Winter Games

Joseph has qualified to compete for Team Alberta North in the Alberta Games in biathlon. These games will be held in Cold Lake, Alberta in about 2 weeks. His race is about 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) and 20 targets (10 from a prone position and 10 from a standing position). Since Cold Lake is only about 5 hours away, we will be able to go see him in a race. Last year the Alberta Games were held in Camrose, about 11 hours one way, or longer if the weather turned bad.

He has also qualified to compete for Team Alberta North in the Arctic Winter Games. For these games he will compete is snowshoe biathlon. His race there will be about 6 kilometers long, with 20 targets. These games will be held in Grande Prairie which is harder to get to, but will include athletes from northern Russia, Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, northern Canada, and Alaska. The basic criteria is that the athletes must live above the 55th parallel. I think he is more excited about these games, even though he is in the hardest race.


Here are the moose hide mukluks he has to wear for the competition. All footwear must be from all natural materials. The mukluks were made by his coach from the hide a a moose her son shot last year. He tanned the hide, and she made the mukluks for the local biathlon club. He gets to wear an insulated bootie inside the mukluk.

The snowshoes are birch frames with moose gut webbing, thanks to the same moose. These snowshoes are very light, and it is funny to watch the youth running around in them. They all look a little like Pigpen from Charlie Brown with a cloud of snow instead of a cloud of dirt.

Men in Tights.

Daniel and Joseph at a practice last week. It really was not the middle of the night, just 6 pm or so, but the sun still sets rather early here.

Joseph gets ready to shoot his standing targets in practice last Saturday. They ski about 20 km and shoot as much as they can in both positions. Once everyone is near total frozen, they put all the gear away and jump in cars for a Tim's run. The tradition is a stop at Tim Horton's for a hot chocolate and a donut. The donuts are pretty good, but the HC is outstanding.

We will have some pictures very soon of Samuel on a real snowboarding run, not the backyard deal that was doomed from the start. (see the post from November for a good chuckle) I have seen him in action, and he is quite good. He and a friend are constructing a mini ramp on the edge of the woods hear here.

p.s. happy birthday Alan.

to be continued...

Happy New Year

Happy New Year to all our friends and family around the world. We are all healthy and happy, looking forward to the new year with all it's opportunities and blessings. We hope your new year is starting out as a good one too.
New Years Breakfast, pancakes, bacon, and fresh fruit. Later in the day, I made a killer Frecnh Onion Soup from a new recipe we found in Cooks Illustrated. It is SOOOO simple to make, and amazingly delicious. If you are interested, drop us a note, and we will send you a copy of it.

Samuel at the Ski Hill.

Shiloh bends steel rods, and Lockie straightens them out. (just kidding, Lockie softens up the rods, so it is easier for Shiloh)

Moving day. Our friends Shiloh, Barb, and Lockie have moved to Calgary, and we will miss them terribly. Michelle, Becky, Barb,Jodie, and Lockie on moving day.

Enjoying a little home made Antipasta, Nova Scotia style, from our Bishop. He served a mission in New Mexico and loves tamales and posole, so we traded. This was a classic win-win.