The Noque race committee has decided to move plan A to a race finish at the Forestville Ski Stadium. This will allow for ideal ski conditions the entire way. We will be able to use about 4km’s of the new loops to increase the distance to 45km and 20km.
We worked all weekend on preparing the hills between the Forestville ponds (8km to go) as well as planning snow hauling. We were unable to get enough snow on the hills between the Forestville ponds after 2 days of work. In addition, although it is skiable (on rock skis) from the 9km mark to the 2km mark, we do need to haul snow to cover the last 5 km’s of the trail.
This is possible and at reasonable expense, but the problem there is getting CLEAN snow. There just isn’t enough clean snow in Marquette parking lots to make this a reasonable option. So, unless we get 6-8 inches of dense snow by Thursday morning. We will be finishing at the Forestville ski stadium.
We plan to keep all activities at the dome as is, except will have to move timing and the medical area to Forestville. We plan to have skiers finish and be immediately bussed to the dome to get their bags, shower, get some soup, check their results, etc. All aid stations will be used as normal, however, the traditional 4.5km aid station (Superiorland Kiwanis) will be moved to the Powerline (about 4km’s from the new finish this year).
If we do get a surprise snowfall that will help us fill in the hills and allow for less snow hauling, we will still attempt to get to the dome if reasonable time permits. The race committee made this decision in the best interest of safety and enjoyment for all skiers.
The good news is that we have fantastic skiing from Al Quaal (marathon start) to the Forestville finish. There is anywhere from 6” to 12” of natural packed snow base the entire way to Forestville.