TIMMINS – Double digit temperatures and sunny skies made for ideal — albeit, muddy — conditions for taking in the third-annual Snowcross competition in Timmins this weekend.
The Eclipse Financial Snowcross Pro Challenge was held at the city’s snow dump on the south end of Spruce Street South on Saturday and Sunday, drawing massive crowds of spectators on both days.
For many in the city, attending the event is a family affair.
Kimberly Grenier and Joe Desrochers brought their three girls — Myriam Desrochers, Melody Grenier and Annabelle Grenier — to the snowmobile competition on Saturday afternoon.
Grenier said that attending the competition has become an annual tradition for her family.
“We come with the kids every year. This is our third year coming, because they really enjoy the races and we enjoy the family time,” she said.
While she’s not a snowmobile racer herself, she said watching the pros race is an exciting thrill for both her and her children.
Desrochers, however, has a bit more of an appreciation for the skill it requires to compete.
And as a self-proclaimed “motorhead” and recreational snowmobiler, he said he enjoys seeing the riders push their machines to the limits.
He is also appreciative that such a large sporting event comes to the city every year.
“It’s a good event in Timmins and people should be part of it, for sure, because we don’t get much that comes here,” he said.
Angela Vacchino, a retired snowmobile racer and the Snowcross event coordinator, said she’s proud to bring the Snowcross competition to her hometown each year.
“It’s great to give the community something to come out and do because this is one of the biggest events that comes to Timmins in the winter,” she said. “I just love bringing this event to our hometown because we’re a snowmobile community. We’re from the North and it’s important to have this here and support it because this is what Timmins is about for tourism in the winter.”
Although the weather was exceptionally mild, and the snow was more slushy than solid, Vacchino said that the conditions for riding were still great.
“The track is good and everyone is happy to be on snow because everywhere else in the province is short on snow,” she pointed out. “So the fact that we’re snowmobile racing at plus-10 is a great day.”
Many of the racers and spectators who travelled from out of town to attend the event agreed with Vacchino.
“It’s just nice to have some snow because we have nothing,” said Paul Meek, who travelled to Timmins from Uxbridge to watch his young daughter Mya compete.
As a former racer himself, Meek has been to Timmins many times before and is happy to be passing the tradition down to his daughter. He does admit, however, that he still gets nervous whenever she rips around the track.
During Mya’s downtime, her father also likes to explore the trails in the city — going at a much more leisurely pace than during the competition.
“I come up quite often and snowmobile here,” he said. “We went trail riding last night because she had never seen the nice, big trails you have here and what they have to offer, so I always love coming to Timmins to ride snowmobiles.”
Marcia Moore, from Newmarket, also appreciates how much snow is in Timmins.
She came to the event with her son Devon, who has competed in Snowcross events for several years.
For her, taking part in the event offers her son the chance to meet new people and forge lasting friendships.
“We’ve been here a couple times and it’s a good outing because it’s a lot of family time for us and there’s been a lot of friendships made with the kids over the years,” she said. “We travel all over Ontario for the sport and as well as family time that we spend together, he enjoys it and it’s better than sitting at home in front of the TV.”
For Devon, the thrill of the competition and the speed he gets when whizzing around the track is what keeps him interested in the sport.
The event is just as exciting for those watching from the sidelines as it is for those racing, as well.
That’s evident by listening to the “oohs” and “aahs” and cheers that were elicited from the crowd over the weekend.
Vacchino said that a lot of the excitement of Snowcross comes from seeing just how much the riders are capable of doing with a 400-pound machine.
“I think people are shocked on how high and fast a snowmachine can go,” Vacchino said. “Everyone thinks speed, but some of these guys can jump 100 feet long and 60 feet high, so it’s just a really exciting, jam-packed sport and there’s always something going on that the spectators can enjoy.”
Many of those in the audience also enjoy watching the sport so much because they can appreciate how difficult it is.
Although Wayne Orr, from Timmins, was a first-time attendee at the event on Saturday, he has been riding snowmobiles for years.
He stressed that it may look like an easy activity, but there’s a lot more to riding a sled than meets the eye.
“It’s a lot of work and you have to be in shape,” he said. “You are not just sitting there holding the handle bars. There’s a lot of energy exerted.”
That’s a sentiment echoed by the riders themselves, including 16-year-old pro rider Taylor McCoy.
Hailing from Bracebridge, Ont., McCoy has been racing for 12 years and said that snowmobiling is a sport that requires a great deal of mental and physical prowess.
“Some people think it’s easy but it’s not. You have to work out a lot and you have to get ready for it,” he said. “The sled doesn’t do all the work and you have to use a lot of upper body so it’s pretty hard but also a lot of fun.”
Competing in front of a large crowd makes the hard work worthwhile, though, he noted.
“Last year was a pretty big event but this year seems a lot bigger,” added McCoy, who has won four championships in the past two years, some here in Timmins. “Having all of these people come to watch is really cool.”
Jacob Gervais, a 22-year-old pro rider from Sudbury, also appreciates how much support the people in Timmins give to the event.
“Angela always does a great job putting this event on and it’s a good place to come so we have fun,” he said.
While the wet conditions made things a bit tricky for the riders, they still put on quite a show and it was obvious that all of the fans in attendance got their money’s worth this weekend.
