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New Skimo Race & US Team Qualifier on Dec 16-17th: Northwest Passage in McCall, Idaho

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NW Passage posterWith the upcoming 2017 World Ski Mountaineering Championships to be held in Transcavallo region of Italy, the US Ski Mountaineering Association has designated two team selection races for athletes to test themselves and qualify for the big event. The first one is to be held at a new race called the Northwest Passage. The venue is Brundage Mountain near McCall, Idaho.
While this is the first year of the event, the organizers at Brundage are clearly excited to be putting on a high level race. The weekend of December 16th and 17th will feature a vertical race (Friday evening) and a multi-division individual race on Saturday. Both of which are qualifiers for the US National Team.

Brundage Course - Front Side
Brundage Course – Front Side
The Vertical event starts at the base lodge and climbs the blue-square pistes called 45-Parallel and Engen, to the top of the Bluebird Express for a total vertical gain of 520 meters.
The Individual event does include a recreational category (11.75km with 1180m+) but all those wishing to qualify for the national team will enter the elite category with 20.75km distance and 1950m+ over five climbs and descents! This is certainly on the lengthy end compared to the event for which athletes are competing to attend but will serve as an excellent challenge for potential team members!
Examining the route on the course map and Google Earth, we are struck by the amount of side-country terrain being utilized. While the race starts and finishes with on-piste terrain, four of the five descents appear to be off-piste – good news for those athletes who want to showcase their skiing prowess rather than pure speed skiing on groomers! Brundage gets ~760-890cm of snowfall per year though with the early season timing, expect some lean conditions!
Brundage Course - Backside
Brundage Course – Backside
Another interesting note is the max elevation (topping out the last several climbs on Sargent’s Mountain) for the race is only 2380 meters! This is a dramatic difference from the typical Colorado races that routinely climb above 3000m and will hopefully encourage competition from sea-level athletes!
At the moment, much of the Western US is hurting for snow. Colorado and Utah both seem to be pretty bare except at the highest elevations and where it is possible to blow snow.
Standard USSMA race equipment will be required, as well as a headlamp for vertical racers. Note that if you wish to receive USSMA points, you must compete in both events.
Race accommodation can found at inidaho.com which will have special event rates! Boise is the closest large airport and car rental area.
In addition to the Northwest Passage Race, the McCall Winter Sports Club and the Winter Wildlands Alliance will be hosting the Backcountry Film Festival on Saturday evening. All racers receive one ticket for admission with their registration and the awards ceremony for the weekend will be held at the festival intermission.

IMG_4404Schedule of Events:

Friday: 4:00pm – Vertical Race
Friday: 5:30pm – Mandatory Individual Race information meeting (Brundage Base Lodge)
Saturday: 7:30am – Individual Race start
Saturday: Evening – Backcountry Film Festival (details TBA)
EVENT INFO HERE
REGISTER HERE
RACE TOPO HERE
In case you are curious about the race name or poster, check out the 1940 film Northwest Passage, shot in the mountains of McCall, telling the story of Roger’s Rangers in the mid-18th century, French and Indian War.

Lindsay Plant (USA): Skimo Racer Profile Interview

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Lindsay racing through Verbier during the 2015 World Championships Vertical event.
Lindsay racing through Verbier during the 2015 World Championships Vertical event.
We caught up with Lindsay Plant, the leader of the Team USA at the 2015 Skimo World Championships and asked her a few questions about her training and racing season.
Lindsay had a great World Champs, finishing 14th in the vertical event, 20th in the individual event, and 6th overall in the teams event paired with Jessie Young.
Where are you based out of?
I am based out of Carbondale CO, so I train mostly at Sunlight and Aspen Highlands.
What do you do in real life? How does that impact your ability to train and race?
I work for a family practice doctor at Glenwood Medical Associates, full time. I am also a mom to my 18 month old daughter, so that absolutely impacts my training as my time is very limited and has to be pretty structured.
How long have you been skimo racing? 
This is my 3rd season of skimo racing, I had to take a year off when I was pregnant but kept on skinning while I was pregnant.
I grew up skiing, but I came into skimo racing through my passion for endurance training, I have been a runner most of my life and loved skiing, so the thought of putting the two together was extremely appealing to me which directed me into finding skimo racing.
In the summer I do a lot of trail running and have been getting more and more into mountain biking, with a little road biking on the side.
photo 4Can you describe your training routine?
Due to my job and wanting to be with my daughter as much as possible, most of my workouts are high quality and short, lots of intervals, race pace tempos and a lot of zone 2 base work. Every once in a while I will get out for a big day at a higher elevation and lots of vert.
You just skied at World Championships, how long has this been a goal?
I have had a goal of racing at the World Championships for 3 years now. I wanted to try to go the year I got pregnant but that obviously put an end to that, so I have had that goal in mind since then.
I did have to adapt my life to make the team and travel to Europe by intensifying my training a bit more and pushing some other “life things” aside for a bit while I did this.
Racing above the clouds.
Racing above the clouds.
How was your World Championships experience?
The experience at the World Championships was incredible and a once in a life time experience. I had such an amazing time, racing with the Europeans and experiencing their mountains and courses. It was incredible.
I am very psyched with my racing, I felt strong and felt properly trained for the races, however, I was a little bummed I got a really bad chest cold and wonder how well I would have done if I wouldn’t have been sick, but in any case, I gave each race everything I had and left nothing on the course, so I couldn’t be happier and more satisfied with that.
Do any of the races stick out in particular and why?
I have to say the vertical race sticks out, it was such a cool experience racing through town and in the clouds, breaking through into the sunshine and having so many people cheering you on throughout the entire course, it was something I’ll never forget.
Each course was really enjoyable though they were all fun and challenging. Comparing these races to the ones in North America, the thing that sticks out the most was the crowds cheering everyone on which intensified my excitement and motivation to push harder. And of course the double skin track was pretty awesome too.
What are your other racing goals for 2015?
I have 3 more races this season which I hope to do well in, I’m racing with Stevie Kremer at the Power of 4 in Aspen, I have high expectations for that race! Then I’ll be racing at the US Nationals in Crested Butte, and the Grand Traverse at the end of March. Hoping to place well in each of those.
As to right now, I would love to try to make the 2017 US team again and race in Italy, so we shall see.
What kind of equipment do you race on and how long are your poles?
I am currently racing on La Sportiva gear, I have the Stratos Cube boots, the RSR bindings and skis and poles. My poles are 130cm. I love my gear, especially my boots!
The top American men and women in the Teams race. (L-R) John Gaston, Max Taam, Jessie Young, Lindsay Plant.
The top American men and women in the Teams race. (L-R) John Gaston, Max Taam, Jessie Young, Lindsay Plant.