Mild weather threatened the Ontario Winter Games ski track. Then Thunder Bay’s ski community stepped in

When a mild winter threatened the 2024 Ontario Winter Games cross-country ski events, the Thunder Bay community came together to make sure the athletes would have enough snow to compete.

As the race at Lappe Nordic Centre went off without a hitch, officials and participants said the massive effort is a testament to Thunder Bay's deep love of nordic skiing.

"It was definitely a ski community effort," said chief of course Jodi Hall.

When initial snowmaking efforts failed, Hall said volunteers shovelled any snow they could find into toboggans and dumped it on the bare patches. Shovellers from Lappe Nordic Ski Club and Big Thunder Ski club teamed up with the Thunder Bay Adventure Trails Snowmobile club to tow the toboggans. Hall estimated it took 400 toboggan-loads of snow to get the course race-ready.

"These kids work so hard to come race here. So it's super awesome to see that we can put on the best show that they could have," said Hall.

Groomers at Lappe Nordic Centre have been working on the course for weeks, said Hall.

Groomer Tommy Rossi said they weren't able to use the larger grooming machines at first due to lack of snow.

While hand-grooming the course is hard work, Rossi said it's rewarding to see the athletes on it.

"It turned out pretty good," he said. "It's nice to see people enjoy it."

Hosting the 2024 winter games hasn't been easy for Thunder Bay — over half of the originally confirmed sports pulled out, citing high prices for athletes and financial liabilities for sport organizations. The city's organizers said rising flight costs and reduced airline service to Thunder Bay limited their ability to arrange athlete travel.

With unusually high temperatures going into February, sports like skiing that depend on snow were left with uncertainties about whether they'd be able to get competition-ready.

Another cross-country ski race scheduled within weeks of the Games was a casualty of the warm weather. The 2024 Sleeping Giant Loppet ski festival would have been held on March 2, but organizers called it off due to poor trail conditions. It's the first time in the festival's 45-year history it's had to cancel because of lack of snow.

Coaches and athletes 'grateful'

"There's been a pretty massive effort to sort of like get the conditions up to raceable out at Lappe," said Lake Superior Ski District team coach Eric Bailey. "It's definitely a labour of love."

While Bailey's team has raced internationally, he said bringing the ski community together in Thunder Bay is a uniquely special experience the athletes are grateful for.

"Having it right in your hometown, it's a pretty cool feeling," he said.

Thunder Bay cross-country skier Hanna Abbink said that home-town advantage is something she looked forward to when competing in this year's race.

"We know the trails, we know kind of where the turns are," said Abbink.

Abbink said that seeing the overwhelming support from the community to help get the trails ready was heartwarming

"I'm so grateful. These volunteers, they're just out there day in, day out, just shovelling," said Abbink. "Everybody's out there. So many people from different clubs, some people that aren't even involved in the ski community."

The 2024 Ontario Winter Games will be continuing for a second weekend from Feb. 23-26.

Admission to all events is free, and a full schedule can be found on the Ontario Winter Games website.