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THEBACHA/FORT SMITH
For about 40 years, skiers have joined together for the Thebacha Loppet, a group skiing event from Fort Fitzgerald, Alta., to Fort Smith.

John Blyth takes a break halfway through the Thebacha Loppet from Fort Fitzgerald, Alta., to Fort Smith on March 3. - Paul Bickford/NNSL photo

However, in all that time, there has never been a turnout like there was for this year's event on March 3.

In all, 63 people skied all or part of the historic 28-km trail from Fitzgerald to Smith.

"That's great. Last year there were 10," said Patti Kay Hamilton, the organizer of the event and vice-president of the Fort Smith Ski Club, explaining extreme cold was responsible for the low turnout last year.

Hamilton noted the highest previous turnout was about 40, when skiers in Hay River got together and travelled by bus to Fort Smith.

This year's record participation was not an accident since the Fort Smith Ski Club made a conscious effort to promote the loppet.

"The Fort Smith Ski Club this fall all agreed that it was something we should be marketing, and we put on a real effort to market it," Hamilton said.

She said the ski club realized the loppet is something special because of the historic trail, the wonderful scenery along the Slave River and an abundance of snow, which is lacking in many parts of the south.

"There are so many stories that probably happened on that pathway, plus it's beautiful," she added. "It's an ancient forest and those trees are shrouded in frost and, when the sun glints through it, it's just like sun coming through crystal."

Hamilton said she didn't really think the promotional effort would make a difference this year, explaining it was intended to plant a seed for the future.

Among the participants this year, most came from Fort Smith, but there were also 10 from Hay River, six from Yellowknife and two from Edmonton.

Richard Zaidan of Fort Smith was participating in his third Thebacha Loppet.

"I've done a lot of loppets all over the country and this one is probably one of my favourites just because we're skiing through the wilderness," he said, noting many loppets down south are on golf courses or only partly through the bush, and may involve hundreds of people who take the event too seriously. "But this loppet we're skiing along the Slave River and on a lot of this trail, many kilometres of this trail actually, you can see the river and you've got beautiful views of the rapids. It's just a gorgeous trail."

Plus, Zaidan said it's a low-key event and not a race.

"It's just a fun ski."

Laura Aubrey, who has been in the loppet about six times, this year skied the 13-km half-loppet with four eight-and-nine-year-olds, including her daughter.

"What made it unique for me is I got to ski with my daughter and her friends," she said.

Aubrey said the loppet is special because of the beautiful scenery, the old-growth forest and the historic trail.

"The views are breathtaking," she said. "You can see the river for miles. It's just an absolutely gorgeous trail."

Bronwyn Rutherford-Simon, 9, participated in the half-loppet for the first time.

"It was fun," she said, adding she enjoyed the scenery and skiing with her friends.

The Thebacha Loppet is one of the oldest in Western Canada and may in fact be the oldest.

Hamilton noted the Lake Louise loppet, which started in 1973, claims to be the oldest such event in Canada's West. The Fitz-Smith loppet also began in the early 1970s, she said, noting one former Fort Smith resident says it started in 1970 and was formalized in 1972, while others believe it started in 1973.

The Fort Smith Ski Club is researching the matter, Hamilton said.

"But we think now that we are the oldest loppet in Western Canada."

The loppet is held on reserve land of Smith's Landing First Nation, which helped the ski club present the event.

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