Laurentian Ski Hill to host moguls event

Laurentian Ski Hill is getting ready to host a freestyle ski competition this coming season.

The Timber Tour’s moguls competition will take place in North Bay early next year.

Kristin Franks is a director with the ski hill’s snowboard club.

She says changes are being made to the hill for the event.

“We need to have a certain pitch. So we’re looking to have a 23 % grade. We’ll be physically changing our Steve Omischl run to accommodate that grade and making sure the length is there,” she says.

The cost of the project will be about $75,000 dollars, $15,000 from the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund.

She says this event will be used to promote the Laurentian Ski Hill as a site for future provincial and national competitions.

‘We do have a fantastic little hill. It’s small but it’s mighty and that’s the exact type of hill that these competitors, coaches and officials are looking for,” Franks says.

Steve Omischl, who started his career on the hill, relayed a message in support for this initiative at Thursdays announcement.

He says he attended a similar event 20 years ago.

“That was the event that inspired me to get into the sport at 13. It’s cool it’s back at Laurentian,” he says.

Eli Budd with Freestyle Ontario says North Bay is a central location for their athletes but the commitment around the event is not going unnoticed.

“It’s a high level of commitment and North Bay’s the leader compared to other hills,” he says.

The event will be held from February 2nd to 4th, 2018.