Snowmass XC Course

The Snowmass course this year changed a bit and now has 3500 feet of elevation gain in it which is more than in years past. And I think the race starts at around 8000 + feet so you are climbing high. Nothing like good ole thin air but that is what we love being from Utah! Yeah! The race starts at a new base area that is further down the mountain from the Snowmass Village area. About a 6 minute coast from your condo in fact.

The course is (what we are all describing as) a lollipop shape where you start at the end of the lollipop stick, head up into the thin air, go around the lollipop twice and then head back down the to the finish. The upper part of the lollipop is all the old race course that we all know and love so well. The rest was all new and had varying degrees of sweet singletrack, paved roads, to "lets put a trail here smack dab in the middle of a grass field", to dirt roads, bridges, etc. Everything was very ridable and super fun. But pre-riding the course was like an epic event that took a LONG time.

After getting my training in this is what I came back to in the condo. Funny too cuz when I walked up the stairs to find these guys sleeping, there happened to be a commercial on TV with baby music playing. Perfect given the situation!