At this point I hope you’re heard of the “Last Skier Standing” race that takes place in New England every year. Taking place at Black Mountain Ski Resort in Maine last year, the race takes inspiration from the Backyard Ultra format, asking competitors to ski up and down the 1.5 mile Allagash Trail w with 1,200 feet of vertical gain in an hour. Then every hour you make that trip again, continuing until you’re no longer able to complete the route in under 60 minutes. The person to last the longest is crowned the winner.
“Last Skier Standing” will continue as normal this year, but White Mountain Ski Co. is introducing a new race for a new type of people that love to suffer. The “Last Nordic Skier Standing” will take place between Jan 31st and Feb 2nd at the Jackson XC Nordic Center parking lot in Jackson, New Hampshire.
100 participants will be able to enter for an entry fee of $150. The official course is still being determined, but it’s likely to be around 5.75 miles. The plan is to create a course that takes the average nordic skier around 50 minutes, so participants have time for self-care between each lap. The race will run in the same manner as the “Last Skier Standing”, asking nordic skiers to complete the loop within an hour every hour until only one remains.
Additionally a Nordic Beer Mile presented by Best Day Brewing and Lawson’s Finest will take place on February 1st.
The question now is how long will the last nordic skier standing go? Last year Justin Lagassey won the “Last Skier Standing” competition after 76 uphill/downhill laps and 76 total hours, a truly unbelievable length. Will the nordic skiers be able to go longer? I certainly can’t wait to see.
