The final load of polymer asphalt was paved Wednesday and Prince George is now home to only the third roller ski facility in Western Canada.
Terus Construction worked for weeks preparing the ground at Otway Nordic Centre to pave a six-metre wide trail that runs for 2.6 kilometres into the woods of Cranbrook Hill on the western outskirts of the city.
The $1.5 million Caledonia Nordic Ski Club project, which includes pavement at the biathlon range, will give roller skiers their choice of three-kilometre, 1.5 km and one-km loops to conduct their off-season training.
Caledonia club past-president Kevin Pettersen said it was a unique project for even some of the veterans on the Terus crew. The hilly terrain involved banked corners and tight-radius turns and the rainy weather in September and October postponed paving several times. The actual paving required about five days.
“They knocked it out of the park,” said Pettersen, who oversaw the project. “It’s all done now, they finished the paving (Wednesday). It worked out really well and I’m really pleased with it. I walked it yesterday and it’s just awesome.”
“A lot of it turned out better than they thought it might, with some of the challenges of the terrain. The crew did just an amazing job.”
It will take time for the asphalt to set and just be on the safe side the Caledonia club won’t be allowing any roller ski activity this fall, just to mitigate the risk of sharp-tipped poles causing damage. Pettersen says the club also needs to work out directional signs and on the courses and determine where to post signage to warn users of intersecting single-track bike trails to watch for approaching roller skiers.
“(Caledonia general manager) John Bowes wanted to not open it until next spring,” said Pettersen. “It’s a polymer asphalt and they say it should cure for a couple of weeks and by that time we’ll be getting into snow. It’s great to get it finished for the fall, but we’re going to put it to bed until next spring.”
The course was designed by John Aalberg of Sooke, a Norwegian who designed the Olympic ski courses at Soldier Hollow, Utah, Vancouver-Whistler and Beijing, China.
The paved trails are all within range of the club’s snowmaking equipment and Pettersen says the smooth paths could make it easier for crews to create a base layer in case there’s not enough natural snowfall fall early in the season.
