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Kimberley Alpine Team seeks community support
With one week to go before the first round of voting closes, the Kimberley Alpine Team (KAT) is asking residents and surrounding communities to help ensure they stay in the running for a $50,000 prize.
âThis has been an extremely challenging season for our team. After an arsonist destroyed the Northstar Express Chairlift at Kimberley Alpine Resort we were forced to modify or cancel all of our programs,â explained KAT Program Director Ben Cohen. âFor a small town non-profit sports organization having to cancel programs for 60 athletes aged four to 10 is a crushing blow to the teams moral, and financeâs. When many people may have given up, our team dug deeper. We were able to modify our competitive racing and freestyle programs and save our season. The athletes and have been hiking up the hill to our training areas; theyâve adapted to the way weâve had to work to train; and, theyâve become stronger, faster and more resilient in the process.â
In fact, the team is producing some of its top competitive results in years.
Now they are on the cusp of making it to the top ten in Mackenzie Top Peak Contest â a national campaign that champions the spirit of ski communities on and off the hill. Cohen is hoping residents will help the team rise from the ashes of a tremendously difficult season. âWinning this competition would be amazing for KAT, good for the community and surrounding area. But we canât do it alone. This region always shows its heart by supporting one another and on behalf of KAT, Iâm hoping to see everyone get behind our kids and help us make it to the Top Peak finish line,â added Cohen.
The contest is based on votes and social media shares via Instagram. Every photo that is posted and hashtagged #toppeakkimberley2022 earns the Kimberley team 20 points.
âIf you post photos on Instagram, please include #toppeakkimberley2022 as a hashtag between now and March 28. It doesnât have to be a photo of skiing, or even ski-related,â explained Cohen. âEvery photo with this hashtag will help keep us in the running, plus it is a great chance to show Mackenzie Investments all of the incredible images from our area.â
Each user can hashtag up to three photos a day. Votes are worth five points and can be cast on www.mackenzietoppeak.ca. (Click âfind my peakâ and search Kimberley, then click vote).
Much like their season, Cohen says the battle wonât be easy as Kimberley is pitted up against teams from across Canada, including large resorts with a population base of nearly two-million people. âWe might be up against some big resorts with a huge population, but we have heart. Letâs show them how our tight-knit community can make a fairytale comeback.â
The first round of voting closes March 21 and all teams in the top 10 will advance. Voting will continue for those 10 teams until March 28 when the teams with the top five highest points will advance and the winner of the $50,000 prize will be selected by Mackenzie Investments. Kimberley is currently sitting in fifth place.
Lead image: To get an idea of how devastating the loss of the Northstar Express Chairlift is to Kimberley Alpine Resort, this image shows the main parking lot to the resort at 3:45 p.m. on Sunday, March 12. It would usually be packed with vehicles. Ian Cobb/e-KNOW photo
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