Students from Oak Bay High and Monterey middle school hit the slopes last week for the most recent competition in the Island Race Series.
It’s a banner year for Oak Bay High, as the southernmost high school on Vancouver Island hit the podium in all four race disciplines. They’ll fly to Cranbrook for provincials on March 2 to 4.
“Our ski and snowboard team raced incredibly fast, and for the first time, Oak Bay won Islands in boys and girls ski and snowboard races,” said Oak Bay High team coach Tina Horwood.
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Oak Bay athletes finished in the top four race times for skiing and snowboarding. Griffin Hart won the Island ski title followed by teammates Grayson Gammon, Sam Meyer and John Horwood in second, third and fourth. On the snowboard, Jake Trumble won Islands, with Evan Graham, Hudson Board and Ben White also finishing in the top four, respectively.
Oak Bay’s Colleen McKee won silver in the girls’ snowboard event.
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Hart and Trumble took gold in all three races they were in.
“We have spent the last six weeks going to Mount Washington,” Horwood said. “Training is always on Sunday afternoons, while the four races were on Mondays. When there is a Monday race, we spend Sunday night in chalets on the hill.”
Four of the top six racers in the girls’ skiing event were from Oak Bay, as Silken Shepard finished with the single fastest time at last weekend’s race.
The high school team is in its seventh season and has a solid pipeline of incoming athletes from Monterey middle school.
Monterey’s Grade 8 ski team, coached by principal Ken Andrews, also had a terrific season with team members racing for the first time.
The Monterey girls finished third among Vancouver Island teams.
“It’s a remarkable feat since they are racing against older and more experienced Grade 9 to 12 students,” Andrews said.
