HAY RIVER
From tug-of-war to climbing hills, young participants in a clinic in Fort Providence did it all on skis last weekend.

Luke Bonnetrouge, left, Darius Gray and Harley Matto start to pull during the tug-of-war at the Deh Gah Cross Country Ski Development Clinic. - Roxanna Thompson/NNSL photo

Twenty-two youth ranging in age from four to 15 participated in the third annual Deh Gah Cross Country Ski Development Clinic. This year's event was about having fun and giving youth a touring experience on skis, said James Hatch, the coach of the Deh Gah Cross Country Ski Club, which organized the weekend's activities.

Skiing down a hill near the school called Eva's Hill was the highlight of the clinic for both Jacynda Bonnetrouge and Helena Landry. The participants began Saturday morning with Anne-Marie Bourgeois, a ski instructor from Hay River, who taught them about classic ski technique. The youth from Fort Providence and one from Kakisa then played and practiced on the hill.

Bonnetrouge and Landry also liked going on the ski trip. The youth skied a five km loop and stopped at two rest stations along the way where there were fires and snacks. Even the youngest participants were able to ski part of the loop and were shuttled by snowmobile over the rest.

"It's fun," Bonnetrouge said about the sport.

Landry, who also went to the clinic last year, said she returned so she could get better at skiing. Even after the first day the nine-year-old said she'd improved. The clinic concluded with a mini-Olympics on March 9 that included games like tug-of-war and a pinny grab all completed on skis.

More prizes were up for grabs in addition to the glow in the dark water bottle filled with hand and toe warmers, a balaclava and a headband from Cross Country Canada that each youth received on the first day.

For many of the youth, the clinic was their first real introduction to cross country skiing. Only three of the participants at the clinic are part of the ski club and approximately six of the youth had never skied before, said Hatch.

The clinic, which a number of volunteers, teachers and parents supported, was sponsored by the Department of Municipal and Community Affair's Regional Youth Sport Events Program.