Many skiers claim to have skied all twelve months in a year but skiing 2,900+ days in a row, that’s madness.
Or maybe it’s just mad genius. Rainer Hertrich, who lives in Summit County, Colorado completed that feat back in 2012 and now he’s about to release a book that he authored with the help of writer, Devon O’Neil. The book, which is titled “The Longest Run: How a Colorado Ski Bum Skied Every Day for More Than 8 Years,” will release today at the Double Diamond Restaurant at Copper Mountain Resort reports the Summit Daily.
Buy the Book Here: The Longest Run: How a Colorado ski bum skied every day for more than eight years
Hertrich calls Copper Mountain home but has skied mountains across the world. During his epic run, Summit County’s beloved son spent most of his winter days on the slopes of Summit County before heading to Mt. Hood’s Timberline in the summer. Once the summer season started winding down, Hertrich would carefully plan a trip down to South America without missing a day of skiing. He was known to frequent La Hoya in Argentina, which he claims has the best snow.
Initially, Hertrich was inspired by a plaque in Teton Village’s Mangy Moose that displays the names of skiers who have skied “The Big One.” Not a modest mark, “The Big One” is a kind of metaphysical trophy for those who have skied over 6,000,000 vertical in a single season at JHMR. There are no prizes, no trophies, just a plaque with a name and the belief that skiing 6 million vert translates to a season well spent.
Hertrich reached that mark quickly after starting his quest in 2003. What would follow is a streak that may never be broken. He went on to ski 2,993 consecutive days only to be stopped just short of the 3,000 mark by a heart condition. A heart arrhythmia placed him in the ICU, and Hertrich was forced to call it a day and let the record stand.
Although it was disheartening to fall short of his goal of 3k days, he told the Summit Daily, “I was pretty ready to not be committed to it every day.”
Instead, he has since spent his summers catching up on things like sailing and other warm weather activities he hadn’t had the chance to enjoy for 9 years.
For The Launch Party Details, Contact Double Diamond Restaurant Here: DOUBLE DIAMOND RESTAURANT
Basically, he’s a total LEDGE and if you’re at Copper Mountain today, you should stop by the Double Diamond Restaurant to hear some ski stories for the ages.
Find the Entire Summit Daily Article Here: Summit County local who holds record for consecutive days skiing releases book