Local swimmer wins
Oliver Morris took home the gold.
Morris is a member of the Squamish Pirates and proved his mettle in a B.C. Summer Swimming Association event.
This was a regional qualifying event for the provincials, which drew athletes from Vancouver, Squamish and North Vancouver.
And the Squamish Days 8K winners are….
There were 132 finishers in the race, which was won by Drew Nicholson in a time of 27 minutes and 28 seconds.
Local Shaun Stephens-Whale was second in 27:41, securing the Slavo Lehocky Memorial Trophy.
The second fastest local man was James Newby, while Kevin Pickard claimed third.
The fastest woman was Meg Lewis-Schneider in 28:02.
Margreet Dietz was the fastest local woman, securing the inaugural Mae Palm Memorial Trophy, which was presented to her by Mae's son and daughter.
The second fastest local woman was Tara Wallace and third place went to Kate Inman.
Alma Lewis, who was race director for 15 years, was recognized with an award for her nurturing of the race.
The race is part of the Lifestages Lower Mainland Road Race Series.
Tim Moore is stepping aside as race director after three years, handing to baton to Karine Hamm.
The Flashback Mile, a 1.4km loop through Dentville, saw 38 finishers, mostly under the age of 15.
The fastest boy was Chase Grobs and the fastest girl was Malia Stuart. Both Chase and Malia live here in Squamish.
Upcoming Swim Meet
The Squamish Pirates will be sending 34 swimmers to the BCSSA Provincial Championships this weekend (Aug. 16 to Aug. 19), the list below shows all the individual qualifiers.
Thirteen athletes will also be sent to participate in the relays.
Brodie Buck- 50 free, 50 Fly
Alyssa Guerin- 100 IM, 50 Free, 100 Free
Ryan Sweeny- 50 free, 100 free, 50 fly, 50 back
Ceilidh Lawton- 50 breast, 100 free
Joy Lee- 100 free
Jennibelle Lin- 100IM, 50 free, 50 Fly
Evangaline Gultiano- 50 back
Ollie Morris- 50 back, 50 Free
Brian McDonald- 50 free, 100IM, 100 free
Breanna Walker- 50 Free, 100 Breast
Jamie Gultiano- 200 IM, 50 Fly, 100 Back, 100 Free
Nathaniel Flores-Sands- 50 Free, 50 Fly
Josh Lee- 100 breast
Diane McIllwraith- 100 back
Jaina Jose- 50 Free
Kate Sutherland- 50 Free, 100 Free
Mees Haddeman- 200IM, 50 Free, 100 Free
Sarah McMillan- 50 fly, 100 Back
Mikayla Lorimer- 50 Fly, 100 Back
Mio Grier- 50 Free 100 Free 50 Breast
Wyatt Pedersen- 100 Back
Getting ready for the 2018 Canadian Sailing Championships
Local sailors are getting ready for the 2018 Canadian Optimist Dinghy Sailing Championships.
This is the second time these championships have been held in Squamish, with the first time being in 2015.
The upcoming event is the national championship for sailors aged eight to 14. The event is also a world qualifier, as the Top 5 sailors will be eligible to compete in next year’s World Championships in Antiqua.
The event is co-hosted by the Squamish and West Vancouver Yacht Clubs with both organizations providing resources and volunteers to host this event.
There are 75 sailors from clubs from all across Canada, 11 from the United States, one from Austrailia and another from Poland.
Grayson Blan and Ben Sweeny are the two sailors who will represent Squamish in the event. Both began sailing about four to five years ago in the Squamish Yacht Club’s learn-to-sail program.
The pair is experienced. They’ve competed in the 2015 Canadian Championships in Squamish. Sweeny has also sailed in the Canadian Championships in 2016 in Toronto and 2017 in Halifax. Both Ben and Grayson are regular competitors in the BC Sailing Circuit.
This event is sailed in a small eight-foot Optimist sailboats designed for children 14 and under to learn in. Almost all of the world’s top Olympic sailors began sailing in Optimist dinghies.
Optimists are ‘one designs’ which mean every component in the boats are identical and there are very strict rules that do not permit any modifications. With all boats virtually identical, this creates a level playing field for all sailors. The only way to be faster than your opponents is to sail better. Beginning Aug. 13, coaches and athletes will be training all week, The racing begins on Sunday Aug. 19 through to the 23rd.
The event will be staged on the Squamish Waterfront and sailed in Howe Sound.
You can get more info on the event website https://www.opticanadians2018.com
