The Canada Winter Games are going to provide a break from the regular grind for a pair of local moguls skiers.
Penticton’s Brayden Kuroda and Kassidy Todd of Keremeos, who are also members of the Freestyle B.C. squad, were chosen to represent the province at the Games in Red Deer, Alta., along with coach Josh Kober.
“It’s really going to be fun and super exciting to be competing in the Winter Games,” said 18-year-old Kuroda, who is currently enjoying one of his best seasons ever on the Nor-Am Tour circuit. “They don’t have any FIS (International Ski Federation) points, so this will just be for fun.
“Sometimes it can be tough on the road, so we’re just going to have a good time and a good competition,” he said.
Todd agreed: “It doesn’t count for anything, but it will be a real cool experience.
“It’s kind of nice to have a competition in the middle of the season where there’s really no pressure on us, have a little break and just have fun with the sport again. We’re on the road for a long time, so it definitely does take away from the fun of it all.”
Both skiers will be training on the weekend, with the competition taking place Sunday and Monday.
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Immediately afterward they will be heading to Steamboat Springs, Col. for another Nor-Am event.
Last weekend they were in Quebec and Stratton Mountain, Vt. for Canada Series and Nor-Am skiing races.
While at Mount Tremblant, Que., Kuroda and Todd had a particularly unique opportunity, both being selected as forerunners for a World Cup moguls event.
They were two of the five skiers chosen by the national team coaches to do the preliminary runs on the course, just before the start of the competition.
“It was a crazy experience, that’s for sure. Really awesome,” said Todd, 20. “To be able to train with all the athletes and just see everything that they go through is exactly what we go through. Also, being able to perform in front of the national team coaches is huge.
“That’s the dream (becoming a member of Canada’s national team) and it’s looking better and better each year,” she said.
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Right now, the focus for Todd and her teammate is representing their province at the Games.
“We’re going to do our best,” said Todd.
Added Kuroda: “My goal is to win, but we’ll see how that goes.”
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