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Irwin Skimo Race

Dec 1-7 News Shorts: US Skimo Team qualifiers, Vert180 in Canada, Bernier's big November, Jornet readying for Aconcagua

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With a new season under way, we are going to continue the weekly roundups that you got used to last winter but we are going away from the “Skimo Racing Roundup” name and will be calling it “News Shorts” as there are often other ski mountaineering related items worth including besides just skimo racing. We believe you will enjoy this format even more!

US Skimo Team qualifiers: Gaston continues winning

One of several huge snowcats used to shuttle racers to and from the Irwin Lodge race venue.
One of several huge snowcats used to shuttle racers to and from the Irwin Lodge race venue.
Skimo World Championships take place every second year and this means the US skimo athletes continue to train harder than ever before. To qualify, and to have a choice at which events each athlete wants to race at the 2015 Skimo Worlds in Verbier (Feb 6-12), he or she first needs to prove the speed. The first two qualifying races took place last weekend (Dec 6-7) in Crested Butte, Colorado. Saturday’s individual race, at Irwin Guides, is known for great backcountry terrain and skiing. The Irwin race is a unique experience for skimo racers with the entire event taking place in the backcountry. Racers are required to take a 45-minute snowmobile or snowcat ride to the venue deep in the Elk Mountains.
Utah vs. Colorado after the vertical event.
Utah vs. Colorado after the vertical event.
Scott Simons (2nd place), a father of two and always improving, took off strong from the start and charged around the first lap at a blistering pace along with Marshall Thompson (3rd place). The two reached the first descent together with John Gaston close behind. Gaston, showing his perennial strength at descending, closed the gap and by the third lap, had a manageable lead on the two to win the race. Max Taam raced hard from 10th position to 4th by the finish and Jason Dorais battled illness to finish a strong 5th.
In the women’s race, Lindsay Plant (2014 NA Teams Race Champion with Janelle Smiley) stayed in the lead throughout the race with seemingly little competition. Sari Anderson and Jessie Young (new to the skimo circuit but quickly improving) equalled each other on the first climb. Anderson dropped out of the race and Young chased hard forcing Plant to increase her pace to maintain her lead. Nikki LaRochelle finished in third.
For more Irwin photos by Crested Butte Photography see a link further below.
For more Irwin photos by Crested Butte Photography see a link further below.
Lindsay Plant shortly after crossing the line in first at the Crested Butte vertical race.
Lindsay Plant shortly after crossing the line in first at the Crested Butte vertical race.
Sunday was a vertical race (also a team qualifier) hosted at the CB resort. The results changed a bit but not dramatically. Gaston dominated the men’s field again with Marshall Thompson taking a close 2nd. Local star, Brian Smith charged from behind, sitting at the back of the pack early in the climb and moving up to 3rd by the finish. The women’s race went again decisively to Lindsay Plant who was followed by Nikki LaRochelle and McKenna Douglas.
SkinTrack’s Eric Carter, who is trying to qualify for the US Worlds Team, placed 9th on Saturday and 5th on Sunday. Eric was happy with the results despite seeing room for improvement. His altitude acclimatization program seemed to work (he lives at 14 m in Squamish, Canada) and all the hard dry land training is paying off.
» Weekend results from both races – https://www.facebook.com/USSkimo/posts/795269280519181
» Great weekend race photos can be found here.
» Qualifying criteria and process can be found on USSMA website here.

Vert180 opens season in Canada

In Canada, the Vert180 in Calgary opened the skimo racing season with its unusual format once again. The winner of the men’s category, trail runner and skimo racer Travis Brown, climbed a little less than 3000 m in 180 minutes of racing. Second and third went to Peter Knight and Ryan Burlingame respectively. The women’s category win went to Kylee Toth, who is coming back strongly after having two kids in the last several years! Michelle Roberts and Marg Fedyna finished second and third.
» Vert180 results are here.

Melanie Bernier’s big November

Melanie Bernier is the only Canadian, and only the second North American, to place on a skimo World Cup podium and as part of her preparations for the World Championship season she went on to do a massive month of training. She  accumulated over 70,000 vertical meters during November in the mountains around Revelstoke and in Rogers Pass. Once again, Melanie will travel to Europe for an extensive period of time this winter and we can’t wait to see what exciting performances she will be up to this season.

Kilian Jornet ready for Aconcagua speed attempt

If you haven’t caught the news yet then next couple of weeks will  bring another speed record attempt by Kilian Jornet. Like Melanie, he also did lot’s of training in November and, only few days ago, left France for South America. None of such records are guaranteed but if the weather on Aconcagua is at least somewhat cooperative, then Jornet should be able to set the bar very high for anyone that will come after him.

Wolf Creek skimo race on Nov 22

The first race on the USSMA calendar went down two weeks ago at the Wolf Creek ski area in Colorado. Men’s category top 3 were: Scott Simmons, Jon Brown, Pete Swenson. In women’s race category, the win went to Lindsay Plant, followed by Sarah Stubbe and Christena Ward.
» Full results are here.

Teaser video for 2015 Ski Mountaineering World Championships in Verbier

US National Team Qualifying Events are Coming!

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irwinposterNovember 22nd saw the first race of the North American Skimo Racing calendar this year and things are shaping up to make for a highly competitive season!
In the U.S., National Team Qualifying events begin in Colorado on December 6th. An official ISMF race, the Irwin Guides/Griggs Orthopedics Skimo Race, presented by Millet, is unique to the North American circuit. The race is held in the Elk Mountain backcountry and accessible only by snow cat or snowmobile.
The event features both an elite ‘Race’ division and a ‘Recreational’ class. The ‘Race’ course features ~5000 feet of elevation gain over three laps while the ‘Rec’ course covers ~3500 feet. If you check out the map below, you will see that the high altitude will be a factor with the start line above 10,000 feet and reaching nearly 12,500 feet!
Race Director, Bryan Wickenhauser, anticipates that the full course will be run as planned with more than 30 inches on the ground and another major storm in the forecast. As with any ISMF events, mandatory kit is required, including avalanche gear and a backpack that can be used to carry skis. Additionally, due to the nature of the venue (backcountry) it is highly recommended that competitors bring extra warm clothes for pre and post race.
The 2013 race featured a battle between five of the top men with John Gaston powering away from the group on the descents and finishing in a time of 1:58:39 ahead of Brian Smith and Tom Goth. Stevie Kremer took the women’s race with a decided lead over Sari Anderson and Mckenna Douglas. Read Jeremy Reitmann’s write-up of the race for SkinTrack.com HERE.
irwin-skimo-race-map
The 2014 edition of the race is certain to be exciting with racers competing for a spot on the US World Championship Team. Wickenhauser had the following predictions for the race:

It’s tough to tell who’s fitness and technique will be in good early season form but with the early season snow here in CO and the race venue being at 10,000’+, John Gaston, Marshall Thompson & Brian Smith have to be the favorites of the CO boys. Jason Dorias & Tom Goth are the favorites coming out of UT as they have been nailing a ton of vertical this Summer/Fall in the Wasatch. Don’t be surprised if Jon Brown or Scott Simmons sneak on the podium as well. On the women’s side, the favorite is probably Stevie Kremer, coming off of her Sky Running World Champion title and residing locally here in CB. Beyond Stevie, it’s a race for second with Lyndsey Plant, Sari, and Meredith June Edwards battling for podium spots.

Wickenhauser also stressed the post-race party on Saturday evening:

Expect a fun awards party in the middle of the weekend of racing with the CB Avy Awareness party following our Irwin Race awards party at the same location. Racers and local BC skiers alike will be tipping back plenty of UpSlope beer together!

In addition to the Individual Race on Saturday, a Vertical Race will be held on Sunday as a qualifier for the World Championship Vertical event. While the course is still being finalized, it will most likely take place at Crested Butte Mountain Resort and feature approximately 1,500 vertical feet of ascent and take between 23 and 30 minutes.
Register for The Irwin/GO Skimo Race Here: REGISTER
Follow updates and last minute details on the race Facebook page HERE

Race report: 2013 Irwin/La Sportiva Skimo Race

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The following race report was sent in by Jeremy Rietmann – steadily improving Colorado skimo racer – who has shared his racing adventures with Skintrack readers before. Thank you!

Enter Jeremy

So far for the 2013 season, the Colorado Ski Mountaineering Cup (COSMIC) races have been all about the one thing all of us love – Powder! The December 7th Irwin/La Sportiva Skimo Race provided a nice follow-up to the fantastic early season conditions enjoyed by racers two weeks ago at Wolf Creek.

Pre-race meeting room was packed with some big guns. (Photo credit Jeremy Rietmann).
Pre-race meeting room was packed with some big guns. (Photo credit Jeremy Rietmann).
Irwin provides a truly unique race experience on the COSMIC circuit with its backcountry setting, fairly complicated access logistics (made smooth by the great Irwin crew), late start time – and this year – great snow conditions. With nearly a foot of new snow, Irwin no doubt provided the highest concentration of smiles and spandex in Colorado on Saturday.

The race

Saturday’s race was a prime example of the huge growth in both interest and talent in the US skimo world. 70 racers toed the line between all race divisions this year – a nearly 30% increase in participation from the 54 racers that joined in the fun the last time this race was held in 2011.
Irwin attracted top talent on both the women’s and men’s sides with Stevie Kremer, Sari Anderson and McKenna Douglas taking the 1-2-3 podium spots for the women, and Stevie Kremer besting her 2011 winning finishing time by 5 minutes and 19 seconds with a finishing time of 2:20:48.
On the men’s side, heavy (light?) hitters like John Gaston, Tom Goth, Max Taam, Brian Smith and Marshall Thompson battled it out up-front with John Gaston taking the win in 1:58:39. This bested Marshall Thompson’s winning time in 2011 by nearly 7 minutes. Brian Smith and Tom Goth took the 2nd and 3rd podium spots for the men, fighting it out until the end and finishing with only 5 seconds between them.
John Gaston once again rocketed away on the downhills and he and Max Taam just couldn’t stop racing as they both found their way back to Aspen later that day to participate in the Summit for Life/Chris Klug Foundation uphill benefit race – which John also won.
Top talent aside, Team Crested Butte’s recent speaking tour in the Front Range (Boulder area) appeared to pay promotional dividends with a number of first timers taking on a new adventure and toeing the line to enjoy a new experience. For any of you out there for which Irwin was your first skimo race – Welcome!
In the rec race, Matt Clark of Gunnison took home the win with Amelia Poppe of Crested Butte finishing in the top spot for the women.
Full results
» Here’s a PDF with the 2013 Irwin Skimo Race results.

Left - Ram and Danny enjoying the cat ride. Right - racers hurrying to get ready for the start. (Photos by Jeremy Rietmann.)
Left – Ram and Danny enjoying the cat ride. Right – racers hurrying to get ready for the start. (Photos by Jeremy Rietmann.)

A number of highlights and some wisdom

  • Being towed to the race for nearly an hour behind a snowmobile in frigid temps may not sound like that bad of an idea (…yes it does) until you’re standing at the starting line with shot hip flexors, noodles for arms and lungs full of 4-stroke engine exhaust. My advice, take the cat-ride, it’ll be the cheapest cat-skiing you’ll do all year.
  • Irwin is one of the best opportunities on the COSMIC circuit to socialize and get to know your fellow racers. A couple of hours chatting in a 4mph snowcat is a quick way to get to know people better and the group-think associated with needing to pee is hilarious. If Crested Butte local Allen Hadley is in your snowcat – the stories will be wild and plentiful – and the extra entertainment is free of charge. Add it all up and the additional transport fee to the race start is worth it.
  • Don’t go out too hard – 5000 feet of climbing is just enough to make the last 4-500 feet fairly painful if you didn’t dial in the output perfectly on take off. If your working heart rate is on a continual downward slide throughout the race, try starting a little slower next time. “End of the Race You” will thank “Beginning of the Race You” for the adjustment.
  • Positive mental dialogue is always a good thing to cultivate during a hard race. But, if you don’t have it during the race, just keep on plugging. You’ll likely do just fine and probably better than you expect.
  • As goofy as skin suits are, they are incredibly functional and make racing much more logistically enjoyable. Heat regulation and skin, food and beacon storage are all vastly improved when wearing a suit. Just pretend you’re a young Elvis or Catwoman and get on with it.

A special thanks to race director Bryan Wickenhauser and the good folks at Irwin for making this race possible. Next up on the COSMIC circuit: Frisco Randocross on December 31st – New Year’s Eve! www.cosmicski.com
Jeremy Rietmann – @JeremyRietmann