Well, it looks like Mom can add another obscure sport to her already impressive repertoire of athletic pursuits. This one is called Randonnee Racing.
For the uninitiated, the sport essentially involves racers sprinting uphill on lightweight boots and skis with skins attached so they have traction going up. At a designated point on the course, racers peel the skins off their skis and cruise downhill. With lightweight, two buckle boots and short, flimsy skis, this can be an exhilarating experience and crashes typically ensue. At the bottom, racers put their skins back on and race uphill again. Shovels, backpacks, helmets and avalanche transceivers are mandatory gear.
As you might have guessed from the name, Randonnee racing is popular in Europe, but its just gaining a foothold here in the US.
Last weekend, there were back to back rando-races here in the Roaring Fork Valley for the COSMIC series. On Saturday, Sari entered her first-ever rando-race at Snowmass and placed second to her Nike teammate, Monique Merrill.
On Sunday, Sari raced at Sunlight Mountain, which is just one drainage over from our house. Dad and I went to go watch.
Here’s Mom holding on for dear life as she speeds down her third lap of the course.
And here’s Mom at the finish line. She was barely breathing hard.
Mom won the race by a huge 20 minute margin over the next woman. The race organizers gave her a check for winning, and then another prize for being the “Best Rookie.” Dad and I couldn’t be prouder of her!
Oh, and check out how much snow we have at the house!
