From left, Patrick and Paul Moore at a World Champion ski event last year where they waxed skis for the same teams they will be waxing for during the upcoming Olympics. Photo submitted
Born and raised in Vermilion, Patrick and Paul Moore, will be heading to the Olympics in PyeongChang, South Korea to wax cross-country skis from February 9 - 25.
Members of the Vermilion Nordic Ski Club for a majority of their lives, the brothers now live in Edmonton and continue to remain heavily involved with the sport.
Both Patrick and Paul continue to actively race themselves in provincial and national events with the Fast Trax Run & Ski Club in Edmonton, as well as work at the Fast Trax Run & Ski Shop.
Patrick has been working with the American team for years and was asked to wax at Canmore at a World Cup event. There, both brothers stepped in to give a hand, and Paul began working with the Australian team.
“You want to have team cohesion throughout the season,” said Paul who felt that both brothers have that with their respective teams.
Patrick noted that the process of preparing skis for an Olympic event begins long before the race starts.
“Most athletes will travel with 30 - 35 pairs of skis, of which 5 – 6 pairs are tested each day,” said Patrick.
The brothers will test which products are giving the appropriate grip and speed in different conditions to match the athletes ski requirements, giving them the opportunity to ski up to 50 kilometers per day. Once narrowed down, they will work directly with each athlete to tailor the skis to their strengths and weaknesses. Cleaning and re-waxing possibly hundreds of skis per day, each with 10 - 12 layers of different types of wax; in an effort to make sure that they will be the fastest, Patrick and Paul will be kept very busy.
“Waxing can be as simple or as complicated as you want. I think cross country skiing is unique among any other sport because you can participate from the time you are 3 - 103 years old, making it a lifetime activity.
The coaches we had as children in Vermilion instilled a love of the outdoors and a love of skiing. In our small, tight-knit group, we learned to develop a rapport with our teammates and how to work together which is a big part of why we are still involved. Our two most influential coaches were our first coach Les Parsons, and Vaughn Cooper who is head coach to this day. Teamwork is a critical factor in making outcomes,” said Paul.
He went on to say that growing up in Vermilion; they learned to love skiing for the sake of skiing and to make it a part of their lifestyle. Later learning the reality that neither of them would be fast enough to be Olympians themselves, they still love being involved.
“Now it’s a bonus for us to be going as we would still do it for the love of doing it, even without the international travel,” said Paul.