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2008 Ski to Sea Junior Parade and Race

by Theresa Carpine5/19/2008 11:47:28 AM

Catch the Son Preschool and Kindergarten takes the Grand Prize for the Ski to Sea Junior Parade.
Photo by Theresa Carpine.

Running, skiing, and canoeing all around Mt. Baker and Bellingham might be a little intense for the elementary-age bunch. Luckily, kids can also join in the Ski to Sea fun with a Junior Parade and Junior Race, both of which took place this past weekend in Bellingham, and you couldn’t have asked for better weather with plenty of sunshine for both events.

The Junior Parade on Friday night was open to participants of every age, although large entries like bands and float had to register in advance. Plenty of schools, camps, and other local organizations marched down Cornwall Avenue towards downtown for the enjoyment of plenty of parents and friends along the way.

Creatures big and small joined in the parade.
Photo by Theresa Carpine.

The theme for this year’s Ski to Sea parades is Transportation: Past, Present and Future, and just about every form of transportation imaginable was featured at the Junior Parade, from horse riding to unicycles to airplanes.

The Grand Prize entry this year was Catch the Son Preschool with a colorful garden float. Other notable participants were Parkview Elementary, celebrating their school’s 50th Anniversary; the Bellingham Railway Museum; Garden Security and Travel Agency, with their “Rollin’ Gnomes”; The Firs with a terrifying shark menacing their ski boat; and Fairhaven Middle School, led by Captain Jack Sparrow to play the theme from “Pirates of the Caribbean.”

Racers in the soccer leg take their position.
Race photos by Becca Howell.

In 1991, Dick Henrie and Dan Nutt started the Ski to Sea Junior Race for participants in third to eighth grade. Also a relay, the Junior Race takes place at Lake Padden and features five legs with events that are less extreme but just as fun as the big Ski to Sea Race. There’s also a Community Division that is open to families and adult friends.

One hundred and ninety teams signed up for this year’s Ski to Sea Junior Race with 63 teams competing in the Elementary Division. The Elementary race started off at 9 AM, with clear skies and temperatures already inching into the 70s. Kids were ready to race, many supporting colorful screen-printed and homemade t-shirts displaying their unique team name.

Starting the bike ride around Lake Padden.
Race photos by Becca Howell.

Tracy Lorenz’s 10-year-old son Zachary was competing for the second time in the Ski to Sea Junior Race with his team, the Hot Aquatic Monkeys.

“He loves doing it with his soccer teammates, they’ve all been friends since they were five,” Tracy explained while waiting for the race to start. She is glad that her son wants to participate in activities like the Ski to Sea Junior Race because it’s a great community event that also encourages fitness.

“It gets kids outside and active, instead of sitting in front of the TV or computer games. It’s nice to have something to balance those things for kids,” Tracy said. This year, Zachary and his team came in 16th place in the Boys Division with a finish time of 32 minutes 29 seconds.

The race ends with a potato sack race to the finish line.
Race photos by Becca Howell.

The race started off with Running with racers making 2-laps (1.5 miles) in a loop to the west side of Lake Padden. After the runners tagged their teammates, the 3-Legged racers began the .4 mile run of their leg, partially uphill. The third leg was Biking the full 2.7 miles around Lake Padden before the Soccer racers could begin their .5 mile challenge. The last leg, the Obstacle Course, involved jumping hurdles and a potato sack race to the finish line.

This year’s overall race winners in the Elementary Division were Crash Dummies, who also took first in the Boys Division. These racers finished the race in 25 minutes 13 seconds. Crash Dummies were especially excited to improve from a third-place finish last year to first this year.

In between announcements of winners, raffles were drawn for prizes like sleeping bags from REI, bikes from Kulshan Cycles, and an iPod Touch, courtesy Ski to Sea Junior Race sponsor, the Bank of the Pacific.

Way to go, Ski to Sea Junior Racers!
Race photos by Becca Howell.

As follows are the top-three placeholders for the 2008 Ski to Sea Junior Race Elementary Division:

Boys
1. Crash Dummies (25:13.7)
2. Just Out of Prison (25:15.9)
3. Team X-Treme (26:42.5)

Girls
1. Mean ‘n’ Green (29:07.7)
2. Blonde Bombers (31:01.9)
3. LC Chicklets (31:05.1)

Mixed
1. Crossfire (28:10.3)
2. Diablos (29:41.3)
3. All Stoked Up for “Morr” (30:03.2)

To see the complete results for the Elementary, Middle School and Community Division, visit Ski to Sea Race Results.

A Note About the Author: Theresa Carpine

Theresa Carpine is an online journalist for Neighborhood-Kids.com. When she’s not writing, she enjoys knitting, listening to music, and babysitting some really cute kids. Her favorite Bellingham activity is getting coffee at La Vie en Rose and used book browsing at Michael’s Books.