Something old and something new have been added to the 20th Great Caribou Bog Wicked Winter Ski Race on Saturday, March 1, from Bangor to Old Town, reports Penobscot Valley Ski Club member Pat Cammack.

The additions are intended to encourage all cross-country skiers, young and old, to participate in this event, which is co-sponsored by Cadillac Mountain Sports.

Proceeds benefit the Shaw House, a Bangor shelter for homeless youth, and the rain date is Saturday, March 8.

Cammack reports the new addition is intended to draw those who don’t want to ski the traditional race route.

“We created the BogLoppet Tour for recreational skiers who may feel intimidated by the 18K Caribou Bog course,” Cammack wrote.

The BogLoppet Tour covers an 8-kilometer route from Forest Avenue in Orono to the finish line at H.E. Sargent School in Stillwater.

Both the race and tour are classical style.

Registration for both events begin at 9 a.m. at Essex Woods, 703 Outer Essex St. in Bangor. The 18-kilometer race starts at Essex Woods, but skiers will be bused to the start of the BogLoppet Tour in Orono.

Returning “after a several-year hiatus,” Cammack wrote, will be “a team competition for three- to five-member teams.”

Entry fee for the race is $12 for adults, a maximum of $25 per family, and $30 for teams.

The free Kids’ Tour begins at 1:30 p.m. at the H.E. Sargent School, and an adult must be available for support.

For information and entry blanks, write Caribou Bog Race, P.O. Box 873, Bangor 04402-0873; call 941-5670 or 825-3230; or visit www.pvskiclub.org.

Parents, community coaches, school coaches and administrators, or anyone interested in middle school athletes and their interests, are invited to a Conference on Middle Level Sports, Wednesday, March 5, and Thursday, March 6, at the Augusta Civic Center.

Presentation topics include alternatives to cutting kids from sports, pros and cons of tournament and championships, recruiting and keeping teachers in coaching, school and community teams competing for the same child, and the latest research about the status of middle level sports in Maine and the nation.

Sponsored by the Maine Center for Coaching Education at the University of Maine and its Middle Level Task Force, two Wednesday evening sessions are of particular interest to parents.

Bob Bigelow, a former member of the NBA Boston Celtics and now an advocate for developmentally appropriate sports for children of all ages, will speak at 6 p.m. Wednesday. This session is free and open to the public.

Thursday’s events begin at 9 a.m. with a welcome by Dr. Robert Cobb, dean of the UMaine College of Education and Human Development, followed by the keynote address by UMaine men’s basketball coach John Giannini.

You can receive more information, or register, by calling MCCE director Keith Lancaster at 581-2443 or visiting keith.lancaster@umit.Maine.edu.

You are invited to nominate individuals who have made outstanding contributions to their communities for the Volvo for Life Awards, sponsored by Volvo Cars of North America. The nomination deadline is Friday, Feb. 28.

In March, Volvo will select 50 semifinalists, each of whom will receive a certificate of merit for their accomplishments. From that number, Volvo will select 10 finalists who each will receive $10,000.

A panel of judges, including former Sen. Bill Bradley, Dr. Jane Goodall, Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg, Dr. Sally Ride, Eunice Kennedy Shriver and Maya Lin, will name three winners who will each have a $50,000 donation made in their name to the charities of their choice.

The top winner, to be announced on April 16 in New York City, will receive a Volvo for life.

Nominations can be made at www.volvoforlifeawards.com.

The Alzheimer’s Association Support Groups of Bangor and Westgate Manor host “Planning for Your Long-term Healthcare Needs,” at 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 27, at Westgate Manor, 750 Union St., Bangor.

Elder law attorney Jane Skelton and Prudential Insurance representative Keith Norton will address legal and financial preparations for the future.

Reservations may be made with Kristie Miner or Tammy Leland at 942-7336.

To register for the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill-Bangor Affiliate 12-week Family Education Class on Mental Illness on Wednesdays, March 5 through May 21, in the Leonard Room at Acadia Hospital on Stillwater Avenue in Bangor, call Nancy Grimes, after 1 p.m., at 223-5686.

Joni Averill, Bangor Daily News, P.O. Box 1329, Bangor 04402; 990-8288.