The final national championships of the year will take place tomorrow - October 31st, Hallowe'en - at Hardwood Ski & Bike, 75 minutes north of Toronto. This venue has a long tradition of hosting mountain bike competitions, including Canada Cups, national championships and the 2015 Pan Am Games, but is not so well known for 'Cross; outside of the local community, who race here weekly in their cyclo-cross series.
This year, the event is more than two weeks earlier than last year - and before the time shift - so riders will all race in daylight! The weather is expected to be dry but windy, with a high of 12C; feeling more like 8C if the wind was like today. The 3.1 kilometre circuit has a bit of everything; opening with a short climb, then descending into a field before the longest and steepest climb of the course - most will run it. There is a stair climb and two sand sections - both downhill, so mostly a matter of hanging on - plus a pair of barriers, that the top riders are hopping. The middle section of the circuit is quite flowy, while the final part has multiple twists and turns.
Over 250 riders have registered for the championships, but a number of former champions are missing, so we will see some new winners. On the women's side, multiple times (and defending) champion Maghalie Rochette is pregnant (congratulations to her and David!), so last year's second place finisher, Sidney McGill (Materiaal-Lastig) is the favourite, going up against Siobhan Kelly (Black Dog Racing). In Under-23 women, Rafaelle Carrier, the 2025 champion, is also absent, putting 2025 silver medallist Nico Knoll in the favourite spot. Eliane Blais (Pittstop) will be looking to defend her Junior title against local favourites Alexa Haviland (Shredders) and Clare Hauber (Shredders).
On the men's side, Tyler Clark (Caledon Hills Armada) will be there to defend his Elite title, with last year's bronze medallist, Emile Perreault (Accro Velo), looking to move up. In the Under-23 men, the top-2 from last year - Mika Comaniuk and Julien Desjardin - are both missing, while the third and fourth placed riders - Alexander Woodford (Ride with Rendall p/b Biemme) and Jayden McMullen (TaG) have both moved up to Elite. The top returning rider is Remi Brisebois (Ride with Rendall p/b Biemme), who was fifth in 2025, although Evan Moore (Collingwood Collective), third as a Junior, has moved into the U23 ranks. Most of the top Junior men have moved up to U23, with Maxim Carrier (Siboire Qui Roule), seventh last year, the top-ranked returning Junior man.
