After three-years, Labrador’s 3,500-kilometre Cain’s Quest snowmobile race is back, and this year’s competitors are ready to hit the snow.
Ahead of the race, which kicks off Saturday at 10am in Labrador City, event organizers held a Cain’s Quest Fan Night, where enthusiasts could meet this year’s competitors and check out the snowmobiles they’ll be racing in.
Chris Lacey, chairperson for Cain’s Quest 2023 who also competed in the event in 2016, said Thursday’s Fan Night drums up excitement for Cain’s Quest, which has been put on pause for the past few years due to COVID-19. He says the organization lost a considerable amount of volunteers and staff members during the pandemic, but that hasn’t put a damper on this year’s race.
He says there are currently 29 teams, which consists of about 40 racers in total. Aside from bragging rights, the 1st place team gets $50,000, while there is a $30,000 prize for finishing 2nd and $20,000 for 3rd.
John and Mark Nui of Natuashish are on team Miste Tshini. John Nui says he’s competed in the race a few times already, and that he and Mark are racing this year in honour of their late brother Jim.
“Big part of our team,” said John. “For both me and my brother Mark, I think it’s only fair that we continue to do it, even though he is gone.”
Mark says that although the race is hard, he enjoys meeting different people on the trek around Labrador, and racing in this year’s event for Jim makes the event all the more worthwhile.
“I said many times that I would stop racing, but I keep coming back because it’s a lot of fun,” said Mark. “If you finish the race, that’s a big achievement.”
While a lot of competitors are from Labrador, Lacey says some racers are from Alberta, and that this year Tthere is a team from both British Columbia and Finland.