6512 & Climbing: Sneffells Challenge BackCountry Race

24.6 miles, 5,050' vertical gain, 5,579' vertical descent, no lifts in sight. Miles of gorgeous scenery and backcountry skiing from Point A to Point B on the Dallas Trail System make this race one of my top picks.

Settling in for the night on the Ridgeway Elementary gym floor after a delicious dinner provided with your entry fee. Great breakfast to follow in the a.m.

5:30am bus ride to the start line.

37 racers and their gear "stuff the bus".

At 6am we reach our destination; the side of the highway.... The wind was raging and it was still pitch black out. Unfortunately I hadn't brought a headlamp. I was counting on Brian Smith having one as I figured we'd be skiing at the same pace. Nope, he'd left his at home as well. We ended up skiing over our fair share of dirt and rocks which may have been avoidable with some light. The sparks coming off our skis were giving us a little light to go by. Brian and I took turns breaking trail and drafting off each other for about 20 miles. We passed three of the San Juan Huts along the way. We would occasionally glimpse Pat O'Neil and Jesse Ricketts not too far behind. As we began the 4.5 mile descent down to the Uncompahgre River Valley, Brian crashed and I skied alone toward the finish. As I got close to the finish I could hear Brian gaining on me. He cut a switchback and was suddenly in front of me. War had been declared and I straight-lined the last three switchbacks. I crossed the line 2 seconds ahead of Brian and the race officials decided to call it a tie as we'd both "kind of" cut the course.