Dear Skiers

Cold Weather

The Event Jury, which includes the independent professional safety contractor, has carefully studied various weather forecasts for the weekend and has enough information to make a decision that is unlikely to change. Of course, they will continue to monitor the forecasted and actual weather and adjust the plans if there is a significant change.

Saturday Plans

The trail and checkpoint times for Saturday will proceed as planned. The safety personnel will be taking extra precautions. They will check every skier starting and finishing each section, watching in particular for signs of frostbite. Do not hesitate to ask for their assistance and remember that every checkpoint has a warm bus for your use. If you are not comfortable starting at the checkpoint and the time that you registered for, don’t hesitate to take a different shuttle bus from Papineauville or Montebello and start at a later time and at a checkpoint further down the trail.

Sunday Plans

The trail and checkpoint times for Sunday are being changed. The temperature and wind on Sunday morning mean that the wind chill factor is colder than is safe to ski. We want to maintain an event that is safe for all our skiers and volunteers. Therefore, we will be delaying the early starting times until it is less cold. Here is the impact on each skier category:

• Coureur des Bois Gold – You will remain at Gold Camp until the start at 08:40am, which remains at the same location at Golf Héritage. Sections 7 and 8 are being combined and shortened so you will ski from Taunton directly to Sand Pit (7.7km). Then you will continue to the finish line in Montebello. Your overall day will be 55.3km. If you complete this course, you will receive your CdB award. The checkpoint volunteers will assist you to maintain your campfires. If you get too cold, you can take refuge in Golf Héritage and not be penalized for doing so.
• Coureur des Bois Silver and Bronze, Tourer 4 and 5 – You will ski the same amended trail as the CdB Gold. You will start at 8:50, 9:00 and 10:30am, respectively. The departure time of your shuttle bus from Papineauville or Montebello will be amended accordingly. Enjoy the extra sleep you will get.
• Half-Marathon and Tourer 3 – You will be starting at the Taunton checkpoint instead of Esdale and ski the same combined/shortened section 7 and 8 as the CdB skiers. Your trail will be 35.7km long. You will start one hour later so the Tourer 3 skiers will start at 10:00am and the Half-Marathoners at 11:45. The departure times of your shuttle buses from Papineauville or Montebello will be amended accordingly.
• Tourer 2 and 1, Tasters – Your trail, starting checkpoints and start times remain the same (11:00, 13:00 and 11:00 respectively). Lucky you!

The revised map of the overall route and the amended section 7 & 8 is available on the website.

Shuttle Bus Schedule

If your time to start skiing has been delayed, the departure times for your shuttle bus will be delayed by approximately the same amount (CdB skiers and Tourer 4 and 5 delayed by ~3 hours, Half-Marathon and Tourer 3 by 1 hour). The revised schedule is available on the website.

Sunday Breakfast at the Papineauville

Breakfast will be delayed to 05:30 to 08:00.

Cut-Off Times

The cut-off time at the Sporting Clay checkpoint remains the same – 14:00 for tourers, 15:30 for CdB, Tourer 4 and 5 and Half Marathoners who have completed all previous sections.

Communication during the event

As stated before, if for any reason, we need to send you an announcement or instructions during the weekend, including provisions for severe weather, it will be done by email to the address you supplied during registration. So please monitor your emails before and during the event and check your spam folder. We will also post notices on the official CSM Facebook page and Instagram. If you are skiing, you can always ask questions at any checkpoint or mid-section safety point.

Conclusion

We trust that this new plan will keep skiers and volunteers safe while still following the original trail as much as possible. The changes being made are only possible because of the wide variety of trails available to us in Kenauk Nature.