ST. PAUL – The Lakeland Cross Country Ski Club (LCCSC) is gearing up for its final event for the season.
Pierre Lamoureux, president of LCCSC, invites skiers in the Lakeland to come out for the free “Westcove Family Fun Ski” event on March 4, from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.
The event will take place at the trailhead located at the Westcove Municipal Recreation Area.
Activities during the event will include a classic ski and skate ski lessons from 1 p.m. to 1:30 p.m, followed by a classic ski loppet of 1 km, 5 km, and 10 km at 2 p.m.
For the loppet, skiers can either ski for fun, or race to win.
While the LCCSC has no ski rental equipment for the public, Lamoureux encourages people with snowshoes to also come to the event. “We can show people the areas that we are designating as snowshoe trails.”
“Come with your own gear, come snowshoeing, and come just to have some fun at the trailhead,” said Lamoureux.
According to Lamoureux, the LCCSC is organizing the event to promote “fitness and winter wellness in Alberta.”
“We do this because there are huge health benefits to outdoor recreation in the winter for physical and mental health,” he said, adding the event is also a way to celebrate the community coming together.
Sometimes, the health benefits of winter sports like skiing and snowshoeing may not be obvious to a lot of people, because, “It’s cold [so] why should I go outside?” says Lamoureux. “The sunshine creates mental health benefits, and the physical activity creates physical health benefits.”
While everything is for free, Lamoureux asks people to register with the QR code at the event site, because “this allows us to offer liability insurance protection for skiers.”
He added, “It’s going to be an event where we welcome people from throughout the Lakeland area to come and have fun cross-country skiing with us.”
