The inaugural B.C. Cup for luge drew 18 young speed demons to the Whistler Sliding Centre on a frigid Sunday (Dec. 14). Consistency was the name of the game, as the sliders were ranked against their age-group peers based on the differences between their times in two runs.

Nine of the competitors were local members of the new youth luge program, and they took on nine sliders from Calgary in the first-ever B.C. Cup race.

Nicole Simon, program coordinator for the Canadian Luge Association, said her young charges did well in the inaugural event, earning four of seven top spots in the Youth B Boys and Youth A and B Girls categories with their consistent sliding.

“It was the first race for everyone, the first luge race on this track, the first race for our new officials and the first race for our new B.C. kids, so all in all things went really well – there’s a few kinks to work out, obviously, but it went really well for our first race,” Simon said.

Whistler’s Jackson Bathgate was the day’s most consistent racer, posting times only three-thousandths of a second apart in his two runs. Calgary’s Tim Stone and local Caiden Thompson finished second and third, respectively, behind Bathgate in the Youth B Boys category, while local Elainah Andrew finished third behind two Calgary sliders in the Youth B Girls category.

Pemberton’s Jenna Spencer finished second behind Calgary’s Tara Disturnal, racing in the Youth A Girls division and starting from the novice position higher up the track than the younger sliders’ Maple Leaf start. The novice start is located at curve seven on the 16-corner track, and the Maple Leaf start is positioned at the entrance of corner 11.

Even though the young racers don’t tackle the full track, they still motor through the course: the sliders’ peak speeds on Sunday ranged from about 87 to 103 kilometres per hour.

Simon said the race rankings were based on consistency rather than pure speed to keep things fair and emphasize the importance of steady results.

“At this age, for the kids, they’re all different weights and sizes and on different-size sleds and everything, so it’s really just to even the playing field,” Simon said. “And in our sport, consistency is really important, because every race is two-run combined times, so you need two good runs.

“So that’s what we focus on at this level — it’s more important to be consistent than it is to be fast.”

Spencer, who started her luge career last winter through one of the recruitment camps Simon has held throughout the corridor, spoke with radiant enthusiasm about the sport after her race runs.

“I love the rush that you get, and the nervousness — when you get on the track, everything disappears. The only thing that really matters is the track and how you’re going to do. I just love it,” Spencer said.

She didn’t know what luge was before her mother enrolled her in the camp, but now, she said, she “definitely” wants to stick with it.

“I like how there’s so many different people to race with, and there’s so many different varieties — some people just aren’t good with technique, and some people are really good with technique; some people are really, really fast, and some people just like to take it slow. I just love that,” Spencer said.

Spencer is one of 11 athletes enrolled in the youth sliding program at the Whistler track, and Simon said she would love to have 20 participants registered by the end of the season.

With recruitment camps scheduled for December and January sold out — though there are still spots available in the Feb. 28 session — there’s no shortage of interest. The challenge now is securing funding to support the program, Simon said.

The costly sport requires sleds, suits, helmets, track time and coaching, and the Whistler program is being supported by participant fees and money from PacificSport. But Simon said she would welcome sponsorship assistance.

“We’re always looking for money to be added to the program, it is an expensive sport to take up… there’s tons of sponsorship opportunities available,” she said.

For more information, or to register for the Feb. 28 recruitment camp, visit www.luge.ca.