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WINTER
2015
Photo cour tesy of Blue Mountain Resor t
JulianSmith isaremarkableathlete.
Heproved
thisayearagobywinningagoldmedal in the sprint cross-country
ski raceat the2014HaywoodSkiNationals inCornerBrook,New-
foundland. Just 18 he is the first member of the Georgian Bay
NordicClub towinatNationals andas far as Julian is concerned
he is just getting started. Julianwasnamed to theOntarioSki Team
alongwith fellowGeorgianBayNordicskier,DavidAskwith.He is
nowamember of theCanadianNational Development Team up
in Thunder Bayandat the same timeattends LakeheadUniversity
wherehe isworking towardanengineeringdegree.
As Julian explains it, thegoldmedal winwas not a flukeandwas
notasurprise tohimorhiscoaches.Afteraseasonof steady, relent-
less trainingaswell as performingat key races inNorthAmerica
andNorway, hewas confident that he coulddo it. On the other
hand, Julianacknowledges thathecouldhave justaseasilybroken
a pole or had some other catastrophe, whichwould have given
someone else thegoldmedal. So, even though he had trained to
thebestof hisabilitiesandwasprepared towin, heknew that noth-
ingguaranteesawin.
Juliangrewup inOxenden…A small, quiet villageon the shoreof
ColpoysBayeastofWiarton,wherehis father, TimSmith,hasapot-
tery shop. Julian’sparentshave tried to instill anactive lifestyleand
a love of outdoors in their children.With that inmind, they joined
theBruceSkiClubandenrolled their threechildren in the Jackrabbit
program. I remember seeing theSmith familyonSaturdays,having
lunch in the cabin, then heading out to enjoy another ski after
Jackrabbits. As the children grew they showeda keen interest in
cross-country ski racing. The oldest daughter,Olivia, racedat the
highschool levelandwhen Julianand laterhisbrother,Simon,were
old enough, they joined theGeorgian BayNordic Ski Team (or
GBNas it ismost often referred to), a ski clubdedicated to racing.
GBNwas formed in1989 togiveenthusiastichighschoolage rac-
ers inGreyandBrucecountiesachance tocompeteat theprovin-
cial level. The club does not maintain their own ski facilities but
utilizesSawmill Trail nearHepworth,which ispart of theBruceSki
Club’s trail system. AlthoughGeorgian BayNordic is a relatively
small club, theyhaveaverygood track record inprovincial racing.
JuliancreditsGBNcoach,MarilynSuke,asamajor influence inhis
development asa ski racer.
Marilyn knewalmost immediatelywhen shemet Julian at age14
thathehad thedriveandmindset required tomakehimanoutstand-
ing competitor. Even though his armwas in a cast during the first
training session shehadwithhim, shecould seehewasa fine skier.
Heannounced toherat the time thathewouldbecome the topskier
inOntario for his age group. Shewas amazed at his vision and
workedwith him toachieve that goal.Marilyn also states that his
focusanddeterminationareoutstanding. Hewill do theworkand
acquire theknowledgenecessary toachieve theexceptional results
hedemandsof himself. Hedreamsbigandactson thosedreams.
GOLDEN
ESCARPMENT
®
ATHLETES
|
GOLDEN DREAMS
