It's going to be all quiet on the Kincaid front, with silence scheduled in place of previously planned rifle reports.
The USA Youth and Junior Biathlon World Team Trials, which were originally scheduled to be held Sunday through Tuesday at Kincaid Park's biathlon range, have been moved to Minnesota due to a lack of snow in Anchorage.
"We just didn't have enough snow to feel comfortable about bringing kids up here," said event director Marty Parsons with the Alaska Biathlon Association.
Parsons said snow cover at Kincaid is "spotty" at best. Making matters worse, the hilly trails near the biathlon range -- Lekisch, Mountain View and Stairway to Heaven -- are among the worst in the park.
"The areas where we need snow the most is on the biathlon loops, it's real thin there," Parsons said.
The trials will still be held Sunday-Tuesday, but they've been relocated to the Mt. Itasca Winter Sports Center in Coleraine, Minnesota. The local biathlon association made the decision to move the event about 10 days ago, Parsons said.
"That gave the USBA an opportunity to find an alternate location," Parsons said.
Parsons said the decision had to be made in the best interest of the athletes, but it wasn't an easy one for the local biathlon community.
"We were all super disappointed," he said.
Conditions in northern Minnesota aren't exactly ideal, either. Due to extreme cold, start times have been pushed back on Sunday and Monday, according to a post on the Minnesota Biathlon website. High temperatures in the area are forecast to be in the single digits Sunday and Monday, with overnight lows dropping below zero.
Parsons said there are half a dozen Alaskans in the competition, which determines the U.S. teams for the world championships. He said multiple Alaskans have a shot at making the team.
"We have several who have a chance to do really well," he said.
Anchorage last hosted the U.S. junior trials in 2011. This isn't the first time the trials have been moved from Kincaid due to lack of snow. The 2007 trials relocated under similar circumstances, but Parsons said the event returned in 2008. He's hopeful that'll be the case again and is already setting his sights on 2015.
"We're in line to do it next year, so hopefully we'll have more snow," he said.