In the summer of 2022, the International Olympic Committee added a new sport for the 2026 Winter Games in Milano Cortina, Italy. This new sport was the skiing discipline of ski mountaineering, known widely as skimo.
In skimo, skiers ascend terrain both on and off their skis before rapidly descending. A typical race lasts one to two hours.
While the sport can trace its earliest roots back to the late-19th century, when German Wilhelm Paulcke traversed the Bernese Oberland entirely on skis, it has picked up traction in recent years. The first World Championships were held in 2002 in France, and they’re now held every two years.
The sport is most popular in Europe, but it is picking up steam in the Wasatch area, home to 17 resorts and a variety of organizations and shops that support skimo.
One of these organizations is Utah Ski Mountaineering, a non-profit dedicated to educating skiers about the sport.
With a race at Park City Mountain on Tuesday, and another scheduled for March 12, their executive director, a volunteer, John Allison discussed the sport and its future here.
“It’s basically the competitive side of backcountry skiing,” said Allison, who’s been with Utah Ski Mountaineering for six years. “It was born out of Europe, and Europe is obviously the heartland of the sport.”
Allison spoke of great skiers and communities that make the Wasatch area a fantastic spot for the sport’s expansion. He said organizations like his and the nearby resorts make the sport more accessible than most places around the world.
“We don’t have timing or results (at our races) because we want this to be a community-based organization,” said Allison. “I think the future of the organization is bright. We have a very passionate board of volunteer board members. … It’s just pure passion and a shoestring budget that pushes us forward.”
Allison said he was thankful for like Park City Mountain and Brighton, which he said have been instrumental for his organization and supportive of the sport’s growth. Resorts allowing them to come host events are crucial for their uphill access and safer in-bounds terrain, he said.
Park City Ski and Snowboard Club has a ski mountaineering division, and aims to grow interest in the sport with a development program and racing team.
The club’s racing team coach, Rob Aldrich, is also the vice president of Utah Ski Mountaineering.
“A lot of people still (had) the itch to ski and wanted to go ski powder,” said Aldrich of the sport’s growth in Park City during the COVID shutdowns in 2020. “That was kind of the first hit.”
Aldrich’s team, which he’s coached for the past three years, has young skiers with national team and Olympic aspirations.
One of these skiers is high schooler Griffin Briley, who believes he’s is on track to make the Olympic team.
“We have about four to six other athletes that have aspirations to make the USA Skimo National Team,” said Aldrich. “(Briley) is probably the front runner. … I don’t think it’s out of the question that there could be some others.”
Aldrich also credited the nearby resorts and outdoors community for the success of his team. He said having such accessible places to practice and race, where you don’t have to drive 30 minutes to get to, is helping grow the “great, really fun community.”
Utah Ski Mountaineering’s next race, which Aldrich’s team will join, is scheduled for Jan. 20 at the Crowbar backcountry area in Logan. While there isn’t an official start time listed for it yet, all of their races usually begin at night, and the skiers use headlamps.
The Crowbar race will be one of the final six races this season for the organization, which includes the U.S. National Championships from March 1-3 at the Powder Keg backcountry area in the Wasatch Mountains. For more information see utahskimo.org.
For more information about the Park City Ski and Snowboard Club team, then see parkcityss.org/page/show/5049865-ski-mountaineering.
Information about Skimo, as it relates to the Olympics can be found on their website: olympics.com/en/sports/ski-mountaineering.