Virtual Snowshoe Race 2021 & Kawartha Winter Festival on the Horizon for 2022

Snowshoe Canada President and local cottager Dave Robinson was recently successful in obtaining a resolution from the City Council to pursue the concept of developing an annual Winter Festival in the City of Kawartha Lakes beginning as early as the winter of 2022.

Robinson, an avid natural athlete in many sports including the triathlon took over the operation of Snowshoe Canada in 2015 and has been building into an organization that supports and grows the sport across Canada with over a dozen events on the slate in 2020.

Covid has put a damper on organized events for 2021 but he hopes to be back at it for 2022.

The Snowshoe Canada mandate is to encourage participation and move the needle forward in terms of enhancing physical and mental health for Canadians. The main catalyst behind the founding and success of Snowshoe Kawartha for the last 4 years, he sees this type of activity as part of a bigger picture to get people out of doors and getting some exercise during the winter months.

The idea of a Winter Festival has been a concept that has worked well in other parts of Ontario including Peterborough, Muskoka, Ottawa and the ultimate winter festival in Quebec City. The Quebec Winter Carnival has been a big success for many years and has brought countless dollars to Quebec City while providing plenty of activities to get people out and about during winter.

“This is Canada, when I travel abroad and I tell people that I am from Canada they ask me about the snow and the cold. I tell them that if you learn to enjoy winter outdoor activities the snow and the cold are not so bad.” Added Robinson. 

Robinson also stated that “The Scandinavian nations like Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Finland celebrate winter with lots of fun activities going on. It is really an attitude thing. If you choose to have fun with it, winter becomes more tolerable. The physical and mental health benefits of engaging in outdoor winter activities have been proven by many health professionals. It is definitely an advantage to stay fit and healthy during the winter especially during these crazy times.”

Robinson has had several discussions with elected officials and city staff and they all were in agreement that this could be a good thing so he decided to ask for the resolution, and was successful. They plan to start small with a few activities and slowly grow as we build the level of expertise.

“I see this festival developing as a long-term shared project between the City and local volunteer groups working together to produce events that benefit the community and surrounding area” stated Robinson. 

There are many activities that are tried and true when it comes to winter festivals including, pond hockey, skating, Cross Country skiing, tubing, dog sledding, ice sculptures, outdoor concerts, fireworks and of course snowshoeing.

“There will definitely be a snowshoe event somewhere that everyone can take part in”, added Robinson, “It is a great aerobic activity that is very easy to learn. In addition, I have already got interest from a local organization wanting to put on a charity hockey game. That would be a great activity to raise money for a local cause.”

As Robinson and City Council move forward with this project, they will keep the community posted on their progress.

In light of the lockdown and its impact on outdoor events, Robinson has organized across Canada Virtual Snowshoe Event that is running all winter until March 21st.

For those unfamiliar, a virtual event is one in which you sign up online. You then pick your distance to snowshoe and complete your event wherever you want on your own time. Once you have completed the event you send back your results and they are posted online. You can participate as often as you want. All participants will receive a lovely Christmas tree ornament branded with the Snowshoe Canada logo and nice warm bandana to keep their neck warm during winter.

Proceeds from the event will go to mental health.

To sign up go to https://www.snowshoecanada.ca/