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Sports Briefs

RMOW stands up for Comfortably Numb

The Resort Municipality of Whistler is standing up for the 24 km Comfortably Numb mountain bike trail, opposing the planned installation of a communications tower in the Wedgemont area that would improve cell phone reception in the Emerald Estates subdivision.

The plan includes a tower, a power line to the tower, and an access road that would include a section of a deactivated forestry road that is part of Comfortably Numb.

In the RMOW’s reply, the municipality suggested that approval would only be granted if there is no “degradation of the visual character” of the area and if the tower and power line “do not affect current or potential amenities.”

The proposed location of the access road would impact approximately 900 metres of the trail. As a result, the RMOW will not support the application for the tower until a solution can be reached that complements the trail and is endorsed by the Whistler Off-Road Cycling Association.

The RMOW also advised the Ministry of Agriculture and Lands — which is handling the applications for the tower and road on behalf of their client — to forward a copy of the application to WORCA.

Guy Patterson, the Director of Planning for WORCA, confirmed their opposition to the proposed access road in a letter to the RMOW.

“The visual impact of these structures would be significant, and negative. The proposed road alignment would interrupt the single-track experience for riders, and may create conflicts between cyclists and motorized traffic on the road.”

Patterson added that WORCA is not opposed to the project in principle, and would support alternatives.

Last fall Comfortably Numb was officially designated an Epic Ride by the International Mountain Bicycling Association, giving it international recognition. Only four other trails in Canada have Epic Ride status.

Week of blowouts for minor hockey teams

Whistler Winterhawk teams found themselves on both sides of blow-outs in the seventh week of the regular season, although most were in favour of Whistler teams.

The Atom Rep team split a pair of games, losing to North Vancouver 5-2 and beating Hollyburn 5-3 to bring their record to 6-4-2. Their next home game is Saturday, Dec. 9 at 10:30 a.m.

Atom C1 met their match against West Vancouver, losing 15-0. They’ll try to turn it around this Saturday at 9 a.m.

Peewee C1 beat North Vancouver 7-4 last Saturday, improving their record to 6-1-1 on the season.

Peewee C2 got into a scoring derby with Hollyburn C3 that finished with a 6-6 tie, then faced a West Van C1 team they defeated 17-4 for a total of 23 goals in two games. That brought their record to 4-1-3. The next Peewee home game is Sunday at 9 a.m.

The Bantam Rep team also racked up some points, beating Whatcom 4-3 on Saturday and Chilliwack 8-1 on Sunday to bring the team’s record to 9-1-2 on the season. Their next home game is Sunday at 3:15 p.m.

Bantam C1 split their games, shutting out Sechelt 11-0 on Saturday, then losing a close one to North Vancouver 8-7 on Sunday to bring their Week Seven record to 6-5-0. Their next home game is Saturday at 3:15 p.m.

The Midget Rep Team defeated North Shore 5-2, then tied North Delta 2-2 to bring their record to 10-1-1 on the year. Their next Meadow Park appearance is Sunday at 6:15 p.m.

Midget C2 shut out Squamish C2 5-0 to bring their record to 9-3-0. They play at home Sunday at 4:45 p.m.

The Midget Girls continued to struggle, losing 11-0 to Burnaby to drop to 1-9-1 on the season. Cheer them on at their next home game on Sunday at 10:30 a.m.

LUNA hosts December drop-ins

LUNA is hosting drop-in sports nights throughout December, open to everyone aged 18 to 35.

On Monday, Dec. 11, LUNA will host a drop-in soccer night at Whistler Secondary School, running from 8 to 10 p.m. The cost is $3 for members and $5 for non-members. No experience is necessary; just bring sports clothing and non-marking gym shoes.

Monday, Dec. 18 is drop-in dodgeball, a popular event that LUNA is now hosting every second week — same place, same time, and same price.

Other LUNA events in December include a Jam Lounge at Millennium Place on Friday, Dec. 8 from 7 to 11 p.m. and the LUNA Christmas Dinner on Friday, Dec. 22 at Spruce Grove Field House starting 7 p.m.

Tight race for Squash supremacy

Week four of the Whistler Squash League wrapped up with four teams within 10 points of each other at the top of the pack, and all of the teams in contention.

Team Points Total

Slope Side Supply 16 61

Splash Nash Spas 15 58

Summit Sports 16 55

Meadow Park 11 51

Scotia Bank 7 45

Mountain Crests 6 42

Whistler Medical 9 40

McDonald’s 7 39

Hilton 9 38

IT Pharmacy 6 38

Valley Bus. Centre 11 36

VIP Holidays 16 36

Sun Dog Eyewear 4 34

Affinity Sports 3 23

Sliders rake in more medals

Canadian sliders added two more medals to their 2006-07 tally with strong performances at the Olympics bobsleigh and luge track at Park City, Utah last weekend.

Leading off the day, Helen Upperton and Jenny Ciochetti placed third in the women’s bobsleigh, while Amanda Stepenko and Shelley-Ann Brown were eighth. Pierre Lueders and Lascelles Brown picked up their second bronze medal in the pairs this season.

Lueders, Brown, David Bissett and Ken Kotyk just missed their second four-man World Cup medal in two weeks in the four-man bobsleigh on Saturday, after winning bronze in Calgary the week before.

Biathlete in top six in Austria

Competing on a narrow strip of snow in the green hills of Hochfilzen, Austria, the Canadian biathlon team came close to its second medal of the season on Dec. 8.

Zina Kocher of Red Deer, Alberta — a bronze medal winner two weeks ago — sprinted her way to sixth place after missing just one target on the shooting range.

“I skied really well today, and if I had shot clean on the range I think I would have been on the podium,” said Kocher.

Kocher credits her win to the support that Biathlon Canada is providing athletes in the run-up to the 2010 Winter Games.

“Through the support of Own The Podium over the past two years, we have been able to augment our coaching and sport science team to provide the athletes with an even greater level of service than we have been able to do in previous years,” said Joanne Thomson, executive director of Biathlon Canada.