BHP Billiton Rock and Ice Ultra

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Rock and Ice Retrospective

Rob Howard / 06.04.2008

The venue for the closing party of the 2008 BHP Billiton Rock and Ice Ultra could not have been more appropriate – it took place in the nearby ‘Ice Castle’, ensuring the race stayed sub-zero from registration to prize-giving!

The Ice Castle is a popular attraction in Yellowknife, and is built each year by the Snow King and his team (with some help this year from Rock and Ice Race Director Scott Smith). So, the racers, volunteers and sponsors found themselves in the ‘main hall’ of the castle, encased in ice and getting their drinks from a bar top of solid ice in an adjoining room. A few even tried the slide and igloo out in the courtyard … but that was later in the evening!

The Castle is a regular venue for a night’s entertainment, so there was a stage for the prize giving and a DJ for entertainment and, with the evening sponsored by Bacardi, there were plenty of drinks to help keep out the chill.

After their daytrip on a private charter flight to the Ekati Diamond mine, 300km further north and on the edge of the Arctic Circle, to see where their prize came from, the 4 main prize winners were presented with their diamonds. The K-Rock winners, Corey McLachlan and Ewan Affleck (both Yellowknifers) received half-carat stones, and the Diamond Ultra winners, Dennis Colburn and Greg McHale, one carat gems.

All spoke and thanked the organisers and sponsors and McHale summed things up by saying that he’d been to many races that had been running for 10 years or more, but which were not as well organised or well supported by their local community and sponsors. (As an elite adventure racer he travels widely to compete and he also lives in Whitehorse in the Yukon, which hosts several extreme winter challenges.)See All Event Posts