Amber Church’s column Archery to Zumba explored all sports Yukon has to offer, from A-Z
March 28th marks the 30th anniversary of the Yukon Broomball Association. “We’ve come a long way from our humble beginnings playing on local community rinks,” says Scott Smith, the association’s travel team coach. “We outgrew the community rinks pretty quickly, causing us to build two outdoor rinks in the Takhini North neighbourhood. They were pretty …
It’s not every day that a Yukon figure skater is named to Team Canada for the 2013 Special Olympics World Winter Games. For that athlete to win a silver medal is a very proud moment and that is exactly what 15 year old Michael Sumner did in Pyeonchang, South Korea this month. Sumner joined 101 …
When a former Olympian is willing to travel from southern France to Yukon in the middle of December you know there has to be a really good reason. For basketball player Kim Smith that reason is to direct the Future Stars Girls Basketball Camp, something that she is very excited to do, although she does …
Olympian is a Special Gift to Christmastime Basketball Camp Read More »
“It is so important for kids to be outside and to connect with nature,” says Karin Grenier. “And one way to do that is for them to interact with dogs and dog sledding.” Grenier and her partner Normand Casavant run Casaventures, a dog sledding operation with 39 dogs (and two cats) on the Annie Lake …
Dog Sledders Hope To Get Students Mushy About The Sport Read More »
Whether you have a poodle, a retired sled dog, or a dog in race form, the Dog Powered Sports Association (DPSA) of the Yukon has an event for you. The association runs events year-round and provides dogs -— and their owners — lots of opportunities for exercise, skill-improvement and socializing. In the summer, the Hot …
It’s been called one of the hardest marathons in North America by iRun magazine and one of the top 10 trail races in Canada by Canadian Running magazine. And it’s in our backyard. The Yukon River Trail Marathon takes place annually in Whitehorse at the beginning of August, attracting runners from across the continent. This …
If watching The Hunger Games made you wish you could take up a bow and arrow, then the Yukon Aboriginal Sport Circle has some very good news for you. Last month, the Sport Circle brought in the top instructor from the British Columbia Archery Association to train a number of Yukon coaches in order to …
Perhaps you believe, as Kenneth Grahame suggests in his classic novel, The Wind in the Willows, that “there is nothing—absolutely nothing—half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats.” If so, you need to get yourself to this weekend’s first annual Paddle Swap in Whitehorse. “Members of the Yukon Canoe and Kayak Club …
This is just what hundreds of cyclists will be doing next week, as the Kluane Chilkat International Bike Relay celebrates its 19th birthday. Teams ranging from one to eight riders will attempt to traverse the 238 km between Haines Junction and Haines, Alaska. A competitor myself, the first time I rode this race I got …
“When I travel down south for meetings, other clubs are astounded and in awe of what we have here in Whitehorse,” said Claude Chabot, Executive Director of the Whitehorse Cross-Country Ski Club. “On our trails you can be cross-country skiing by moonlight, watching the magic of the northern lights dance over the Lower Valley trails …
Whitehorse Club Offers Cross-Country Skiiers Dream Conditions Read More »
Marsh Lake-area family is working hard to demonstrate how well Northerners can reduce their energy consumption. Along the way, they hope to show other Canadians a thing or two. Brian Kitchen and Marguerite Kuiack, along with their daughters, Simone and Marika, are taking part in Canadian Geographic’s Energy Diet Challenge. The three-month challenge involves six …
While she was away at university in Prince George, Katrina Wohlfarth discovered a new passion – underwater hockey. Now that she has returned home she hopes to share that passion with the Yukon community. “It started out for me as just one of those weird university things. You stumble across it and think ‘what’s that?’ …
It’s a lot of work being a Yukon Roller Girl. There are two practices a week that keep you on your skates for a few hours at a time. There are boot camps to organize and attend, funds to raise through skate-a-thons, bar nights and community sponsors. There are volunteers to wrangle and recruit, bouts …
Eric Allen keeps his hand close to the supporting foot of a young climber as he coaches the six-year-old through his first successful climbing problem during the 8th Annual Ibex Valley Bouldering Festival. The bouldering festival is one piece in the mosaic of the ever-expanding Yukon climbing community. Bouldering is a style of rock climbing …
“You get to learn how to notice the plants around you, how to shoot a rifle, how not to ground your boat in the river, how to pack properly for a multi-day hike, and you get to have fun and relax while you’re doing it,” says Nansi Cunningham. Cunningham is speaking about the annual Yukon …
The Robert Campbell Bridge between Riverdale and downtown Whitehorse will be closed this Sunday. But not for long. The bridge will be closed for approximately 10 minutes around 1 p.m. as over 1,000 runners and walkers make their way across its surface. This will mark the start of the 14th annual Run for Mom—an event …
Fourteen lucky young Yukoners will get the opportunity to take part in an outdoor education camp this July for free. The Yukon Fish and Game Association’s 25th annual Outdoor Education Camp takes place July 2-9 and it should provide an amazing experience for the group of youth between 13 and 16 years old who get …
The Kluane Chilkat International Bike Relay turns 20 this year. For all of those years, Ron McFadyen has worked dedicatedly in the background, radio in hand, to make the event a success. “I founded the Yukon Amateur Radio Association in 1976,” McFadyen explains. “At that point we had one VHF radio repeater in Whitehorse, the …
As Oliver Barker tells it, fish taught him how to walk. “My family had this fish tank balanced on a crate in our living room,” he explains. “I used to haul myself up using the edge of the crate to see the fish—but every time I did that the fish would spook and swim to …
“Being able to bond and connect with a gigantic graceful creature is incredibly fulfilling,” says Meghan Larivee, a local equestrian enthusiast. “Being able to work on building a relationship with a different species and seeing an improvement over time is a wonderful thing. I love connecting with and being around animals so having one as …
The Yukon Ultimate Frisbee Team will travel over 2,000 km next week to join with colleagues from the NWT, dress in costumes, and represent the North at one of Western Canada’s most notorious tournaments. The Pumpkin Pull is an annual ultimate frisbee tournament that takes place over the Hallowe’en weekend in Victoria, BC. Teams from …
The biggest lesson is to like what you do and do it because you want to do it – do it for yourself.” While that advice might apply to almost any undertaking, Wade Hoyt is speaking specifically about his career – making films about extreme sports. Hoyt’s company, Standard Films, has specialized in producing snowboard …
You can literally feel the energy radiating from Marlon Davis as she teaches a Zumba class. Luckily, it’s contagious. It would be difficult to participate in one of her classes and not feel energized, with a big smile on your face when you leave the room. Zumba is essentially a work-out party or, as Davis …
“A slight glow on the eastern horizon beckons to me and I anticipate the brilliant splashes of intense color that characterize our spectacular Yukon mornings—an incredible visual feast to welcome the day! “We knew with certainty it was going to be a great day! And like magic, we snapped into our skis, glided to the …
Wrangling four Special Olympics athletes for a week of national-level competition in an unfamiliar city is not for the faint of heart. But 74-year-old Bill Wasylenko handled it with a smile on his face. Wasylenko is one of two coaches for Special Olympics Yukon’s curling team that travelled to the national winter games in St. …
Are you struggling to stick to that resolution to shed a few pounds, made a few months ago under the inducement of a glass of champagne and the promise of a new year? Are you frustrated and bored with generic workout programs and searching for inspiration? Do you find your motivation to exercise regularly lagging? …
Bison and foxes and sheep. Oh my! The Yukon Wildlife Preserve on the Takhini Hot Springs Road offers all of these and more—and it’s recently added a series of track-set ski trails to give visitors a new way to get up close and personal with the animals. The Wildlife Preserve covers over 700 acres of …
You’ve just stepped off the plane in Whitehorse from your home in the Circumpolar North. You’re excited and proud to represent your region at the Arctic Winter Games (maybe a bit nervous as well), and you’re looking forward to everything the week has to offer. Once you’ve had a chance to strut your stuff at …
Can’t afford to fly to London for the Olympics this summer? Not to worry, a world-class level of sporting competition is arriving on our doorstep this week. The Arctic Winter Games (AWG) will play host to several events that are not commonly seen in these parts – the Dene Games and Arctic Sports. Unlike most …
Christina Macdonald is a woman on a mission. During her time in the Yukon she has seen the Yukon Sourdough Rendezvous axe-throwing competition dominated by a small cohort of tough and strong Yukon women. This year she is aiming to join them and – if she has her way – come out with the top prize. …
For anyone under the impression that Rendezvous week makes cancan dancers magically appear as if from thin air like so many green fairies to light up the stages of venues across the city – I’m here to tell you you’re mistaken. Being a cancan dancer is hard work. Really hard work. Four-hour-reheasals hard work that takes …
Have you ever driven past someone on a bike at -35 in a blizzard and thought they were crazy? You’re probably not alone. Let’s face it, it’s cold and miserable outside, and bikes aren’t really designed to tackle winter conditions (anyone who has ever tried to ride their mountain bike down a toboggan hill knows …
We got our medals stuck in the ice” Thomas Scoffin. The 17-yr-old Whitehorse resident skipped the Junior Winter Olympic Team.
All I can say is this race has really impacted my life,” says Shelley Gellatly, a race coordinator for the Yukon Arctic Ultra. The Yukon Arctic Ultra, which bills itself as “the world’s toughest and coldest ultra” is a self-propelled race along the Yukon Quest Trail in February of each year. There are various distances …
The eventuality has come to pass – the cold snap has finally caught up with us. After spending the winter to date enjoying generally mild temperatures, allowing even the most cold-averse of us to enjoy skiing, snowshoeing, and pond hockey, we are facing the fact that -35 (without wind chill) has become our new reality. …
Over a decade ago, the climbing wall housed on the gymnasium stage at F.H. Collins Secondary School was awash with young climbers training to compete in climbing competitions in southern Canada. At the helm was their coach, Alain Dallaire. Then tragedy struck in the form of an ice-climbing fall that required Dallaire to step back. …
The sport has been called “jet-propelled chess”, “the healthiest sport to play” and “the world’s most dangerous sport”. With a range of monikers like that, it’s no wonder that at the age of 18 Khoon Chua decided to give squash a try. “I was a competitive badminton player when I first tried the sport,” explains …
On Saturday, September 29 organizations, communities and individuals across the country will celebrate sport by taking part in Sports Day in Canada. Sports Day in Canada is a national celebration of sport of all different kinds and at all levels. On the ground, in the week leading up to September 29, over 1,000 organizations, schools, …
“I started playing hockey when I was four years old, because I wanted to keep up with my older brother,” says Vanessa Bogaert. Twenty three years later, Bogaert is the president of the Whitehorse Women’s Hockey Association and a passionate advocate for getting more women involved in the sport. “This sport has so many opportunities,” …
This year the iconic Klondike Trail of 98 International Road Relay from Skagway to Whitehorse turns 30! On September 7 and 8,, teams of runners will cross 176.5km of terrain broken into 10 legs (between nine and 25.6kkm in length), all while gaining 1,004m in elevation (only to lose 394m after the climb). To celebrate …
Normally the summer season is relatively quiet on Whitehorse’s biathlon range, but not this year. A partnership between the Contagious Mountain Bike Club and Biathlon Yukon has created a new way for Yukoners to make use of the range. Bike biathlon races have been taking place each Monday in August to the delight of local …
If, on a recent walk through the Mount McIntrye trails, you’ve heard a lot of rustling and crashing around in the bushes, it may not have been the bear you feared it was. Instead, it may be a pack of disc golfers. Most simply put, disc golf is like regular golf except with Frisbees. In …
“I don’t think I can even stand up on this thing,” laughs Steve Roddick, as his knee vibrates back and forth like an erratic metronome, trying to steady the piece of webbing enough to put his full weight on it. The piece of webbing in question stretches 25 m across a clearing in the Ibex …
Have you ever been happily hopping from rock to rock on a hiking trail, only to have a rock shift unexpectedly beneath your feet to remind you that the ground isn’t always as stable as you like to think? Have you ever had it happen when you were 60 feet in the air? I have, …
Do you love to play outside? Are you always looking for the next challenge or surprise? Then Taelin Free believes he has something that is right up your alley: the Awesome Warrior Challenge. The Awesome Warrior Challenge is a 3-km trail run with over 30 obstacles. It incorporates core strength, balance, stamina, agility and cardio. …
The Yukon summer is event-driven. Because of this, once they step off the pedals after finishing their leg of the Kluane Chilkat International Bike Relay many riders put their road bikes aside in favour of a mountain bike or a pair of running shoes as they gear up for road relays, trail marathons, and the …
“We’ve got lots do to, but we’re on schedule and on target, and we’ll get it all done,” says George Arcand, executive director of Softball Yukon. Softball Yukon is gearing up for its biggest event to date—the 2012 Women’s World Fastpitch Championships—and the host organization has been making its lists and checking them twice for …
For anyone who likes to play on two wheels on the local bike trails, Mount Sima is the place to be the weekend of July 14 and 15. That’s when the local ski hill will play host to the AFD Gravity Cup, the second and final downhill mountain bike race in the 2012 AFD Downhill …
It’s hard to envision just how long a one kilometre zip-line is until you’re standing on the launch platform. Trust me: it is very, very, very long. It’s so long you can barely make out the landing platform at the other end. When you watch another rider taking their turn, it takes you a while …
Terry Mosdale wants to see the sport of lacrosse take root and grow in the Yukon. The learning facilitator and officiating clinician with the Canadian Lacrosse Association was in Whitehorse a couple of weekends ago to train a group of new Yukon lacrosse coaches to help make that happen. Mosdale, who travelled to the territory …
Every second Wednesday throughout the summer, you can find a full cross-section of Whitehorse’s population—children, seniors, families, teens, young professionals, even excited dogs—out in the woods, maps and compasses at the ready. The Yukon Orienteering Association brings them together for bi-weekly orienteering meets that cater to the full gamut of abilities, from absolute beginners to …
In the padded and tranquil setting of the Aikido Yukon studio, students are warming up with their instructor William Jones by doing side push-ups. “Now everyone do a set of handstand push-ups,” says Jones with a twinkle in his eye. “Welcome to capoeira.” Capoeira (pronounced ka-poo-eyh-rah) is an Afro-Brazilian martial art and self-defence discipline that …
The Beatles forever changed our musical landscape with the simple phrase, “You say goodbye, I say hello”. This week, hundreds of visitors from across the Circumpolar North will descend upon Whitehorse for the Arctic Winter Games. Although the official language of the games is English, for many participants this is not their first language – …
Have you ever watched downhill skiing on television and caught the flash of a blue jacket running out of frame as the racer gracefully (or recklessly, depending on your take) carves down the slope? If so, you’ve probably caught a rare glimpse of the elusive course crew. The course crew member is a hardy species, …
Is it possible to write a sports column that covers kayak polo, fighting kites, ice climbing, skinny dipping, and broomball? And if it is, would you still call it a sports column, or the ultimate bucket list of things to try at least once while living in the Yukon? Well, my friends, perhaps the answers …
There are moments in life when you suddenly realize that you are heading for disaster and there is absolutely nothing you can do about it. Some people have experienced this sensation once or twice. Some, like me, have experienced it more times than they would like to count. A lucky few have yet to know …
