Velocity Challenge skiers speed to the finish

As published online at www.sunpeaksnews.com
8 March, 2008 SUN PEAKS, B.C.

It was a perfect day to end the week of the 2008 Subaru Velocity Challenge presented by Zimmer Autosport: clear weather after morning flurries brought fresh snow to the hills of Sun Peaks Resort; a few astounding personal bests for the competing speed skiers; and of course, the winner of the Velocity Challenge.

The 2008 Subaru Velocity Challenge is the competition for the fastest speed down the Sun Peaks Headwall track and the podiums are awarded to the speed skiers with the best speeds taken from the last three days of competition. This year's winner, 20-year-old Ivan Origone from Italy, put on a great show with the last run of the day, flying down at 176.44 km/h, close to the all-time Velocity Challenge record of just over 177 km/h, made by Sun Peaks' own Kenny Dale. Origone has been outstanding all week with two World Cup golds earlier this week, beating even his older brother Simone Origone, the world-record holder at a speed of 251.4 km/h. Simone placed second with a speed of 175.10 km/h and congratulates his younger sibling.

"I think Ivan is really happy because he won this race," he says. "Ivan beat me again but it's okay."

The third place winner, Philippe May of Switzerland sped in a couple kilometres slower but has also been an exceptional competitor this week with a silver-medal placing at yesterday's World Cup race. Sun Peaks' Kenny Dale was close-but-not-quite this week with a fifth placing at 171.10 km/h, but he still retains his Velocity record.

In Women's Unlimited the Velocity Challenge champion was Linda Baginski from Sweden with a speed of 168.82 km/h. Baginski has been fighting a cold all week but shone through it today and she says she feels pretty good about that.

"I've been doing not so good [due to a cold] this week so this was perfect," she says.

Women's racing has been a tight competition all week with yesterday's silver-medalist Sanna Tidstrand, Swedish teammate to Baginski, coming in at a speed of 168.63 km/h. Karine Dubouchet-Revoc, the five-time world record holder, was a close third with a speed of 168.44 km/h.

In the Men's Production races, the Velocity Challenge was won by Marc Poncin of Great Britain with a speed of 161.43 km/h, almost three kilometres-per-hour ahead of second-place finisher Eric Strobl from Tappen, B.C. who finished ahead of Brian Morris of the United States by five 10th's of a kilometre.

A couple of personal bests were also reached by Canadians Mike Schneider of Ontario with a speed of 156.39 km/h in the Men's Production class and Sun Peaks own beloved Peter Wilson, a forerunner, with an astounding speed of 165.59 km/h.

The 2008 Subaru Velocity Challenge event came to a finish with an awards ceremony held at Sun Peaks' Masa's Bar and Grill where the Velocity Challenge gold-medalist will be awarded with $1,000.