As was so often the case in the late 1800s, the foundational information came from John Bowron to the people on the streets of Barkerville. Just because more than a century has passed since he first acted as one of the town’s most trusted figures doesn’t mean anything.
When a winter drought caused the lowland Hallis Lake Ski & Snowshoe Trails to falter in its quest to hold all Lhtako Quesnel BC Winter Games events, the mountainous heights of Barkerville Historic Town had all the white padding the biathletes and cross-country skiers needed. Buses were arranged. Athletes, coaches, officials and core spectators were whisked to the otherwise closed museum village, and the races went ahead right on the goldrush streets, like sliding back through time.
That’s where John Bowron met all the incomers. Bowron, in his day, had respected jobs in the Barkerville region like librarian, postmaster, constable, fire commissioner, government agent, Supreme Court registrar, and in the ultimate position of trust: the town’s inaugural gold commissioner.
As portrayed by actor Patrick Courbin, Bowron was there on Feb. 24, 2024 to welcome the athletic visitors and give a firsthand demonstration of the origins of their craft. While they were whisking about on aerodynamic skis waxed with space-age lubricants tailored to the exact conditions of the snow and air, wearing sleek clothing, pushing on poles scientifically balanced between strength and lightness, Bowron presented the ancestral foundation of these ambulatory tools.
Barlow was wearing the garb of the day, feet locked into wooden planks, and a single long staff in his two hands that he used to propel himself over the frozen water like a Lhtako Dene Nation ancestor would similarly have used to pole a cottonwood dugout canoe on fluid water. He was a goldrush anachronism who symbolized skiing from the days on which Barkerville was founded.
“To my knowledge, skiing originated in Scandinavia,” Barlow told the crowd. “We call these ‘Norwegian slippers,’ and the pole comes from the ancient tradition of hunting on skis. This would be a spear, and you would essentially pole your way forward, and if you were going down a hill you would lean back on it, using it like a rudder.”
For colourful comparison, Barlow took part in his own event, a race of one - the 19th century historic era division - to show the cross-country skiers and biathletes in modern classifications just how it was done. Then, they showed him what they could do, rocketing around the same course through the historic streets.
“Congratulations, you are all so very, very fast,” he said at the end. “I can’t wait for the technology of what I’m wearing on my feet to improve.”
For more on the nordic events held in Barkerville turn to Page A10.
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