The first-ever Sigge's P'ayakentsut is in the books but according to event chair Dirk Rohde, planning has already begun for the 2012 edition of the race.
The race, which took place on Saturday (Feb. 26), saw more than 500 cross-country skiers take to the Whistler Olympic Park trails and Rohde said he was pleased with how the event turned out.
"It went absolutely great," he said. "We had a few issues, which you will have with any event, but it was wonderful conditions and a good day for a race."
The event sold out a week before the race and Rohde said the feedback he received from racers was highly positive.
"I had quite a few racers say they enjoyed the course," he said. "They said it was tough but not tough enough that they were complaining."
The P'ayak was also a smash success with the sponsors, as Rohde pointed out several have already expressed interest in working with the race next year.
Registration was an issue and Rohde said he's hoping to increase the number of available spots in next year's race.
"Our main goal for next year is to make sure the people who missed out on registration this year get a chance to take part," he said. "We're hopefully looking at doubling our 500 spots that we had this year."
Rohde said logistics still need to be worked out as the main Whistler Olympic Park lots only have so many parking spots. He mentioned possibly using a shuttle bus service but that details still need to be ironed out.
He also expressed a desire to build the event into one of international importance.
"We hopefully want to try and make this an international event," he said. "Making this a significant international event is another one of our goals."
A spot on the Worldloppet Ski Federation's FIS World Cup is a possibility for the race, but Rohde pointed out that the one Canadian event currently takes place in Quebec and that countries can only host one such race per calendar year. The Gatineau Loppet is the Canadian stop on the tour and has been for several years and has been running for 33 years in total. This year's race saw more than 200 skiers take part in the 53-kilometre long distance race alone, along with 200 in the 28 km and close to 300 combined in the 12 and 5 km races.
For now, Rohde said P'ayak organizers will continue to work on making the 2012 race bigger and better than the 2011 version.
"We really couldn't have hoped for anything more," he said. "It was a great race, especially for our first time."
For more information on the P'ayak, visit www.payak.ca.
