The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
Crush it at Wolf Creek
It’s that time of year—ski mountaineer (skimo) racing season—and it appears the Gunnison Valley contingent will again be putting the smack down on the racing world.
The skimo racing circuit, known as the COSMIC series, opened with a race at Wolf Creek ski area on Saturday, November 23 and racers were met with some fresh snow and a different course that tested the top end of all the skimo racers.
“The last two years have been powder days but this year they shortened the course and kept it to the groomers,” says racer Bryan Wickenhauser. “The descents were fun, the climbing fairly benign. It was a drag race.”
Both Stevie Kremer and Marshall Thomson stepped up on top of the podium in the first race of the season. Kremer had a relatively easy run of it, finishing a full 20 minutes ahead of her closest competitor.
Thomson, on the other hand, was embroiled in a three-way battle for the top spot for most of the race, with Scott Simmons and Thomson’s Team Crested Butte teammate Brian Smith.
Thomson eventually pulled out the win, beating Simmons by 20 seconds. Smith joined Thomson on the podium in third place. Four of the top 10 men’s spots and four of the top eight women’s finishers hail from the Gunnison Valley.
The COSMIC series comes to Crested Butte, Irwin specifically, on Saturday, December 7 with the Irwin/La Sportiva Ski Mountaineering race. Thanks to the latest spate of storms, the race is on as planned.
“Things are looking good,” says Wickenhauser, who doubles as the race organizer. “We’re going forward with the A course.”
The A course for the race division is a series of three different loops and will climb a total of 5,000 feet spread over 10 miles. The recreation division will follow two of the three loops for a total of 3,500 feet of relief over 6.5 miles. Both courses will include the spectacular boot pack, or booter, section up a chute in the cliffs of East Barkmarker.
As of Tuesday, 49 racers were registered for the Irwin race, with the cap set at 65 total. In addition, transportation by snowcat to the race venue is available but there are only three spots left. Otherwise, you got to get there on your own. The race starts at 10 a.m.
There will be a mandatory racers’ meeting on Friday, December 6 at 8 p.m. at 330 Belleview in the town of Crested Butte. The awards party will be back in Crested Butte at the Brick Oven from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. the day of the race. For more information or to register for the race check online at elkmountainevents.com.
