The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
“At the end of the day, it is ski mountaineering”
It’s no secret that while some early season storms have blessed the north end of the Gunnison Valley with snow, the snow pack is still pretty thin out there.
Despite current conditions, Irwin and Irwin Rando Race organizers are moving forward with plans to host the first race of the Colorado Ski Mountaineering Cup (COSMIC) series on Saturday, December 10.
As of press time, 42 racers are registered for the Irwin Rando Race, including couples from Texas and Illinois, and there are 23 spots left. Of the 35 spots available for snowcat transportation to the venue, seven are left.
Race co-director Bryan Wickenhauser isn’t sweating the current conditions, acknowledging that while it is thin, there’s still snow out there.
“If there’s only 14 inches, it’s 14 inches—just be careful,” says Wickenhauser.
Irwin risk manager/snow safety director Billy Rankin remains optimistic that the race will happen as well.
Rankin feels that a foot of new snow prior to the race would help out tremendously and have everything in fine shape. Two feet would be even better. No snow would be tough but not impossible.
“Things are thin,” says Rankin. “There’s still a possibility we can pull off the race even if we don’t get more snow. We’ve got the roads in. The uphill is no problem and could be really fun. The downhill is the challenging part.”
You can register for the race at zapevent.com. The cost is $60 per racer, and an additional $40 if you need a snowcat ride to and from the event since there is no vehicle access.
Racers must have a working beacon, probe, shovel, helmet, backpack and of course skis, skins, boots and poles.
“At this point, if we had no more snow, we’d have a hefty pre-race briefing about snow conditions,” says Rankin.
“At the end of the day, it is ski mountaineering,” adds Wickenhauser. “It’ll probably work out just fine.”
Fact is, the Irwin area is notorious for big storms and all it would take is one good one to turn conditions around just in the nick of time.
