World Cup Debut and End of North American Cup

Date: February 07, 2025

Location: Lillehammer, Norway

Urgent World Cup Information:

My World Cup debut as a pilot will take place this Saturday (Feb. 8) at 6:30AM EST. I will probably be going closer to 7:20AM.
You can watch live on CBC Gem or the IBSF YouTube page (occasionally the IBSF one is blocked in Canada)
Start list for Heat 1 can be found here. I am 25th of 25.
The top 20 sleds after heat one will get a second heat in the two heat race. Sleds 21-25 will be eliminated after heat 1.
The goal is to crack the top 20 this week! If I do get a second heat, sleds go in reverse order of their rank after the first heat. In other words, the 20th ranked sled after heat 1 will go first, and then 19, 18, etc. ending with the fastest sled from heat 1.
This means that after we have completed our second run (if we get one!) then the sled immediately after us can either maintain their position or fall behind us. A green clock during their run means they have maintained their position ahead of us, and a red clock means we have climbed a spot in the ranks!
Final placement is based on combined time from both heats.
More below…

North American Cup (NAC)

This season my teammates and I competed primarily on the North American Cup circuit. It consisted of 4 tour stops: Whistler, Park City I, Park City II, and Lake Placid.

Whistler is known for its speed and big tall corners, park city for its gentle steers and smooth ice, and Lake Placid for its chattery ice and quick transitions between corners (a brake person’s nightmare)!

As a team I believe we had a pretty successful season on the NACs. Our team was composed of myself as a second year pilot, a veteran brakeman Kenny, and three rookies; Brandon, Tobi, and D’Andre. It was my first season leading a full 4man crew and there was a lot of learning on the fly that our team had to do in order to be successful. The NACs had a pretty good mix of developing newer pilots like myself, and pilots with 5 or more years of experience. The mix meant there was always a couple of sleds to chase, and a couple of sleds nipping at our heels.

The 4man event was the true success of the season. I was a new driver and getting a 4man down tracks like Whistler and Lake Placid is no small feat. At the top of the track on race day, Kenny and I were dependant on two of the team’s rookies loading into the sled efficiently and perfectly in order to not be disqualified or cause the run to be a wash with a mis-load and drift before corner 1. It’s a tricky skill to learn, unlike anything anyone has ever done before, and you’re asked to do it as your body becomes unable to keep up with a rapidly accelerating sled, while three others also try to scramble into the small space. We didn’t win any races, but our consistency throughout the 8 NAC races resulted in a second place overall finish in the 4man event (total points from 8 races).

In the 2man event I crashed twice resulting in a 13th and a DNF in two of our 8 races, a trip to the emergency room for some imaging on Kenny’s shoulder, and a pretty frustrating end to each day. Luckily Kenny was okay and only missed a couple of races in 4man.

World Cup Debut – Lillehammer, Norway

The results from the pre-season Canadian Champs and North American Cup races won me a spot on the World Cup circuit for the final two races happening in Lillehammer, Norway! This season, each country is given three quota spots on the World Cup circuit for each discipline. It was Canada’s decision to only occupy two of those spots for the majority of the season and then award the third spot to a developing pilot for the final two races of the World Cup circuit after the NACs had concluded.

I was hoping to enter in both the 2man and 4man event, but logistically I had no help from the organization and it was going to costs thousands of dollars more. My only option was to rent a sled from Königssee, Germany, or Sigulda, Latvia. Both of which required over 24hrs of travel and thousands of dollars in additional expenses, plus the return trip after the races. It just became too expensive and unreasonable to try and pull off.

So it is just Kenny and I here in Norway! We have a nice apartment in town we’re renting for the three weeks we’re here, we’re a block away from the pedestrian street lined with shops and cafes, and there’s a Dominoes Pizza on the first floor of our building!

More to come on Norway, but I wanted to send out an update and the links on how to watch! See some photos below 🙂

Finally, this trip would have been impossible without the support of my sponsors. Reid’s Dairy came through huge this year. They made an entirely self funded season feel slightly less stressful. I definitely wouldn’t have been able to come to Norway without them, and I can’t explain how important this trip was for my development as yesterday was the 365 day mark until the Italy 2026 Opening Ceremony. Thank you Reid’s Dairy.

Additionally, Libra Non-Alcoholic Beer (PEI), the Township of Stone Mills, and a few private sponsors from back home. Finally, my in-kind sponsors, Cambox Helmet Cameras and JJS Abrasives! Thank you.