I’m getting so excited for next weekend! Leadville plays host to ski joring, a throwback to days in Scandinavia when people would get pulled to town on their skis by reindeer. Today’s courses are a little bit more exciting, though, and Leadville’s course is especially exciting since it is a non-sanctioned race and being non-sanctioned, they can do pretty much whatever they want. Like hold the event on Leadville’s main drag, Harrison Ave. The buildings are tall and frame the street nicely, the spectators stand behind fencing mere feet from the athletes, and if you happen to slide into a lightpost, well….

So, one skier and one horse and rider get paired together. The rider rides their horse blazingly fast down the middle of the street (that is covered in a thick layer of imported snow). The skier (whose arm is wrapped in a rope trailing from the galloping horse) navigates tight turns, magnificent jumps (all the while eating snow that is flung into their face from the horse’s back hooves) and has to stay focused enough to collect six or seven hanging rings along the way. Of course the whole thing is timed, and to add to the pressure, bystanders are allowed to bet on your team.

So, if this doesn’t sound like fun, I’m not sure what would. If you really want to get a feeling for what this is like, this link will take you to a 12 minute video documentary on the event.

My favorite part about ski joring is the family-like qualities that all the competitors possess towards one another. They take care of each other like brethren. The riders really love and care for their animals well. The skiers love their side of the bargain, tearing down main street and going huge off the jumps. Ski Joring is a marvelous harmony of two seemingly disconnected events.