Everyone was awake and having
breakfast at the mess hall at 0700 hours.
Sunday’s breakfast was the same as Saturday’s breakfast. The officers-in-charge instructed everyone to
pack up their belongings after they finished eating and bring everything to the
mess hall. Personal luggage would be
stored here until the end of the competition.
Beddings also had to be removed and returned to Supply. Finally, all garbage inside the barracks
cabins needed to be collected and properly disposed of before the buses arrived
to take the Grey Mountain competitors.
If it’s one thing I like about cadets & military, they teach the
value of getting things done ahead of time.
My cadets were done all their
morning duties earlier than everyone else.
They waited in the mess hall for some time. The Grey Mountain buses arrived at 0845. I boarded the bus with four of my
cadets. The other four would stay behind
and continue their biathlon training at Boyle Barracks.
Sunday’s schedule was pretty much
the same as Saturday’s, except the relays would be combined. Junior Male & Female cadets would compete
as one and the Senior Male & Female cadets would compete together. The Juniors would be first. The weather was colder. A large thermometer on a building displayed
-12˚C, though it felt colder because there was a light breeze blowing through
the area. One of the officers started a
small fire in a metal fire pit for people to sit around and warmup while
watching the competition. The venue does
have several heated buildings but watching the races from inside are
challenging.
My junior female cadet competed
first. She used the thirty-given minutes
to “zero-in” her .22 rifle and ski one lap.
Her number this time was 28. I
did the same coaching duties as before.
She shot prone & standing. My
three senior cadets & I cheered as she crossed the Finish Line.
 |
| Took me four tries, but I finally took a good selfie with my four Grey Mountain cadets. |
My three senior cadets competed after
lunch. Lunch was again provided by Home
Sweet Home Baking. My junior cadet would
assist me with handling the rifles & bullets. I just had a feeling that all three of them
would arrive at the shooting lanes at the same time.
The three senior cadets began at different
times. They stood in line, waiting with
anxious looks on their faces. When the command
was given, they were off, pushing hard with their poles and skis. For most of the race, they shot alone, but there
was one moment when all three of them skied into the shooting lanes at the same
time. I’m glad I had my junior cadet as
an assistant. All three of them were
very tired at the end of the race.
Everyone from Grey Mountain were
back at Boyle Barracks by 4pm. My four
first-time cadets were in high spirits but also looked tired. I assembled the entire team in the mess hall
to take a group photograph. I took a picture
of them before the start of the competition; now it was time to take a picture
of them after the competition.
Dinner was held at 4:30pm. There must have been a lot of money left in
the budget because the officers-in-charge ordered Domino’s Pizza. Many, many pizza boxes were carried into the
mess hall kitchen by volunteers. In
short, everyone dined like kings & queens.
The coaches received printouts of the final results of the relays held
at Grey Mountain. We were allowed to
show them to our cadets. I found my
cadets after dinner and laid the results on the table. I told them I needed the results back.
 |
| Team 3045. |
The awards ceremony was held outside
the mess hall at 5:30pm. I stood at the
back to take pictures and short videos.
I was happy to hear & see several of my cadets win certificates. A mini skiing competition was held for the
Boyle Barracks cadets. Three of my
cadets won 3rd place & 2nd place respectively. As for my Grey Mountain cadets, three of them
won five medals between them. Three 3rd
places and two 2nd places.
Even more surprising, those same three cadets were selected to represent
the northern territories at the upcoming National Biathlon Competition in
March. I was glad to be present when
this announcement was made.
 |
| Two of my Boyle Barracks cadets (centre, right) winning 2nd & 3rd Place. |
I posted the awards our cadets
received on the corps’ Facebook page.
The positive responses from parents & friends were almost immediate.
Departure operations for the
out-of-town cadets began at 6:30pm.
Cadets exchanged ‘tearful’ goodbyes before boarding the school buses with
their luggage and skiing equipment. Our
bus left Boyle Barracks at 7pm and drove towards the Whitehorse Airport. It was dark outside.
Flying home was an adventure on its
own. We were flying home with the
Naujaat & Rankin Inlet cadets. Our chartered
flight was scheduled to leave at 8pm but there was a two-hour delay. The chartered planes ahead of us needed more
time to get ready. Sitting on a school
bus full of cadets wanting to go home for two hours is no easy task. However, being stuck on the tarmac wasn’t all
that bad.
As luck would have it, Joe
Savikataaq, the Premier of Nunavut, happened to be in town and stopped by the
airport to say hello to all the cadets from Nunavut. Former Nunavut MLA & Arctic Bay resident
Ron Elliott was also in attendance. Both
men were in Whitehorse for the Northern Premiers Meeting and the Arctic
Inspiration Prize. They came onboard the
bus to greet the cadets and say a few words of encouragement. I got off the bus with one of my cadets to
have our pictures taken with the Premier & Ron. Ron handed me a plastic bag filled with Kiwi
shoe polish & cloths. I thanked them
for their surprise visit and wished them the best in the Yukon capital.
Everyone
breathed sighs of relief when the plane was finally in the air at 10pm. I was expecting everyone to sleep on the
plane, but surprisingly, many stayed awake for the first leg of the journey.
The pilot landed the plane in Kugluktuk
for fuel. My watch read 12:18am. The day was now Monday, February 11. I was glad to be in Kugluktuk for two
reasons: this was my first time seeing the airport and the kids needed to get
off the plane to stretch their legs. We
all waited inside the terminal while the plane was getting refueled. My cadets & I were really tired. We stayed in the terminal for about 30
minutes and then boarded the plane.
We landed in Arctic Bay close to 7am,
two hours after our scheduled arrival. I
suppose that was a good thing for the parents & guardians because they got a
little extra sleep before having to drive out to the airport. Frank was also there to greet us and drive me
home. Everyone was impressed by the
cadets’ achievements.
Even though Monday was a school day
and school had yet to begin, I had the day as approved leave. I spent most of the day unpacking, doing
laundry, showering, and sleeping.
Overall, I enjoyed experience my
first Biathlon Competition in Whitehorse.
It was a great way for me to visit the city after a long absence. I’m already looking forward to the next year’s
biathlon competition.
End
of Biathlon Competition mini-series.
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