Out Of The Cold & Sous Le Soleil

Out Of The Cold & Sous Le Soleil: So it’s been freezing here in Mississauga/ Toronto as of late. I’d like to offer you some perspective about what it is being a Canadian at this time of the year: Sigrid Ziegler recently posted an entry called The Minus 20 Skate. Her description of her skate with Aaron seems just like I would descbibe is if I had skated.


Chilean skaters bundling up together during the 2005 Pan Am Championships in Mar Del Plata, Argentina
But here’s some more for you: This past weekend, little Pailsey Perrie competed at the North American Age Class LT championships in Winnipeg- the CITC’s website reads '…The temperatures actually had the locals complaining…On day one it was minus 30 degrees plus the wind chill. The ice was cracking under the skaters feet from the intense cold. I though it was cold last weekend in the Soo but was way beyond bloody cold. Upon entering Ontario's dressing room we met team coaches Joanne Mitchell and Tony Bean. Joanne handed Paisley an Ontario Skinsuit and told her to dress warm ( lots of layers). Because of the cold the officials decided to run the 2 short distances on day 1...'. If you’re wondering how Paisley performed in the cold, well, she won her division. Click here for the NAACC results.


See the smoke coming from my mouth during this morning's drive to work?? NO! I don't smoke cigarettes- it's just so damn cold...
Compare this out-of-control-cold with these photos from skating sous le soleil (that’s French for skating under the sun). Look at the pictures! They have like 2 layers on, that's it!


You call this cold? (photos roller-numerix)
Have you ever skated in minus billion Celsius temperatures like I have? If you haven’t, I don’t think you need me to tell you that it sucks. It really really sucks. Apart from freezing your toes and wiener (if you’re a guy) off, you have to wear like 8 or 9 layers of windproof super scientifically formulated deep cold resistant clothes which make you feel as if you’re wearing diapers all over your body and so you can’t move. You kind feel like the guy who put on like 155 t-shirts (see video on YouTube).


And then we have the current batch of top-skaters who are basking (and racing) in Catagena, Colombia. I’ve been there before and it’s nice and warm. I laid in the sea along with Wayne Burrett- we floated lazily along the waves as the sun beat down on our pale-Canadian skin. (click here for the first update and photos from the racing there). I wonder if that’s what the skaters are doing after their races; basking in the sun maybe? While they’re racing and then lying on the beach, I am struggling at getting my salt lick (my car) started; I am stuck inside my school with crazy kids because it’s too cold for them to go run around for recess.


Cartagena- skinsuits is all they need to wear (photo PatinCarrera)
Actually, the cold’s not that bad.

If it’s the cold you really dig, then you’ll probably like these photo galleries from outdoor long track ice (Weissensee) courtesy Harm de Boer. Click here, here, and here. The racing actions looks really good, and HdB is really good at taking pictures and I think it's super nice of him to share them on the web. While on the cold/ long track topic, here are the results from the ISU’s Long Track World Cup from this past weekend in Torino. Finally, I forget if I put this up or not, but here goes again: MSI’s Joliette race is cancelled. I did that one a few years ago and I almost froze my ‘Peter North’ off.

Thanks HdB for the photos! (photo Harm de Boer)