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Events & Races

2012 MEC Vert180 on Dec 1st: Canada's skimo season opener

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This will be the 3rd edition of the Vert180 which serves as the Canadian skimo racing season opener the last 3 years.
As one of a kind North American night event the MEC Vert180 is traditionally hosted right in the heart of a big city – at Calgary’s Canadian Olympic Park.
Easy course suits novice racers as an introduction while elite skimo racers test their early season speed. All this in great atmosphere – both relay teams and solo racers are cheered on equally.
» Check out the last year’s MEC Vert180 2011 report

Quick facts

Name: MEC Vert180 Ski Mountaineering Race
Date: December 1st, 2012 (Saturday)
Event detailed schedule: http://vert180.blogspot.ca/p/schedule.html
Location: Canada Olympic Park (or COP) in Calgary, AB
Format: max. number of laps in 180min raced as individual or as a team relay
Course: a loop with about 100m vertical ascent, then 100m descent, and small boot-pack to mix it up
Difficulty and Skills required:

  • great for first timers and youth but national caliber athletes compete here as well
  • great for practicing all essential skimo racing skills (all transitions, skinning, boot-pack, fast skiing)

Categories: solo, teams of 2 and 3-4 people, men, women, teen, youth
Event website: http://vert180.blogspot.com
Online registration: http://eventsonline.ca/events/mec_vert180/

Vert180 2011 video

Continental Ski-Mo Championships in Golden, BC set for March 2013

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The biggest ski mountaineering race in North America for the upcoming season found its home. Kicking Horse Mountain Resort near Golden, BC will host a skimo dedicated weekend on March 16-17, 2013.
The official name for the event will likely be “The Dogtooth Dash- 2013 Continental Ski-Mo Championships” but some details are still in the works.
If you have never skied at the Kicking Horse Mountain Resort here is your chance to race over its amazing terrain that tests Canadian skimo athletes each year during the annual Canadian Ski Mountaineering National Championships.
More details will be made public in the near future. In all previous years the course was beautifully designed by Ian Gale, the angry one in the photo.
For reference, here is a short edit from the 2011 two day event:

Skimo racing 2012-2013 World Cup and World Championships calendar

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Top level ski mountaineering racing calendar is now out:

  • No team races on the WC calendar, except at the World Champs!
  • The World Cup itself will have 5 rounds – hosted in Italy (2), Switzerland, Andorra, with finals in Norway.
  • The 2013 Ski Mountaineering World Championships will take place between Feb 9-15, 2013 in Pelvoux-Puy, France.
    – likely the same venues as for the Euro Champs in 2012

ISMF World Cup calendar for 2012-2013 season

Jan 12-13, 2013
Vertical + Individual
World Cup Skialp Race Ahrntal (Valle Aurina, Italy)
All categories
www.skialprace-ahrntal.com
Jan 25-26, 2013
Sprint + Individual
World Cup Alpiniski (Les Marécottes-Salvan, Switzerland)
All categories
www.alpiniski.ch
Feb 9-15, 2013
Team + Relays + Sprint + Vertical + Individual
World Championships (Pelvoux-Puy Saint Vincent-Vallouise, France)
All categories
www.ski-ecrins.com
Mar 02-03, 2013
Sprint + Individual
World Cup Skialp3 Presolana (Clusone, Italy)
All categories
www.sciclub13.it
Mar 09-10, 2013
Vertical + Individual
World Cup Font Blanca (Ordino, Andorra)
All categories
www.fontblanca.ad
Apr 13-14, 2013
Sprint + Individual
World Cup Artic Race (Tromso, Norway)
Only senior and espoir
www.arcticrace.no

Other big ski mountaineering races in 2013

Pierra Menta, France – Mar 21-24, 2013 (www.pierramenta.com)
– 4 day stage race [teams of 2] Trofeo Mezzalama, Italy – April 2013 (www.trofeomezzalama.org)
– 1 day high altitude, long distance race [teams of 3] Adamello Ski Raid, Italy – April 2013 (www.adamelloskiraid.com)
– 1 day high altitude, long distance race [teams of 2] Tour du Rutor, Italy – not in 2013! but will be back on Mar 28-30, 2014 (tourdurutor.com)
– 3 day stage race [teams of 2] Patrouille des Glaciers, Switzerland – not in 2013 as it historically rotates with Mezzalama, should be back for 2014 (www.pdg.ch)
– 1 day high altitude, long distance race [teams of 3]

Videos: Tour du Rutor challenging Pierra Menta for the most beautiful skimo stage race

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Stage racing is a well known racing format in road cycling and mountain biking but not much in ski mountaineering world. I believe it is a great format for any endurance sport and especially a sport where we travel fast, over challenging terrain, with tons of views on high-traverse like routes.
Over the past weekend I paid attention to results from Tour du Rutor, a 3 day skimo stage race in Italy, and I want to share with you great videos the organizers put together from each stage this year.
Of course, Pierra Menta (4 days) in France is the biggest skimo stage race but it looks like Tour du Rutor is as beautiful.
I participated in Pierra Menta in 2010 with other Canadian Skimo Team members and learnt about Rutor that same year. Pierra Menta was hands down the best skimo racing experience I ever had but a year from the next edition I am thinking about the Rutor as well 😉

All videos from Tour du Rutor and Pierra Menta, both 2012

This is a true skimo racing porn – 3 stages from TdR and 4 from PM. You need only 38min to watch all 7 videos in one shot.
 Stage 1 – Tour du Rutor 2012

Stage 2 – Tour du Rutor 2012

Stage 3 – Tour du Rutor 2012

Stage 1 – Pierra Menta 2012

Stage 2 – Pierra Menta 2012

Stage 3 – Pierra Menta 2012 (over Grand Mont)

Stage 4 – Pierra Menta 2012

Ken Jones Classic Ski Mountaineering Challenge – Lake Louise, Mar 24, 2012

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Ken Jones ski mountaineering skimo raceLake Louise Ski Area will be hosting the 2nd annual Ken Jones Classic on March 24th, 2012. This ski mountaineering challenge will be the last race on the Canadian skimo calendar this season.
Lake Louise Ski Area partnered with the Alpine Club of Canada to organize this event and they are promising true ski mountaineering courses, great fun, $1000 cash purse and lots of draw prizes.

Ken Jones Classic quick facts

» $70 (youth only $35) will sign you up, pay for your day lift ticket and more!
» race poster for Ken Jones Classic skimo race (in PDF)
Schedule – all is happening on Saturday, Mar 24th:

  • 7.00am – Check-in (bibs pickup, last opportunity to register) in the Great Bear Room in the Lake Louise ski area Base Complex
  • 7.30am – Race briefing (course presentation), should be same place
  • after the briefing a special lift will be running to take all up to the Whitehorn start

Two race courses:

  • The Youth and Enduro courses will climb from Whitehorn Lodge, over the Summit, to Richardson’s Ridge, and back to the Base Area finish by way of Temple Lodge – approximately 620 metres / 2000 feet of climbing and descending.
  • The Race/Elite course will add an ascent through Rock Garden, over Larch, and a descent of Elevator Shaft to make for 5000+ feet of vertical gain.
  • Both routes exit down the ski out for final skate to the finish.

Categories:

  • Men, Women
  • Youth, Elite, Enduro

Registration:

  • Entry fees: $70 adults, $35 for youth 19 and under
  • online registration is available – www.alpineclubofcanada.ca/skimo
  • or call 403-678-3200 (extension 108) to inquire, pay, or enlist directly
  • there will be race day registration at 7.00am sharp

» First timers might want to check out this article: 6 tips to get you ready for your first skimo race
» To train your transitions see videos: ski mountaineering racing transitions with Reiner Thoni

ROAM Randonnee Rally: Nelson's rando skimo race on Feb 25, 2012

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ROAM Randonnee Rally ski mountaineering race (6th annual) is only one of many events and festivities taking place during the annual Kootenay Coldsmoke Powder Fest.
The festival starts on Friday, Feb 24 and goes on until Sunday, Feb 26. It is a great mix of clinics, demos, comps, fun and parting on the slopes of Nelson’s, BC Whitewater ski resort.

Randonnee Rally quick facts

Schedule:

  • Race Meeting: Friday, February 24 – 5:00 PM – ROAM Shop – 639 Baker Street Nelson, BC.
  • Race Sign-on: Saturday, February 25 – 8:00 am Whitewater Ski Resort
  • Race Start Time: Saturday, February 25 – 9:00 am by the bag piper at Whitewater Ski Resort

Two race courses: Open course (about 4500 ft of climbing) and Rec course (about 2000 ft of climbing)
Categories: Men, Women, Vet 50+ can choose to race as Race, Recreational and Splitboard Rec
Entry fee: $35
» More info and registration: online or on site
» First timers might want to check out this article: 6 tips to get you ready for your first skimo race
See why you should check out Whitewater:

First skimo racing clinic took place in Nelson on Feb 4-5, 2012

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Last weekend saw a go at the first ski mountaineering racing clinic organized in Nelson by skimo enthusiast Scott Jeffery. All involved had great time and learnt something new. (I was supposed to be part of it as well – as an instructor – but a nasty virus put in me in bed for couple of days just as I wanted to leave for Nelson.)

The skimo clinic

The skimo clinic took place on two days, Saturday night and Sunday afternoon.
There were 9 people at the discussion on Saturday night where Scott presented on the history of skimo and gave a background into the North American recreational racing scene. There was also Cam Shute, binding engineer for G3, to present on Tech bindings and equipment, as well as Rob Stojanowski, ROAM shop owner, talked about the latest offerings from Dynafit.
“Sunday afternoon skills session saw 4 skiers join me in perfect bluebird conditions for group laps of a 500 vertical foot, 1.5 km loop in the Upper Powder Keg area of Whitewater,” reported Scott and continued:”The skiing on the Northeast aspect was deep and perfect!”
The clinic saw attend a 14 year old Owen Thurston who had a great time and didn’t even hesitated to climb up 50 degree boot pack. This is truly great to see that Nelson, and Canada, have such skimo enthusiastic youth.
Here are couple of great photos from the training session snapped by Scott Jeffery:
ski mountaineering racing clinic in Nelson
skimo racing clinic in Nelson
ski mountaineering racing clinic in Nelson

Dogtooth Dash and Canadian rando skimo racing champs – Feb 11-12, 2012

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This year, Canada’s finest skimo racing event – the Dogtooth Dash – was moved to earlier dates on the calendar compared to previous three years.

$50 entry fee gives you for 2 days of racing and lift tickets!

The racing and fun will spread over two days and will visit every corner of the Kicking Horse Mountain Resort (KHMR) – located about 20min drive from Golden, BC.

Saturday – Feb 11

This is the day when the national champions will be decided by racing over the longest and most challenging course. If you want to easy into skimo racing on a less demanding course then you have another two to choose from:

  • Rec (2000 ft of vertical gain)
  • Enduro (4000 ft)
  • Elite (6000 ft) – the championship race
» First timers might want to check out this article – 6 tips to get you ready for your first skimo race.

Enthusiasm for skimo racing and its organization at KHMR is amazing so you are guaranteed to enjoy every minute of the event no matter what course you end up doing.

Sunday – Feb 12

This is a fun event raced in relay teams of 2, 3 or 4 people on a short loop course. But make no mistake, the course has all technical aspects of ski mountaineering racing in it but packed in about 12min 😉

Online registration and more info

» Online registration is waiting for you. Make sure to talk to your friends about it too.
» More details about the race courses and the event’s schedule can be found here – Dogtooth Dash website.

Last year’s Dogtooth Dash

NA rando skimo racing is full-on the next 2 weeks

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Starting tomorrow there is some great skimo racing awaiting all North American athletes. With important upcoming races in NA and Europe the skimo season is in a full swing.
These are the 4 events to watch or join:

  • Jan 27-29 – NA Skimo Championships in Crested Butte, CO
  • Jan 28-29 – Two rounds of Austria Skitour Cup
  • Feb 5-9 – European Skimo Champs
  • Feb 11-12 – Canadian Skimo Champs in Golden, BC

North American Ski Mountaineering Championships

Jan 27-29 in Crested Butte, Colorado
Following the championship formats of Euro and World races the action will begin with a short sprint then continue on the next day with a very challenging individual course. Notably, two or three super fast Italians are coming over – Manfred Reichegger, Lorenzo Holzknecht…
Who’s coming
Beside the Italians there will be other very fast NA racers. For US, all fast guns should be there – Luke Nelson, Sari Anderson, Pete Swenson,  too many to name. Canadians will be represented by current NA champ Reiner Thoni, Melanie Bernier (check out her prep for this race), Ian Gale, Julie Matteau, Andrew McNab, Jeff Colvin and maybe some more.
More info: http://www.ussma.org/race/cosmic/2012-01-28/2012-ismf-north-american-championships

Austria Skitour Cup

Jan 28 in Gröbming, Jan 29 in Marria Luggau
These two races are about 200km apart but many racers attend both of them. Just like the Jackson Hole / Grand Targhee combo. Austrians have many great athletes in both men, women and junior categories, and their speed level is somewhere between NA and the lead world skimo nations.
Who’s going
Since I am currently in Europe and flying back to NA on Monday from Austria I decided to jump into these to gain some more experience in highly contested events.
More info: http://www.astc.at

European Ski Mountaineering Championships

Feb 5-9 in Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur, France
In 2010 the ISMF (World Skimo Federation) have decided to alternate the World and Euro Champs every year to avoid a calendar conflict between Winter Olympic games and skimo Worlds. This year it is time for Euros to show off but Canadians managed to negotiate one entry to keep our best athlete in check 😉
Who’s going
Melanie Bernier belongs to a wider group of the World’s fastest skimo girls and so she will line up against the rest of them in the individual, vertical and sprint races. Note that she is competing in NA Champs, then flying out to France, then coming right back for the Canadian Champs. That is true dedication!
More info: http://www.ski-ecrins.com

Dogtooth Dash – Canadian National Ski Mountaineering Championships

Feb 11-12 in Golden, BC
Everyone is welcomed! The best race on the Canadian calendar hands down and likely in the top two for whole NA. On Saturday, you can choose from 3 courses that vary by length and level of difficulty. The 6000 feet one is the championship challenge. Reiner Thoni and Melanie Bernier are looking to defend their multiple titles but others will try to keep them a bit down from the skies 😉
Who’s coming
All Canadian fast and hearty skimo fans will be there. And hopefully the prizes can lure in some speedos from the States too.
More info: Dogtooth Dash and Canadian Champs 2012
Video from last year’s Dogtooth Dash:

MEC Vert180 on Dec 3: Take skimo racing as serious or as laid-back as you want

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From young, to adult, to very fast...everyone has fun at Vert180.
Vert180 is one of a kind North American night event. Easy course suits novices as an introduction to this unique sport while elite skimo racers test their early season speed and endurance.
Race solo or bring your own team and try to complete as many laps as possible during exactly 180 minutes (3h) of racing. This format creates a friendly atmosphere and an excellent environment to meet and interact with likeminded people, and to learn from each other.
Family, friends and company teams are highly encouraged.

Quick facts

Name: MEC Vert180 Ski Mountaineering Race
Date: December 3, 2011 (Saturday)
Location: Canada Olympic Park (or COP) in Calgary, AB
Format: max. number of laps in 180min raced as individual or as team relay
Course: a loop with about 100m vertical ascent ending with a short boot-pack, then 100m descent
Difficulty and Skills required:

  • great for first timers and youth but national caliber athletes compete here as well
  • great for practicing all essential skimo racing skills (all transitions, skinning, boot-pack, fast skiing)

Categories: solo, teams of 2 and 3-4 people, men, women, teen, youth
Event website: http://vert180.blogspot.com
Online registration: http://eventsonline.ca/events/mec_vert180/