Home | Contacts | Classifieds | Archives | Media Kit | Email Us |
A Rosemere man who hopes to establish his reputation as one of the world's leading cross-country skiers will be racing in the sport's biggest and most competitive event, which takes place in Sweden this March. Forty-two-year-old Phil Shaw, who was born in Shawbridge and grew up in Rosemere, traces his athletic dedication to a speech given years ago by the legendary 'Jack Rabbit' Johannsen, who is widely credited with introducing Canadians to cross-country skiing as a sport.
World's biggest x-country race
Vasaloppet is a long-distance cross-country ski race held in the town of Mora in northwestern Sweden annually on the first Sunday of March. It is the oldest, one of the longest, and is widely recognized as the biggest cross-country skiing event in the world. Taking place over a distance of 90 kilometres, the race involves more than 40,000 participants. It is named after King Gustav Vasa of Sweden, in honour of a historic run the king made in 1520.
This will be the second time that Shaw participates in Vasaloppet. In 2003 he finished 102nd in the field. However, in 2007 he did not do nearly as well as a result of applying too much ski wax. "When it's around zero Celsius, and it was snowing lightly, either you put a colder wax or a milder wax, and I put a milder wax," he said. "I had good grip going up the hill, because there's a long hill at the start. But then after that my skis were slow." Shaw hopes to make up for it at this year's event.
Few Canadians enter
"I want to really show those Scandinavians that a Canadian can come in the top-100," he said, adding that although around a dozen Canadians are usually entered in Vasaloppet, they have rarely if ever made the top-100. While cross-country skiing is not widely regarded as a professional sport in Canada (although there is a Canadian national team), Shaw certainly fits the description of a professional. In several recent world-class "loppets" held in Europe, he finished first among North American entrants. "I'm not subsidized by the government to race for Canada, but I do better than some of the athletes that have gone over in the past," he said.
There is purse-money to be earned (up to 30,000 Euros in some cases) in certain global cross-country skiing events, although it is usually only for the finishing top-10. Shaw acknowledges that his chances of being among them are slim. "Realistically, I don't aim at top-10, especially not at Vasaloppet in Sweden, because it's the most competitive race in the world and the longest. With my two prior results it would be unrealistic. I am realistically aiming, and I know that this year I will come in top-100. Will it be 91st, 78th, 79th? I have no idea, but I have this feeling and that's why I'm going back."
Has sponsorship
Shaw is sponsored by Rossignol, the French manufacturer of ski equipment. He was previously sponsored for many years by Fisher skis and bindings and by Swik ski and snowboarding wax. This past summer, he came to a sponsorship agreement with Rossignol. As part of the arrangement, he will be using a set of the company's top-end cross-country skis for his run at Vasaloppet. "I've been in training all spring, summer and fall," he said, noting that he trains on roller-skis during the warmer time of year when there is no snow.
Shaw has been following in the tracks of Herman-Smith Johannsen (aka Jack Rabbit), a man who became a legend during his lifetime. Shaw considers Jack Rabbit his role model. Of Norwegian descent, Johannsen arrived in Canada in 1907 and settled during the 1930s in Quebec's Laurentian mountains. He is credited with building many ski jumps and for blazing trails throughout Ontario, the Eastern Townships and the Laurentians. After touching the lives of thousands and inspiring countless personal anecdotes, Jack Rabbit died in 1987 in his native Norway at the age of 111.
Memories of 'Jack Rabbit'
Shaw recalls a celebration that was held in Shawbridge in 1975 for Jack Rabbit's 100th birthday. "They brought back the ski train just for the occasion," he said, referring to the old P'tit Train du Nord. "There were hundreds of skiers from Montreal. We skied in Labelle, and then we took the train back to Shawbridge because we lived there at the time, and he gave a speech, and he influenced me … He's a legend for sure and he really got the sport going here in Canada."
BACK