They say this sport isn't for ice princesses; so to dub Brandi Day Estevan's Ice Princess may not do her justice.
She is headed to Quebec City this weekend to compete in the 2011 Red Bull Crashed Ice World Championship. The sport is ice cross downhill.
For the unacquainted, it is kind of a mix between roller derby and luge. Four racers, decked out in complete hockey garb, begin at the top of a narrow downhill track made of ice. The first one to the bottom wins. The races, which usually take less than a minute, involve several jumps, obstacles and insanely tight corners, including a 180-degree turn.
Most athletes have a hockey background and will reach speeds of about 70 kilometres per hour on their way down Quebec City's 540-metre track, bumping elbows with three opponents the whole way.
The 22-year-old Day hasn't been down a track before. What does she think of that?
"I'm going in blind," she said with a smile. "I'm excited."
How can someone compete in a sport they haven't done before? Well, Day simply registered through the web site and was selected for a qualifier in Aberdeen. She was in Saskatoon for trade school at the time.
The qualifying run wasn't downhill but included some jumps and obstacles to skate around.
"All it was, was a course at a regular arena. So it wasn't anything like it's going to be when I get to Quebec. It's going to be a lot different when I get there."
She actually tried out last year, but her time wasn't fast enough. This year when she gets to Quebec she will have two dry runs of the downhill course before 小蓝视频 sent speeding down the ice mountain in competition.
The event in Quebec City is the final race of the circuit, with three previous competitions held in Munich, Valkenburg in the Netherlands, and Moscow.
Qualifiers across Canada send both men and women to compete alongside those who have toured with the circuit in Europe.
Day flies to Quebec today before the races are held on Saturday. She's guaranteed three races in the preliminary rounds before racers start to get eliminated.
In preparation, the former college hockey player said she is getting on the ice regularly.
"I'm just playing hockey. As much as I can get ice, I'm getting out on the ice. Other than that, I don't really know how you can prepare for it."
A friend of hers, who she played hockey with in her native province of British Columbia, is also going to be competing in the event. Day just found out they are going to be roommates when they get there.
When she saw the Red Bull Crashed Ice races for the first time on television, she was immediately intrigued. It wasn't until she saw the advertisement for tryouts that she thought she should register. Some of her competitors, like her friend, will be in same boat as she is, with no experience of heading down the steep, icy track.
The sport is an adrenaline rush. The trip down the ice is a sprint. A good start could leave your competitors in the dust (snow?). Then all you have to worry about is the ever-looming crash.
Getting to the bottom without a spill is important. Day said working on getting down and up quickly is an important factor, something she had to do in her qualifying run. The situation may be a little more stressful when she has to get back to her feet on a decline in the middle of a race.
Day doesn't call herself an adrenaline junkie but admits she does like the speed involved in some sports. She also does four-wheel, off-road racing.
"There's lots of stuff that you have to push yourself to the edge, so I guess there's maybe a little bit of an adrenaline rush there too."
The Quebec City event in the historic Old Town attracts 100,000 fans keen to experience all the speed and every crash. Body contact is illegal, like short-track speed skating, but incidental contact is inevitable, as are some spectacular wipeouts. The first event was held in Stockholm in 2001, and annual races in Quebec City have been happening since 2006.
"I'm going to do as best I can. I'm going to go there and try and win it, but I won't be heartbroken if I don't, seeing as how I haven't done it before. I'm just going to try and go as fast as I can."
