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Sports Briefs: Whistler Half Marathon half sold out

Interest in the second annual North Face Whistler Half Marathon has been brisk, with more than half the 1,000 spots in the event snapped up in the first 48 hours since the race went on sale on Jan. 1.
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Charlotte Bredahl-Baker takes Dreammaster DMV for a trot. Photo Submitted.

Interest in the second annual North Face Whistler Half Marathon has been brisk, with more than half the 1,000 spots in the event snapped up in the first 48 hours since the race went on sale on Jan. 1.

"Response to the opening of general registration on New Year's Day has been very strong, building off the enthusiasm of the inaugural event held on June 4, 2011," said race director Dave Clark. "Website traffic in the days leading up to the registration indicated high interest in the event so we thought we would get a good response, but we are thrilled with these numbers."

The 21.1 kilometre race starts and finishes at Whistler Olympic Plaza, and follows a mix of residential roads in five neighbourhoods and Valley Trail.

It's described as an "undulating" course, which means is a little hillier than half marathons in places like Vancouver or Victoria, but it's still within limits for official sanctioning from BC Athletics.

The 2012 race takes place on Saturday, June 2. The cost is $78 until Feb 29, going up to $88.

There's also a Little Rippers one kilometre run for kids that's $10, and is capped at 100 racers. The optimum age is five to nine years old, but all kids are welcome.

All proceeds from the event go towards the Crohn's and Colitis Foundation of Canada.

For more on the race and volunteer opportunities, visit www.whistlerhalfmarathon.com.

Pemberton equestrian centre wins top awards

Dreamcatcher Meadows in Pemberton received a great Christmas present this year with news that four of their horses received Horse of the year awards from the United States Dressage Federation.

Dreammaster DMV, a homebred Hanoverian stallion, won three titles in the All Breeds competition for his wins at the Prix St. Georges level, ridden by Olympian Charlotte Bredahl-Baker — herself an Olympian and international judge.

The horse was brought to Bredahl-Baker's ranch in 2010 after seeing him in action, and Dreammaters DMV continued his training at the Santa Ynes ranch.

With a good foundation from Dreamcatcher, the horse was able to skip a few steps to the Federation Equestrian Internationale level. He is now training for the highest level of competition with Bredahl-Baker with plans to compete internationally in 2012.

Another Dreamcatcher horse, Ballerina DMV — another homebred Hanoverian — was bought by Earl's Restaurant Chairman Leroy "Bus" Fuller as a foal, then left with the Dreamcatcher stables and owners Jill Giese and John Dingle for training.

The horse competed for the first time this year at the age of three, winning numerous young horse classes in the U.S., scoring the second-highest average in all of the U.S. for horses aged 3 to 5. The horse won the title of Three Year Old Materiale Young Horse of the year.

Last week it was announced that the horse had won the American Hanoverian Society award for 2011 Materiale Horse of the Year, which will be presented in Florida in the New Year.

KVRS resumes Jan. 12

The Kokanee Valley Race Series returns on Thursday, Jan. 12 with the third race of the series — a giant slalom on Blackcomb. It's one of two events remaining before the annual Peak to Valley Race along with the GS on Jan. 26, and an opportunity for skiers to brush up on racing gates.

Early registration is $29 both online and at Guest Relations, and day-of-race registration is available for $35 at the Rendezvous until 9:45 a.m. on the day of the event.

To participate, you must be 19 or older, sign a waiver and wear a helmet.

All racers will get two timed runs of the course and an invite to the after party at the Mountain Club in the Westin, with live video from the day's race and draw prizes.

For more information or registration, visit www.whistlerblackcomb.com/todo/events/mountain/kokanee/.

Spots available in Peak to Valley race

The annual Peak to Valley Race, sponsored by Jose Cuervo, is an institution in Whistler, one of the highlights for skiers that like a good challenge.

The course is one of the longest anywhere, with a vertical drop of 1,443 metres from the top of The Saddle (weather and conditions permitting) to the timing flats above Creekside, and 180 gates placed along the five-kilometre route.

While the race, taking place Feb. 3 and 4, usually sells out all 100 spots during the summer, there are a few teams slots still available. To enter a team you need four people, one of them female. Your category will depend on your combined age.

As well as team spots, race organizers keep a list of "singles" — racers that don't currently have teams, but would like to take part. A lot of teams find themselves scrambling for replacements at the last minute because racers have business or family commitments, or get injured before race day.

Skiers, telemarkers and snowboarders are welcome, although there are no separate categories.

To enter a team or get onto the singles list, contact Tim Dale at 604-905-2032.

Squamish 50 ultramarathon to fill STORMY void

The sudden and unexpected decision to cancel the annual Squamish STORMY ultra run in 2010 after 10 successful years caught a few people by surprise, but that slot on the calendar was quickly filled with an off-road Squamish to Whistler event called the Tenderfoot Boogie. Heading into 2012, there's a new event to replace the STORMY — The Squamish 50.

The race is a 50-mile (80km) off-road marathon on Aug. 11, by ultra runners Gary Robbins and Geoff Langford. The course can be run as a solo event, or as part of a team of seven. It's also designed for runners, while the first STORMY events followed the 67km Test of Metal bike race course. In fact, STORMY originally stood for "Squamish Test of Running Metal — Yeah!" until it evolved into a sanctioned 50 and 100 mile event.

The Squamish 50 will boast 3,300 metres of climbing and descending, with 80 per cent of the run on trails and singletrack. Some of the trails on the course include The Powerhouse Plunge and The Farther Side.

The cost is $45 for solo racers, going up to $55 on April 1. A relay team is $175.

Registration and more information is available online at www.squamish50.com.

Drop-in Futsal starting Jan. 10

Starting on Tuesday, Jan. 10, the Whistler Youth Soccer Club is hosting weekly Futsal — indoor soccer — games at Whistler Secondary School, open to players aged 13 and older. The program will run until May 10, 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.

As well, the QU Soccer Academy is starting a new Whistler Indoor Fustal Soccer Program on Jan. 16 for players aged U10 to U16, boys and girls. The program will last seven weeks, with 75-minute coached sessions with Chris Cerroni and Adam Day. The program takes place at Spring Creek Community School; U10 to U12 girls are from 5 p.m. to 6:15 p.m., U10 to U12 boys from 6:15 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., U13 to U16 girls from 7:30 p.m. to 8:45 p.m. and U13 to U16 boys from 8:45 p.m. to 10 p.m. The cost is $115 per player.

For more on the program and coaches visit www.qusocceracademy.com.

Buchar earns Canadian Cyclist award

Canadian Cyclist Magazine announced its 2011 Canadian Cyclists of the Year award this week, as selected by their readers. Whistler's Claire Buchar, who won the national mountain biking title and followed up with a third place finish at the world championships in Switzlerland, earned one of three Best Individual Performance awards.

Other winners include Catharine Pendrel — also voted the Female Rider of the Year for her world championship win and overall World Cup title — and Tara Whitten, who won the track omnium world title this year.

Whitten was also second in the Female Rider of the Year category, with national time trial champion and Olympic cycling and speed skating star Clara Hughes in third.

For the men, the Male Rider of the Year was Nanaimo's Steve Smith, the first Canadian to finish fifth on the World Cup downhill tour a consistent finisher in the top 10 until he was sidelined with an injury.

Road rider and defending Male Rider of the Year title holder Ryder Hesjedal was second in the polling, having had a tough go in the Tour de France this year after getting caught up in a crash on Stage 7. He managed to stay in the competition, but dropped off the pace.

National road and time trial champion Svein Tuft was third om the voting.

The Roger Sumner Award for the best newcomer to cycling was Rhae-Christie Shaw, who finished third in the naitonal time trials, won a stage at the Tour of Limousin and placed seventh in the time trial and the world championships in Copenhagen. She hails from Ontario, but is currently living and training in the U.S.

Greg Lee race held in Ontario

Whistler's Greg "Sumo" Lee had been a fixture in Canadian ski racing for decades leading up to his sudden stroke at the age of 58 in February 2011.

As a tribute, the Greg Lee Friends and Family Race Day will take place at Craigleith Ski Club in Ontario on Jan. 20 — where he was sitting on the patio at the time of his stroke. All proceeds will go towards the Track 3 Ski Association for the Disabled.

For more, visit www.greglee-ski.com.