Fun-loving thrill seekers will launch themselves adventurously into spring on March 28 with the fourth annual Penticton Ramada Elevator Race.
The 52 kilometre, six-stage event takes participants up more than 6,000 feet. Coordinated by Hoodoo Adventures, the truly memorable race always means a day full of high fives, broad smiles and exhilarated “woots.”
The event attracts competitors from all walks of life. Kamloops-based Laura Rapp, the first solo female competitor to take part in the Elevator Race, hopes to inspire other women.
“Being the first female to compete solo will hopefully encourage girls to push their potential as well. If I, an average yet determined athlete, can do it, so can they,” she said.
Other participants thrive on the sense of community the race evokes, including 71-year-old Penticton resident, Wayne Still. “This will be my third Elevator,” he said. “This is a great event to build community and to kick off the summer season of competition.”
Participants travel as solo racers or in teams from Penticton to Apex Mountain Resort by boat, road bike, snowshoe, running shoe, mountain bike, Nordic ski, hiking boot and downhill ski or snowboard.
Any one stage of the race can be tackled without extraordinary physical prowess, but the teamwork involved offers its own special rewards. Athletes pass an armband to the next stage racer at each transition point. A range of categories means plenty of opportunity to excel, and the route spells challenges all-round.
Paddlers begin the race at 8:30 a.m. at the SS Sicamous on Okanagan Lake with an eight km out-and-back course. Then it’s time for the road cyclists to begin their individual time trial race, travelling 25 km along Green Mountain Road.
Next, runners and snowshoers start their nine km leg of the trip on Keremeos Creek, finishing at Apex Mountain Resort. The mountain bikers will push off from there, biking just over six km north on Strayhorse Road to the Nickel Plate Nordic Ski Centre.
At that point, the Nordic skiers will set out for their 7 km race, finishing at the Apex Upper Parking Lot. There, the Alpine racers will ski or board down the Grandfathers Trail to the base of the Bunny Hill/Magic Carpet run, then hike with their gear up to the top of the Okanagan Run, a total of about 3,000 feet with a 1,000 foot elevation gain. They’ll strap on their skis or boards for the final leg of the race, down the Okanagan Run -- headed straight for that post-race party, including live music, cold beer and plenty of cheers.
The Penticton Ramada offers accommodation and race entry packages for $75 per person. The pre-race meeting and check-in takes place on March 27 at the Penticton Ramada at 7 p.m. and carbo-loading that night will be easy at the Kettle Valley Pub, which offers an Elevator pasta special.
Award-winning Hoodoo Adventures, organizes the race bring together some of the most energetic, personable and dedicated individuals in the industry, offering outstanding instructional skills, playful attitudes and knowledge of safety management with a wide range of backgrounds, qualifications and experience.
Register for the Penticton Ramada Elevator Race at www.HoodooAdventures.com.