Trading the Downhill Skis for Nordic

Setting down tracks in Pagosa

The nordic/cross-country ski scene in New Mexico is not well established. Trails are sparse, the knowledge base is sparse, ski partners are few. For these reasons there's a frustrating dynamic in that decent and affordable used gear is simply not available for a newbie looking for an inexpensive entry to the trails. Alpine Sports or NM Bike N' Sport are great places to pickup a nice starter nordic setup for $400 and up, but there aren't many that will make this leap when you can flip that same coin for a seasons pass at the local mountain. A serious economic barrier to entry.

There is however one fine resource in town to bridge this cost/knowledge gap - Mr. Kelly Kellstedt. A one man outdoors shop with loads of used gear, personal tech services to swap out bindings or boot pairings, and the occasional buyer for un-used equipment laying around in storage. If you've ever browsed the nordic selection at the annual Santa Fe Ski Swap, Kelly's the guy selling 90% of what's available. He's an annual fixture there and he'll gladly talk you up and give you one of his cards because selling directly is better business than working the Swap. The man's also got a wealth of stories about river trips and general adventuring. I've prodded him in hopes of learning of unknown 'secret spots' in the backcountry. He offered several superlatives for the Colorado River. Not so secret, but hard to disagree with.

I think this season is going to have solid snow cover up here in the sierra norte, and I think I'll be out on my skinny boards quite a bit. I think other outdoorsy types want to be out there too if only they had the beta to make it work. I think this will help.

Related Posts:
 - Cross Country Skiing Santa Fe
 - Enchanted Forest Ski Trails
 - Ski Season Cometh - Santa Fe Ski Swap
 - Area Nordic Trails Listing

Santa Fe Snowshoe Classic - '12

A sweet time-lapse video from Jason Halladay of Saturday's Santa Fe Snowshoe Classic up at the Norski Trails. The year's first race.

  Santa Fe Snowshoe Classic Race Time Lapse from Jason Halladay on Vimeo.
I really like how the shadows move across scene along with the music. Makes me want to learn how to timelapse stuff. Obscured in the blur of movement - Santa Fe's Hadji Corona claimed the mens overall in 34min 17sec, Albuquerque's Amber Young stood atop the womens overall at 38:17. Complete results can be found here. 

The race is one component of this January's New Mexico Cup Series. The next race(s) is this weekend's 40th Annual Chama Chile Ski Classic - multiple ski, snowshoe, and combined racing spanning Saturday and Sunday. At minimum it's a helluva good excuse to make the drive to Chama for a beer and steak at the High Country Saloon. Wicked fun. 


View Norski Trail in a larger map

The New Mexico Cup Winter Race Series

Snowshoe racing above Santa Fe - Norski trail

The first race of the new year is scheduled for this Saturday, Jan 12 - the Santa Fe Snowshoe Classic - a 6km looped course up at Norski Trail. We usually have decent weather on race day and it can be nice catching up with friends and faces that you haven't seen since the Fall.

Together with Geoff and Ellen Goins up at Enchanted Forest (Red River), Clay Moseley and the SWNSKI crew up on the Mesa (Los Alamos), Kris Peterson and the Striders (Santa Fe), and Mary Ann DeBoer of the Chama Chile Ski Classic up in Chama, northern New Mexico's big winter events have been tethered together as the the New Mexico Cup Winter Race Series. Racers will receive points for top three age-group finishes or an overall win at these three winter events - the Santa Fe Snow Shoe Classic, the Chama Chile Ski Classic, and the Low O2 Cup Challenge. Accumulated points at the end of January will be tallied to determine the overall Cup Champions and Age Group Winners in three disciplines - nordic, snowshoe, and combined. The award ceremony is to-be-determined although it's probable that it could be at the Enchanted Forest following the final Cup event on January 27th. Point details and Cup scoring rules can be found here. 

Nordic and snow fairies in Chama

Ski track in Chama

 The idea behind the Cup Series was to build participation and word of mouth for the winter racing scene similar to a summer triathlon series. Geoff and Ellen pushed the idea forward to the race directors then Clay and SWNSKI cobbled the prizes together. The Sandia Snowshoe Race was to be included in the series but for a schedule overlap, so it will likely be included for next season. All of these Cup Series races provide a nice lead up to the Mt. Taylor Winter Quadrathlon in early February, the winter's oldest and most prestigious event. If anything, the Series provides a compelling reason to travel to Chama or Enchanted Forest (or to Santa Fe!) for a weekend of snow and hi-fiving. It's worth it, these weekends are fun.

For the full calendar of New Mexico trail racing and outdoor events - see the tab above.
  - Santa Fe Snowshoe Classic - Race Report
  - Chama Chile Ski Classic - Race Report
  - Enchanted Forest, NM