From Dave’s Backcountry Ski Blog (click here to read more):
The 2008 COSMIC race dates have been published on the official website and this year they are going Canadian. 7 races will make up the Cup this year, with one of them being at Whitewater in Canada. The COSMIC series started up last year and gave the ski mountaineering scene here in Colorado a taste of competition and European flare.
Schedule
- January 19th – Snowmass Winter Wild
- January 20th – Sunlight Mountain COSMIC Race
- February 9th – Crested Butte • Arc’Teryx Race – Ski Mountaineering Race
- February 23rd – Whitewater Arc’Teryx – Roam Rally – Whitewater Canada
- March 8th – Loveland COSMIC Race
- April 19th – Silverton Mountain Hardcore Challenge
- April 26th – Arapahoe Basin Marmot Grind
I’ve never even seen nor thought about a mountaineering race but they sound like a true feat. “Starts are LeMans style: athletes run 50 ft. to clip into their skis, then skin uphill to the first gate, remove their skins, ski down to the second gate and back up to the third. This continues for four to five ascents and descents (including a boot pack for the race division on some courses) … all racers must carry the following mandatory pieces of equipment:
- Skis or Splitboard
- Skins
- Avalanche Beacon
- Shovel (Snow Claw ok)
- Probe
- Helmet