By rdnewsNOW staff

Speed skating hits the ice this weekend at Setters Place

Jan 17, 2019 | 7:15 AM

The Red Deer Central Lions Speed Skating Club is hosting its inaugural long track race at the new Setters Place in Great Chief Park this weekend.

Dubbed the ‘Jeremy Wotherspoon Open’ in honour of the former Red Deerian and Olympic speed skate medalist, the January 19 & 20 event has 110 racers mostly from Alberta registered and will also act as an unofficial test event for the upcoming Canada Winter Games in Red Deer.

Central Lions head coach Nick Schultz says it’s exciting because the Club hasn’t been able to host a long track event in the past two seasons due to complications with producing ice.

“We’re very excited that ‘A’, we can host our long track event,” says Schultz. “Probably more importantly is that we will be hosting it at Setters Place which is a brand new venue. It’s quite a nice venue and if the conditions are right, I predict that it will be very fast ice. We’ve been on the ice for almost a month now and it’s progressively getting better, so I anticipate the ice conditions this weekend will be race-ready.”

Schultz describes the ice on a speed skating oval to be much different than ice found at a hockey rink.

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“It almost has no sensation between the ice to the skate, it’s that smooth,” he explains. “Hockey rinks always have a bit of roughness just due to hockey skates. Speed skates don’t really create that kind of cutting into the ice, so it’s fantastic ice.”

As for the event’s name, Schultz says it’s named after one of the greatest speed skaters of all time.

“Jeremy Wotherspoon is from Red Deer, not just from Canada,” states Schultz. “He’s a very close personal friend of mine, so we’re very happy to name this event after him. But he’s a full-time coach in Norway, so unfortunately he won’t be here until summer time.”

Ideal weather for a fast outdoor ice surface like Setters Place says Schultz, would be minus three to minus five Celsius and no wind.

“Wind only helps you if it happens to be in one direction,” he laughs. “So if you’re going with the wind, then it’s very noticeable, you can really increase your speed but the opposite happens if you have to head into that wind. And slightly overcast, the sun creates quite a glare, so those are the key points to create the fast ice.”

Schultz says Sunday’s race is also a qualifier for the Canadian Age Class Long Track event.

“We would be selecting skaters that are in what’s called the ‘Train 2 Train’ age range,” says Schultz. “Basically that’s teenage skaters. As a test event we will have Canada Games representatives there, Alberta Speed Skate Association members there as well and it’s a sanctioned event.”

Racing will take place between 8:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. on both days.

Admission is free and spectators are welcome.