Quebec Rolls Out the Red Carpet for Masters F.I.S.
by Steve Foley

For those who made the trek to the walled in city of Quebec, they were richly rewarded with one of the finest events in recent memory. Not only were the four races well organized but mother nature provided us with sunny days with beautiful blue skies and the best snow conditions of the year.

Day 1:  Never having been to Stoneham, I was pleasantly surprised to find a marvelous ski area, much larger than anyone from the East had expected. The G.S. trail was not for the faint of heart. It reminded me of Park City, with a very steep pitch followed by rolling and turning terrain to the finish. The set required every one to muster up a stomach full of courage and charge down the hill, hoping to carry more speed into the flats than others in your class. Every one remarked in some way that it was a real rush, except for J.D. Reynolds (class B7), who said he was going so fast he couldn't remember any part of the race! Memorable moment; Dave Strang had been racing masters for 12 years and he reached the podium for the first time with a first place in class A3.

Much like the way that television treats their athletes, the TV crews were there taping our runs and the awards ceremony that was held in local pub at the ski area. If you preferred to stay in your room and not eat in one of the many fantastic restaurants you could watch your run on TV that night.

Day 2:  Every one raced to Stoneham early the second day for the food. Unlike many of the other ski areas that I've visited, the food service at Stoneham was excellent and a lot of bang for the buck! Breakfast with bacon, sausage, eggs, home fries, toast, juice and coffee, all for about $5. They had the coffee labeled in a number system #2, #4, #6, which we assumed was an octane rating for caffeine. I opted for the #6 which gave me a least a half a second out of the start. For lunch I tried the local favorite - putine, which is the lunch that keeps the truckers fueled on those long Alcan highways. It's a mix of French fries, mozzarella cheese and gravy. I ordered it in my very best French, POOH-TEEN, only to have the lady behind the counter correct my French into Quebecois, POO-TAHN. Upon repeating the order correctly, she looked at the other server, nodded approval, pulled back the dish, which had been placed on the counter and awarded me with another scoop of gravy, (a compliment only reserved for the locals). Jim Doig (Class B6) said he could feel his arteries clamp down at the thought of it.

Another exciting G.S. with brilliantly sunny skies. Memorable moment; Mark George (class A4) was the fastest man on the hill that day. The awards presentation was like none other, at the top of the ”Lowes Le Concorde” hotel. “L’Astral” restaurant is one that rotates slowly 360 degrees as you dine. We were served trays of excellent finger sandwiches and smoked salmon on toast and other delights. Complimentary wine and beer along with a beautiful view of the old city and the sunset caused New York master, Jack Eisenschmid to remark that he'd never seen an awards like this before. No argument!

Day 3;  Le Relais; With an impending storm that night, the ski club opted to hold 2 slaloms while the sun held out. Not only did they accomplish that, but we were off the hill by 3:30 P.M. Mark George (class A4) was the fastest man on the hill in the first race, and had a come from behind smoker of a run to take the lead in the second race, but was denied by Fred Dieffenbach (class A3), who had an agenda of his own, edging out Mark George by only a few hundredths of a second. Kerri Lynn Houde CAN (class 1) had no trouble in being the fastest woman on the hill all 4 races. Dwight Conant (class B6) had a very strong performance in being the fastest man on the hill in 3 of 4 races in group B

The Banquet was held in the ballroom of the Lowes Le Concorde, where every master that I talked to said that they would come back here in a second! As I headed out on the return trip the next morning with my Rocky Raccoon suntan, fueled by a double expresso I could only think about “J’ai hate a la Prochaine Fois,” --I can't wait until the next time!

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