Skiing with horsepower

Whitefish celebrates 50 years of skijoring

By RICHARD HANNERS / Whitefish Pilot

The Whitefish Winter Carnival will celebrate the 50th anniversary of skijoring here when horses and skiers compete at the Whitefish Airport on Jan. 31 and Feb. 1.

Last year, about 2,000 spectators and 150 competitors in 72 teams showed up at the course set up near the Second Street railroad crossing.

Organizer Scott Ping is credited with helping bring the event back in 2003 after a long hiatus. He said he was pleasantly surprised when about 1,500 people and 75 competitors showed up that year. Lack of snow forced the event's cancellation in 2005, but the Whitefish venue is the biggest among all the skijoring events.

"Competitors come from Sun Valley, Jackson Hole, Cody, Wyo., Leadville, Colo., and Red Lodge," Ping said. "About 25 competitors from Whitefish travel the circuit and have had great teams at the nationals held in Red Lodge."

Skijoring, where skiers are pulled behind horses — or mules — at racing speeds, and in Whitefish with gates, jumps and 90-degree turns, has a long colorful history.

"Way back when, Scandinavian farmers held onto their plow reins and raced cross-country from one small town to another," Ping said.

When it emerged in North Amer-ica, ranchers attached a long rope to the saddle horn on a horse and were pulled along straight-aways.

Skijoring debuted in Whitefish in 1959 as part of the first Winter Carnival. According to local legend, the Winter Carnival's founding father, Norm Kurtz, challenged local ski legends Martin Hale, Dale Evenson, Gordy Taylor, Dick Maddox and others to participate in the horse-drawn ski event.

Kurtz also recruited horsemen from the Mountain Trails Saddle Club, including David Morris, Lester Morris, Bob and Patty Morris, Elmer Smith, Herb Knuth, Doc Kauffman and others to provide the horsepower.

The first skijoring races were held on Central Avenue, a straight-away with a few traffic cones for gates. That venue came to an end after businessman Russ Street was nearly thrown through a window at The Toggery and a runaway horse galloped through a crowd of spectators.

The event was moved to the Saddle Club grounds on Wisconsin Avenue, where the Stumptown Ice Den now sits. Racing continued there until the 1970s, when insurance concerns put the kibosh on skijoring. Broom hockey, snowmobile jumping and bar-to-bar snowshoe racing on Central Avenue were likewise dropped from the Carnival.

Skijoring has rapidly grown in popularity and seriousness since Ping and others got it going again in 2003. The event is sponsored by the North American Skijoring Association with open and sport divisions. A novice category was created last year to encourage more participation.

"A ton of people want to do it," Ping said, recalling watching a grizzled old cowhand once talking strategy with a young skier wearing spiked purple hair.

Novices are encouraged to show up for practice runs at a smaller-scale course set up at Ping's ranch, on Monegan Road near Dillon Road, beginning New Year's Day. Skiers need to learn how to manage the rope length, among other things.

Ping said people are free to use his practice course even if he's not there so long as they sign a release. Skiers without a horse can often find someone to team up with on weekends. There's a chili feed every Sunday.

Registration takes place at the Great Northern Bar on Friday, Jan. 30, from 6-9 p.m. when skiers are matched up with cowboys. Racing will take place at the airport course from noon to 4 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday.

Calcutta-style betting will take place Saturday night at the Great Northern based on that day's racing. The pay out is based on Sunday's finishes, and part of the proceeds will go to Human Therapy On Horseback, a nonprofit organization here in the Flathead.

Ping is seeking sponsors as well as helpers for the event, including gatekeepers and timers, people to help set up the course, and parking lot attendants. Cost of admission is free with a Carnival button, but there's a charge for parking.

For more information, call Ping at 261-7464 or visit online at whitefishskijoring.com.