Many of the UK's most promising young alpine ski racers, including members of the Scottish Alpine Academy will descend on Snow Factor at Braehead this weekend (14/15 June) for the 4th round of the GBR Indoor Series and the annual Scottish Indoor Alpine Ski Championships. ...Â
Organised by Snowsport Scotland as key seeded events in the snow sports calendar, the slalom format races offer a chance for racers to improve their rankings and even to highlight an individual's potential for development or national team squad selection.
On Saturday, 141 competitors are signed up for round 4 of the GBR Indoor Series while on Sunday close to 164skiers will compete for the Scottish Indoor Alpine Ski Championship male, female and overall titles. U-8's, U-10's and U-12's will also compete in a Mini's / Bairn's race format for age-group prizes on both days.
Glasgow's Nicole Ritchie and Euan Kick are both expected to return to defend their respective ladies and men's GBR titles in an entry list that in addition to England and the central belt includes racers from Inverness, Elgin, Aberdeen, Ayrshire and Peebles.
The weekend will also see 14 members of Snow Factor Racing (SFR) in action on the perfectly groomed main slope of what is Scotland's only indoor real snow facility.
Jamie Smith, owner of Snow Factor International, commented: “Snow Factor is proud to again work with Snowsport Scotland and its partners to host these prestigious races in the domestic alpine calendar.
“What's more, as Scotland's only indoor real snow facility we continue to invest to ensure skiers and snowboarders of all ages and ability enjoy perfect snow conditions in the depths of winter and during the heat of summer!”
Jane Campbell Morrison, Chief Executive of Snowsport Scotland, added: “The Scottish Indoor Championships and Indoor GBR Series both provide an exciting dimension to snow sports domestic race calendar, with fantastic venues like Snow Factor complementing other races held on artificial slopes and in mountain resorts over the winter season.”
This weekend's races come less than a fortnight after junior and senior members of the British Freestyle (Park & Ride) Team undertook two closed training sessions at Snow factor as part of their preparations for the 2014/2015 season.
www.snowfactor.com
www.snowsportscotland.org
Picture: Nicole Ritchie, defending female champion in the Scottish Women's Championship. Credit: Snowsport Scotland