The Great Skate 5.0 - Making Dreams Come True

The Great Skate started in 2016 as a way to get Winnipeggers out on the river trail to take advantage of winter and show off their skating prowess. Over eighty brave souls came out and raced in less than ideal conditions as the ice was choppy from the day before. We learned our lesson and ever since the first rendition of the event, we’ve held it on the coldest weekend of the year, which is usually the first weekend of February.

Every year, the event has grown in popularity and we have seen close to 200 people come out on days that can be colder than minus 40 with the windchill. We are a hearty bunch, so we dress for the weather and we lace up anyway.

This year, we are taking that "heart" to the next level and will be racing to make a dream comes come true for some pretty special kids.

The Great Skate 5.0 will support The Dream Factory, a local charity that makes dreams come true for kids in our community battling life-threatening illnesses.

Kids like Kylan - Kylan is 10 years old and has been battling acute lymphoblastic leukemia (a cancer of the white blood cells). His dream was to receive goalie lessons from his hockey hero, Connor Hellebuyck. After a quick shopping spree for some brand new goalie gear, we were so excited that Kylan's dream came true this past December. He will even be featured on Hockey Night in Canada!

We hope that by coming together at The Great Skate, we can make even more dreams come true for kids right here in our own community going through some pretty tough stuff.

So please - create a fundraising page, get your friends and family on board, and help us spread the word. It only takes a few seconds to help bring a dream to life. Besides, we are going to have some pretty great prizes for top fundraiser!

See you at The Great Skate!

Race Details

What: 6km and 12km race on the river trail

When: Sunday, February 2nd, 2020. Registration opens at 8am, race starts 9am. (7am registration and 8am start if we use back up plan due to river conditions)

Where: The Forks, Winnipeg, Manitoba. Register in the South Hall.

Cost: $40 includes chip timing, brunch from Tall Grass Prairie, race medal, and race buff

All funds raised go towards The Dream Factory