Young in years, but not short on results.
Prince George speed skater Tim Hempsall, who now lives and trains in Calgary, finished 18th out of 32 skaters at the national short track qualifier that was held on the weekend in Sherbrooke, Que.
Hempsall, who has already earned a spot on Team B.C. for the 2011 Canada Winter Games (Feb. 10-28 in Halifax), posted his best event result in the 500-metre distance, setting a personal best time of 43.45 seconds and placing 13th overall. Hempsall's strength, his starts, helped him jump out quick and hold on to for a strong finish.
"I feel really good about it, because it's six spots better than I did last year and I was one of the youngest people there," said Hempsall, 18.
"They have really good ice there, and that was definitely one of the reasons.
"(The ice) helped with my starts. Basically, when the gun goes off I have really good reaction time and I'm explosive off the line. That helps no matter where I am off the line, I'm usually first or second into that first corner, and that's crucial in the 500m because there's not a lot of passing."
At this stage in his career, Hempsall finds himself competing against older and often much-bigger skaters, as can often be the case in an age group that goes up to 21. That's something only time and training will address.
"I get the starts, but the others have the experience and they're a bit older and stronger," said Hempsall, who will get a chance to return to Prince George for the Christmas break to see friends and family.
"One guy is six-foot-five, and I'm around 150 pounds and five-foot-eight. I'm one of the smallest guys there, and that one guy was just a tank. He was hard to pass."
Hempsall, who is taking biological sciences courses at the University of Calgary, will be able to focus on one thing now, and that's training. He has no other events on his schedule prior to the Canada Winter Games.
"I need to get healthy, I've been sick with a cold or some kind of flu, maybe a type of strep throat, for about a month now, but now I just think it's just a cold," said Hempsall.
"I need to work on my endurance and a bit of technique. I'm strong, but I need to know how to use that strength more efficiently. I have a big break until Halifax so I have to do everything I can to get better and get stronger."
