More than two-and-one-half hours after the horn sounded to begin the 20-kilometre Skating Loppet, Jim MacKenzie joined his fellow competitors at the Jocelyn Hall for lunch.
The 60-year-old was one of 24 skiers in the Skating Loppet, marking his debut Maple Syrup Stampede run, held at the Jocelyn Township Centennial Grounds over the weekend.
MacKenzie, an elementary school substitute teacher who took February off to ski, and partner Alison Barnes, a kindergarten teacher on a self-funded leave, travelled more than 400 kilometres from Bobcaygen, Ont., to take part in the annual event.
MacKenzie finished 2:36:29, a full hour and 30 minutes behind the first-place finisher.
Barnes and MacKenzie visited St. Joseph Island in the summer of 2006 and heard rave reviews regarding the Loppet.
“My goal was not to be last,” he said with a light chuckle.
One participant did not complete the race.
MacKenzie said one thing that went through his mind throughout race as he jockeyed against skiers much younger then him, was that he didn’t want his junior competitors to run over him.
“Especially when I was going up hills,” he said. “They can climb those hills faster than I can. When I saw them behind me going up a hill, I really boogied and got out of their way.”
A traditional skier, MacKenzie covers about 15 kilometres per day near his hometown.
“I didn’t want to do just seven kilometres,” he said. “I figured, if I am going to drive 400 kilometres to get here, I am going to do more than seven kilometres in a race. . . . I wanted to do the big one.”
MacKenzie praised the work of the organization and volunteers whom, he said, were constantly in touch with him at the refreshment stations.
It never occurred to him, as he travelled along at this own pace, that organizers would be concerned, he said. When he saw a rescue snowmobile on the trail, his first thought was, “My gosh.”
MacKenzie said his time was slower than he expected, due, in part, to the absent section of a track over flat terrain.
Winters on the island are long and fairly predictable, resulting in better snow conditions for skiing, compared to that of his hometown, where conditions can change overnight, he said.
Barnes, 46, was one of 48 skiers entered in the Classic race.
She gave Jocelyn a multi-star grade following her first entry.
“It’s some place where everyone can feel successful,” Barnes added.
“It didn’t matter whether you are an excellent skier, a passable skier or a person who goes out for a good time, it was quite possible to take part on your own level even for someone who had not raced like that before.
“Everyone was happy for you, cheering you on no matter how you finished.”
Barnes, who skies, on average, twice per week, said Jocelyn Township offers a different type of course than that on which she has skied in both Haliburton, Ont., or Atherly, Ont.
“(The race) separated the men for the boys, particularly those with good classic technique,” she said. “It was immediately evident those who had the skills would definitely finish near the top. And for people like me, who didn’t have the technique, we were going to have to be content with finishing the race.”
Barnes said she was pleased with her time of 53:30, a 15th-place finish out of 18 entries in the ladies division.
She added she enjoys the proximity to the outdoors and nature skiing affords.
Before heading home, MacKenzie and Barnes took in a day skiing at Stokley Creek, north of Sault Ste. Marie.
