers host the Bytown Masters Meet, featuring sprint distances. Each skater will race 2 x 500m and 2 x 1000m races, Olympic style. There will be many new skaters out, so it's a great first event for masters whether they're brand new or have been skating for years but not racing.

The sprints will likely finish mid afternoon. Then, Marathon Skating International is hosting longer distance events. The MSI schedule is:

Sat. Jan 12, 3pm - 5km mass start (male and female)
Sat. Jan 12, 4pm - 10k handicap start
Sun. Jan 13, 10am - 40k mass start

On Saturday, end the day at a local pub - awards, door prizes, socializing and more. Details will be announced closer to the date and will be posted at the Brewer Oval on the 12th.

The registration form for the Bytown Masters Meet is available here - the deadline to register is January 4th.

Further information about the MSI Marathons is available here.

QUEBEC MARATHONS 2007

Masters were, once again predominant, among competitors in the Quebec Marathons held last weekend at the Gaetan-Boucher Olympic Oval in Ste-Foy, contributing 52 of 70 skaters in the 25 km event on Saturday evening and 32 of 40 in the 40 km race on Sunday morning.

With temperatures around -15C and a 15 km/h wind out of the northwest, the harsh winter weather conditions were dramatically different from the green grass and warmth of the 2006 version of this event. Despite this, an excellent time was had by all skaters who showed up in record numbers for this season opener for the Marathon Skating International (MSI) 2007-08 race series.
Congratulations and many thanks to the competition organizers including Gaetan Rochette, Pierre Gagne and Maurice Gagne.

Details for all competitiors can be seen at 25 km Results and 40 km Results

The MSI race series continues December 15 to 16 in Lake Placid.

CANADA CUP #1 - QUALIFYING TIMES

According to Speed Skating Canada's High Performance Bulletin #143 – Long Track; qualifying times are now in effect for Canada Cup #1 scheduled for Calgary's Olympic Oval during January 4 to 6, 2008. Although masters speed skaters are still eligible to enter, it's unlikely that more than a very few will be able to meet the entry time standards. This will be unwelcome news to many masters skaters for whom Canada Cup #1 was one of a few remaining indoor long track events in which they could compete.

Gregg Planert, chair of Speed Skating Canada's High Performance Committee - Long Track, clarified for Brett Arnason of the Canadian Masters Speed Skating Committee that, "the HPCLT felt that the Canada Cup #1 was getting too large to be a manageable event. For example, last year's men's 500m with 120 skaters was just a bit too much for even the Calgary officials to handle.

We have looked at the time standards and with the skaters needing only one time to qualify, we are looking at around 80-90 male skaters maximum in each distance. If this occurs in the 5000 and we have even 60 skaters, it will take at least 3 hours for that one race alone (if it is run in quads).

The Meet Organizers always have the right to restrict entry for all events. This is usually done more in Short Track than in Long Track, but the HPCLT has felt it necessary to limit the numbers so we can finish in a reasonable time period each day.

The Canada Cup series is part of the Canadian Ranking System and thus we need to look at it as a Development competition. Any Master that has a time standard is welcome to compete in the event."

Masters speed skaters seeking an alternative competition for the January 5 - 6, 2008 weekend are encouraged to consider the 1st Masters International Open American Sprint meet scheduled for Milwaukee's Pettit Centre. Registration for that event closes December 19, 2007.