An unprecedented 405 individual athletes flocked to Lost Lake Park on Sept. 14 and 15 for the latest XTERRA Whistler off-road triathlon, including 96 minors. A number of teens enjoyed the benefit of new age categories (14-15, 16-17 and 18-19) as they raced for qualifying spots at a brand-new XTERRA Youth World Championship scheduled for 2025 in Italy.
Ethan Wood tossed his name into the hat by crushing his sprint in one hour, 21 minutes and 33 seconds. That blistering time was the fastest by any individual across all divisions, and a minute off the race record set in 2019.
Pembertonians know Wood as a tough and versatile athlete. He was last year's national cyclocross king and also placed second overall in the Canada Cup XC Series. The 16-year-old found the swim to be his weakest skill, but remained poised throughout his Sunday foray.
Cordelia Hultman (1:42:37) also distinguished herself in the sprints, besting her fellow 19-year-old rival Lydia Schwartz (2:57:41) by a large margin.
Over in the men's elite championship, Elliot Holtham took gold with a marvellous showing (2:32:50). His friend and closest rival, Nathan Killam, was unable to finish the race after experiencing mechanical issues on his bike.
Christy Drever (3:04:38) locked down her second consecutive women's elite title, aided in part by a personal best swim. The Squamish resident elected to pace herself in preparation for the upcoming XTERRA World Championships, but a back-half rally by Angela Shoniker forced her to put pedal to the metal.
"Fun day playing on the trails at XTERRA Whistler where the sun was shining," Drever wrote on social media. "I executed the race that I was hoping for as a final tune up before [worlds] with a PR swim, a controlled and clean bike and a strong run. This technical and challenging off-road course is a classic and I loved every minute of it.
"There’s no guarantee in racing and although I had the honour of bib No. 1, I still had to work hard to finish as the lead female. Thank you to the organizers and volunteers for putting on a top-notch event."
As one of Whistler's best-known endurance maestros, Shoniker didn't quite catch Drever but did earn top spot among female amateurs (3:09:03). She stood on the podium next to her male counterpart, Markus Roggen (2:48:16).
"We have amazing volunteers, and the majority of people have good experiences," said race director Kristian Manietta. "The course is amazing. It's challenging. It's what people want from an XTERRA community event."
Brave faces
Distance wasn't the only challenge faced by this year's athletes.
Youngsters between the ages of five and 15 were scheduled to race on Saturday, and the weather did not cooperate. Instead there were multiple rounds of chilly wind and driving rain—not exactly what the doctor ordered.
Sylvie Lawrie-Lie and James Pinfold soldiered on to victory among their fellow U15 girls and boys, respectively. Triumph in the age 9-13 bracket went to Waverly Lawrie-Lie and Brock Schmidt. Last but not least, Cleo Dignon and James Holtham were winners in the U8 discipline.
"It was just an insane amount of water coming from the sky, but you know what? Kids put on their brave faces and got it done," Manietta recounted. "I won't lie, there were definitely some tears … especially coming off the bike. It's very funny watching Sea to Sky parents though. [Many told their children]: 'get running, that will warm you up.' Eventually those tears were forgotten with pizza, medals and pride."
Not much can be done about inclement weather, but Manietta and his team are always looking for ways to make XTERRA Whistler and other local competitions run more efficiently. They're dedicated to the pursuit of improvement, not unlike the athletes who run in their races.
"We're reflecting this week on [how things went], speaking with our key supporters, volunteers and crew to get feedback—plus Tourism Whistler and XTERRA Global," said Manietta. "Our relationship with the Resort Municipality of Whistler is getting better every year. Our relationship with the officials was the best it's been this year. I won't lie: we all love getting positive feedback, but when we get the not-so-positive feedback, we take it to heart.
"Even if the problem wasn't on you, as a race director it's still on me. We take [constructive criticism] on board, and we just aim to do better."
View full results from the 2024 XTERRA Whistler triathlon at zone4.ca/event/2024/j9QO6n.
