Recon shot for Actif Epica 2022, likely to look different in February!
We’re working on the details for Actif Epica 2022 and hope to have much more to post in the weeks to come but we want to let everyone know that we’ll once again be hosting adventure seeking cyclists and runners, this time from Feb 18th to 20th, 2022. As in recent years we’ll offer short, mid, and long distance races for both disciplines, but we’re finalizing a substantially different course, to be posted soon. Don’t worry though, the spirit of the race remains the same as we plot a route that starts and ends at The Forks in Winnipeg and takes you on a winter adventure as together we celebrate human resilience.
Much more to come, so follow this site. Once we have a few more details nailed down we’ll also connect directly with all recent past competitors and volunteers. We’re hoping that happens by the end of August 2021, with registration to open shortly thereafter. Let’s get the family back together in 2022!
The Forks historical site near downtown Winnipeg will remain the Start/Finish for the 2022 edition of Actif Epica, Feb 18-20.
CANCELLED! Yes, we’re cancelling an already cancelled event, because that’s the kind of year it’s been :). In seriousness, we woke up this morning to -38C, feels like -50C. Without a doubt if the race hadn’t already been cancelled we’d be calling it off this morning. With that in mind we’re now cancelling our own personal ride too.
Obviously we can’t keep other people from leaving their houses and doing their own thing but we wanted to try to lead by example and say that it’s just too dangerous out there.
We’ll leave the map below (that we personally intended to follow) up here to serve as an example of future race ideas, but know that what we end up with next year is completely up in the air at this point.
About the map below: It’s a 65km course that we’ve ridden ourselves, completely within city limits, mostly on designated bike and multi-use paths, protected bike lanes, and ‘low stress” roads. It goes through The Forks, the Assiniboine Forest and Park, along Sturgeon Creek, Omand’s Creek, the Red, Seine, and Assiniboine Rivers, the Yellow Ribbon Greenway, Wellington Crescent, and other scenic areas. There are also some less scenic parts to connect the dots.
It’s possible that we’ve made errors in our mapping (we plotted the map by hand, as opposed to actually riding with a GPS tacker as we’d do when preparing a final race route) so if you choose to use the map as an idea for your own ride or run trust your own judgement first and don’t rely on the map as though it’s a final, proofed copy. It’s not. It’s simply here as reference for future ideas, yet to be completely sorted out.
Even if we’ve mapped everything correctly there can always be unanticipated construction, closures, detours, and other hazards, and even at the best of times there are other people and motorists (and dogs, and…) on the route who can pose their own dangers to watch out for.
This will be a quick update. It’s been a bit over a week and we wanted make sure we kept you up to date on our progress. But first!…we needed to share that Larry (a cohabitant of one of our racers) is supporting our efforts, and presumably the efforts of everyone training for race weekend, by modelling one of our toques which are still for sale for $12 each (just email us if you’re interested). We’ve sold a few, but we still have a few left.
Planning continues to go well. Most but not all of our volunteer positions are now covered. If you know of anyone who would like to help, or if you’re reading this yourself and wondering how you can be involved with the event this year, feel free to email us at actifepica@gmail.com and together we can figure out where you best fit.
We’ve also finally confirmed that every CheckPoint facility is on board for 2021. All had tentatively agreed but with the ongoing pandemic there were some extra details to sort through and although there are still contracts to sign, etc, we now have the okay to move forward with The Forks CN Stage greenroom start / finish and HQ, the Fraser Road shed, the St Adolphe Curling Club, the Niverville Recreation Centre and the U of M Active Living Centre. The leg of the course specific to the 200km cyclists this year, along the La Salle River, will also pass through St Norbert and Sanford CheckPoints, but those 2 spots will be manned by volunteers in cars instead of inside formal facilities as had been planned for sometime.
Lastly, our plan is to get our first Training Blog post up later this week, where we go through our own 8 week training program and let you follow along as directors Scott and Deanna finish their physical prep to do a full recon ride of the short bike course a week or so before event weekend. Our other director, Dan, is of course building up to be competitive in the long bike course come February.
We’ve accumulated approx 25 Actif Epica toques from the last couple of years. These are the toques that competitors and volunteers received for taking part in the event.
This year we’re giving everyone masks because it’s so the hip thing right now, so we thought it would be the perfect time to offer our new old stock toques for a small fee to anyone who wants one or two (or 3 or whatever).
Just email us at actifepica@gmail.com to request one if you wish, and send us an EFT to the same address for $12 per toque and we’ll mail it out to you right away. I’m sure we can accommodate other arrangements if necessary.
At the time of this posting we have 12 blue, 4 grey, and 10 black. All are a synthetic ‘sport’ blend and one size fits most.
First off we need to say thank you!…Thank you for expressing your commitment to Actif Epica by signing up.
We admit we didn’t know what to expect when we started planning the event this year in light of the pandemic we’re all going through. We’ve come up with protocols and contingencies that should ensure the show goes on no matter what, and we hoped our potential racers would share our confidence. Within the 1st few days of opening registration we have around 25 people already signed up, which is our fasted registration pace ever, so it looks like we do all share the same confidence!
Secondly, we’re happy to report that our first batch of 50 custom masks has arrived. In fact we’ve already mailed the 1st 25 or so out to those who have already registered, and will continue to do so as new registrations arrive.
Keep watching this pace as we update everyone on planning progress and the latest news.
Actif Epica 