The Nordic News

The Alley Loop is just around the corner on February 5! Whether you’re gearing up to race your first marathon, forming a team to compete in the Club Clash, or just getting ready to shuffle around in a giant carboard box, it’s time to get serious about your planning.

Make sure you register for the Alley Loop before prices go up Feb. 1, and/or sign up to volunteer with us to make this event a success!

Besides the Alley Loop, we continue to have a number of fun and festive winter activities going on, seven days a week. Read on for all that’s happening in the CB Nordic world!

A quick reminder about our trails and how to have good relationships with our neighbors (both 2-legged and 4-legged). By this point, most of you have probably heard that we have had a moose visiting us out on Mike’s Mile! In addition to this new neighbor, our trails are almost entirely on private property. In order to keep access to all this beauty, we need to respect our easements and stay on the trails. Skiing off-trail often means you’re skiing in someone’s backyard. Please help protect access to these amazing experiences by staying on trail and following all posted signage (including keeping dogs off Mike’s Mile while the moose is present). If you enjoy our trail system, we need your help to protect it.

We continue to keep the Nordic Center closed to the public in an effort to keep our services available to all. Winter illness and the latest wave of COVID are making their way through our staff. If any more of our team gets sick at one time, we will need to start reducing hours or closing all together. Keeping the doors closed and providing outdoor pick-up allows us to offer services with our healthy staff members. We are so sorry for any hassle this causes you! We can’t wait until the numbers go down so we can open our doors again. Thank you for your patience and understanding as we try to serve the community despite these obstacles.

Tutus, onesies, cardboard, animal ears . . . there are the standard costume pieces. But part of what amazes us every year is the utter creativity you come up with putting together costumes we’ve never even thought of! Whether you’re gearing up to make a splash or to win the Alley Loop Club Clash, be sure you register for the 2022 Alley Loop soon! Prices go up February 1, and race day – February 5 – is coming fast.

CB Nordic simply doesn’t work without the thousands of volunteer hours you all put in each year. Thank you for stepping up, event after event, program after program, to keep our skis gliding! This year’s Alley Loop is no exception. We need your help with aid stations, course marshaling, clean up, and more. We have positions you can do and race, and positions you can do instead of racing. Be part of CB’s best party of the year! Peruse roles and sign up here. 

The Backcountry Bistro will take place two more Sundays in January before we hit pause for Alley Loop weekend. Swing by the Magic Meadows Yurt between 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. to buy a la carte brunch items, including soup, pastries, and hot beverages. A trail pass and nordic skis/snowshoes are required to get to the yurt. Please remember, no dogs at the yurt. Please bring a mask. See you at the Bistro!

Tired of watching folks twice your age cruise by you on the nordic trails? Wishing you could skate to the top of those hills? Never-ever skied before but wanting to get in on the action? Masters is perfect for YOU! You don’t have to be a master of skiing to be a Master. Our Masters Community is a welcoming learning environment for adults that helps you take your skiing to the next level, whatever that level is. Join us in February for 3 weeks of learning to ski better. Clinics meet once or twice weekly, with open spots in all levels for Classic & Skate, including the second session of the Performance Training Group, which starts February 3.

If you’ve been dying to try nordic, but aren’t sure you’ll like it, Learn to Ski Free is a terrific way to start. Our expert instructors will get you going with the fundamentals of nordic skiing. Your rental is included! We offer this program to encourage more locals to get on nordic skis and try something new. Please spread the word to folks in our community who you think would benefit from it.

Racing doesn’t have to be about speed suits and personal records. It can also just be about fun! About trying something new. About pushing your fitness. About feeling all the feelings that remind you you’re alive (including butterflies in your stomach). Join us for one of the Pinnacle Orthopedics Community Races this season to see what “racing” is all about at CB Nordic (i.e. as intense as you want it to be). Our next race is scheduled for January 30 in Gunnison, but they currently need more snow to make this possible. Stay tuned for the location.

Join us and the Chamber of Commerce for Business After Hours on Tuesday, January 25. We’ll start with a free learn-to-ski session at 4 p.m., followed up by snacks, conversation, and a giveaway for some sweet CB Nordic items, including a free lesson! All are welcome, but especially if you’re a business in town, this is a great way to network with other like-minded folks. This event will be outside, so dress warmly! To register for the free learn-to-ski session, email [email protected].

As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, Crested Butte Nordic depends on your support to keep our trails world-class and our programs top-notch. Thank you for all the time, energy, and money you donate to make us a true community nordic center.