WEDNESDAY
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March 21, 2012
A division of
Vol. 27 No. 23
COMOX VALLEY RECORD Your community. Your newspaper. www.comoxvalleyrecord.com
BALLET BACK CK
Croxall skates to crashed ice triumph Earle Couper Record Staff
Ballet Victoria returns to Comox Valley. ■ 14
HOOPFEST ACTION
The action was fast and the enthusiasm inspiring Sunday when the Comox Valley Wheelchair Sports Society hosted the Salish Sea HoopFest. The host Comox Valley squad was joined by teams from Powell River and Nanaimo for the invitational event, held at the Comox Community Centre gym. Scoring stats were not as important as good-humoured rivalry and love of the game, said Karin Kratz, the driving force behind the sport in the Comox Valley.
... Complete story on ■ 17
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Kyle Croxall knew the championship was not in the bag. He was glad his skates were. The 19 Wing Comox firefighter was crowned the 2012 Red Bull Crashed Ice world champion during an action-packed final Saturday night in Quebec City in front of more than 100,000 spectators. In a fight that went right down to the final race, Croxall secured the second-place finish he needed following a dramatic slip from his brother Scott during the closing stages of the final race to come in behind 2011 champion Arttu Pihlainen on the night but in front of his rival overall. Rumours that Croxall’s racing skates got lost in transit by air luggage handlers ahead of Saturday’s season finale turned out to be only partly true. Croxall said his form-fitted skates arrived when he did at the Quebec airport even though another bag belonging to him went missing. Organizers say it was the most dramatic Ice Cross downhill world championship in Red Bull Crashed Ice history, with Pihlainen looking like he was headed for the title. Championship leader Kyle Croxall needed
19 WING COMOX firefighter Kyle Croxall is a world champion thanks to his victory Saturday in the 2012 Red Bull Crashed Ice finale. to finish at least second to win the title but he was well behind his brother Scott in third place with time running out as the Finn streaked away from the pack. But Scott suddenly crashed into a wall after a tricky jump and fell to the ice, allowing Kyle
to leapfrog him into second and give Canada its first world championship. Kyle Croxall, runnerup in 2010 and 2011, finished the year with 3,000 points, just 40 ahead of Pihlainen (2,960) with Scott Croxall third (2,300). It was a bittersweet victory for Pihlainen, the 2011 world cham-
Erin Haluschak Record Staff
As outdoor enthusiasts enjoy fresh powder with a blast of winter this past week, the danger of travelling into backcountry has increased, with a high to considerable avalanche rating on Vancouver Island. The Vancouver Island Avalanche Bulletin (VIAB) rated the alpine and treeline danger ratings as high on Tuesday, and considerable for Wednesday, while belowtreeline rating as considerable for the two days.
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With a file from Red Bull Crashed Ice
Backcountry avalanche risk increases on Island VIAB noted significant quantities of new snow will be moved by strong winds from the southeast to southwest. The storm slab is unstable due to 40 cm to around a metre of new snow falling from late Monday into Wednesday. They added avalanches will be from small in size to at least large enough to bury, injure or kill a person. Rob Hanna, president of the Mid-Island Sno-Blazers, a snowmobile association with the B.C. Snowmobile Federation, said conditions on the Island are excellent, but only for those trained
and prepared for the weather. “There was some really great conditions; the snow was beautiful, the weather was good, but we went out knowing the avalanche warning was high,” he noted. Hanna, along with his wife, are certified snowmobile instructors, and have taken avalanche training with the Canadian Avalanche Centre. “Safety is paramount,” he added. “With conditions like this — several days of fresh, large snowfalls — people should wait a minimum of 24, if not, 48 hours.” Hanna said if a snowmobiler or
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pion. It was the sixth career victory for the soft-spoken sports teacher but Pihlainen came to Canada planning to overtake Croxall and drive home the Mini awarded to the world champion. For much of the race it looked like he had the title in the bag before Scott Croxall’s late tumble. “It feels amazing,” said Kyle Croxall, a muscular athlete with fast feet who won the first two races of 2012 in Saint Paul, Minn., and Valkenburg, Netherlands, before stumbling in Are, Sweden, with a 13th place that left him in danger of throwing away the championship. He admitted he was delighted to see his brother crash in front of him. “I thought that was really good.” But both he and Scott denied there had been any sort of “team orders.” The third world championship was dominated by the Canadian team with Finland following. The Swiss and German teams were once again strong while the Dutch, Russian and USA teams showed great improvement. Croxall was in Toronto this week doing media interviews arranged by Red Bull and could not be contacted prior to the Record’s press time.
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skier ventures into backcountry without proper avalanche training, “it’s a recipe for disaster. It’s like going in there blind if you don’t have any training.” He added snow conditions can be deceiving; although fresh snow may appear fluffy and light, it can present equally dangerous conditions as huge, wet snowfalls. For more information on the Mid-Island Sno-Blazers, visit www.midislandsnoblazers.ca, and for up-to-date avalanche conditions, visit VIAB at www.islandavalanchebulletin.com. photos@comoxvalleyrecord.com