SKIJOR CHIC & CUP UPDATE
January 22, 2026
Image credits:
Greg Samborski, Banff SnowDays, Three Cowboys & Action Shot
Mitch Popilchak, Banff SnowDays, Sam Mitchell
Mark LaRowe, Gallatin Skijor, Junior Skier
Extreme Events MN, Canterbury Park
Lady in Fur & Rearing Horse
~ IN THIS NEWSLETTER ~
Out of First Gear!
The Skijor Cup point
series continues to gain speed and traction
with updated rankings and increased support.
Skijor Chic Hits New Highs
with red carpet fashion shows and crowds
getting fully into the spirit.
Skijor Snow Woes
are causing races to either scramble to find ways
(and money) to make snow or consider
postponing to later dates or 2027.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
This past weekend,
skijoring was featured at
SnowDays Festival in Banff, Alberta, Canada.
Producer, Sam Mitchell, comments
that "the fans were fantastic, so joyful and considerate!"
Everything went as planned during the 90-minute
exhibition extraordinaire.
An estimated 34,000 attended the event on Saturday
and 12,000 on Sunday,
making this the BEST attended skijoring event EVER!
Snow was hauled in filling 126 trucks
to lay the skijor track.
The event brought tourists from far and wide,
and many stayed to visit Banff National Park which saw
a record 44,000 vehicles enter the park.
Local hotels, shops and restaurants experienced a surge
in sales and reservations.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Banff has a skijoring past
that goes back as far as the early 1920s
according to local historians who recently provided
archival evidence that skijoring was included in winter carnivals.
The Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies
posted historic photos on Facebook
a few days ago entitled Skijoring on the Bow River at Banff.
Much has changed (yet NOT changed!) in Banff.
Now a mecca of ski tourism,
the town proudly retains its quaint central quarter,
picturesque architecture and uniquely Albertan mountain style.
The spirit of these hardy, fun loving Canadians
was felt throughout the weekend
with participants and attendees decked out in full skijor regalia,
which has become a fast-growing fashion trend.
Skijor Canada's founder, Sam Mitchell,
the chic, trend-setting woman behind skijoring's revival in Canada,
leads the pack and inspires others to follow her example.
The fuller the fur, the longer the fringe, the more colorful the accessories and
the more daring and successful the combo takes the prize!
This enthusiastic celebration of wintery mixology
is featured as part of the show the athletes, riders and sliders,
put on with the help of their impressive equine partners.
For the latest photos and videos, check out
https://www.skijorcanada.com/
and follow their socials at
https://www.instagram.com/skijorcanada/
https://www.tiktok.com/@skijorcanada
Skijor Canada's next event, Skijordue, is planned for
February 21st & 22nd in Calgary.
Other Canadian events include:
Millarville, AB ~ Feb 7
Golden, BC ~ Feb 14
Fernie, BC ~ Feb 14
Lac La Biche, AB ~ Feb 21
Red Deer, AB ~ Feb 28
Crowsnest, AB ~ Mar 7
Cold Lake, AB ~ Mar 7
Grande Prairie, AB ~ TBD
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
~ DOUBLE THE ACTION, DOUBLE THE FUN ~
The only event in the United States
that compares to Skijor Canada's Banff event
in scale, in fashion, in action, and in big air feats
is Extreme Events MN,
the MN being short for Minnesota.
The race track at Canterbury Park
in Shakopee is also home to a large event in summer,
the Ram Trucks Rodeo in mid-July.
Last summer the first
Battle of the Barrels race was also held here,
a unique head-to-head barrel racing rodeo with riders
running two at a time to complete a cloverleaf pattern which
tests both horsemanship and nerves.
Next year a bull riding competition will be added to the program
by Extreme Events MN at Canterbury.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Even though producer, Ted Slathar, has his hands full in summer,
he doesn't take the winter months off.
The event park is transformed into a skijoring venue every February
by Ted and his team.
Unlike other skijoring venues this season,
there is no lack of snow in Minnesota, in fact, Ted says,
"We have TOO much!"
This year's event is scheduled for February 21st & 22nd.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Ted has a long history in the rodeo world,
having competed in bull riding for 15 years.
He qualified for high school and college national finals,
then moved on to qualify 6 times for the Great Lakes circuit finals
and once for the Ram National Circuit Finals.
Ted decided to produce a skijoring event 8 years ago,
noting its potential as a growing equine sport and local attraction
which neatly fills the gap created by Old Man Winter.
The venue Ted has to work with is the perfect setting
for a large skijoring production
with seating for over 10,000 spectators a day and
a large portion of these indoors and heated.
His track is wide and safe for horses' footing and has a generous runout.
As a result he can run the teams in tandem, side by side.
This is reminiscent of how local races were run down snowy boulevards
in the 1930s in places like Jackson, Aspen and Steamboat
and now, we know, Banff!
Bear in mind, these towns only had populations
between 500 and 1000 and those that called theses places home
were likely rogue cowboys, ski bums and gamblers.
A perfect mix for skijoring to this very day!
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Ted also has no trouble finding willing participants
since equine sports and skiing are both popular in his state.
The $30K prize pot is also a big draw!
Like Skijor Canada,
the Extreme Events MN event
has decided to highlight the fashion element of the sport
mostly because it is such a crowd pleasing aspect.
Spectators love to feel included in the spirit of the event and
celebrate the unique culture modern skijoring offers.
Canterbury Park's "red carpet" walk
now requires an official entry and is judged by a panel.
Twelve entries per day are accepted,
and winners receive a $100 gift card to Daisy If You Do Co.,
a women-owned, womenswear company
for "Women Born to Stand Out".
Click here for more info:
https://extremeeventsmn.com/skijoring
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
~ SKIJOR CUP ROUND TWO ~
Last weekend, Gallatin Skijor Invitational, revived a long-standing
tradition of skijoring in Bozeman, Montana
despite local newscaster mistakenly calling it "a first".
Bozeman's ties to skijoring go back to 1998 with two local men,
Sean Mullaney and Joel Boehnke,
who sat on the original board of NASJA, the North American Skijoring Association.
NASJA organized and hosted
the nation's first points series
with as many as ten races on the circuit throughout
Colorado, Wyoming, Montana and Idaho
the final race being in Red Lodge.
This series lasted for more than 15 years.
According to Tony Fox, a skijor historian
and past president of NASJA,
who now organizes the event in Red River, New Mexico,
roughly 50 to 60 teams competed in Bozeman back in the '90s and early 2000s.
The series featured Sport and Open Divisions, and
a long jump, or gelande competition, was also included at times.
Tony was a skier from Colorado
and remembers the good times spent at The Mint Bar & Grill
in Livingston after the races.
These NASJA affiliated events were held at the fairgrounds,
but the venue changed after a lull by 2002.
In 2016 and 2017,
the Duckworth Montana Classic
brought skijoring back to the Gallatin Valley and races
were held in an open area near Oak Street by promoter RJ Klotz and his team.
Divisions like Junior, Novice and Snowboard were added.
Their 2016 event was the second stop on the
Skijoring America Circuit race series.
In 2019, The Montana Classic Skijoring Race
was held at the Broken Heart Ranch about 30 miles away
from the fairgrounds.
Current organizer, Josh Abbott, was also part of this event planning and,
thus, is careful to pay homage to those who came before him.
We trust our friends at Gallatin Skijor Invitational to maintain the
high standard that the skijoring community
associates with this long-standing venue and its rich history.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
~ UPDATED POINTS ~
To accommodate the sport's expansion,
Gallatin Skijor decided to host events over two separate weekends.
Last weekend featured Novice, Womens, Snowboard and Junior Divisions.
These points have been added to the Skijor Cup below.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
In the Novice Division,
teams raced down the narrow, man-made track,
with two teams breaking the 20 second mark on Day 1
and 7 teams on Day 2!
Cody VanOrden and Devon Voegele
with horse, Boomer
captured the Overall,
though Cody's second horse, Tank,
also pulling Devon,
posted the best Novice time of the weekend with a 17.832.
A total of 61 teams ran.
The Snowboard Division
saw only one team breaking the 18 second mark
Jennifer Butler and Steve Noyes
with horse, Junior,
clocked the best time of the weekend with a 17.96.
There were only two other teams clocking under 20 seconds with
clean runs. Lacey Ammons riding Jax pulling Derek Schreiner
and Krista Menzel riding Morty the Mustang pulling Steve Noyes.
Tamara Campbell and James Mcgraw took
the Overall Snowboard title with horse Shaw.
In Womens,
on Day 1 Phoebe Alverson rode Ozzie
and pulled Hedy Seeber,
a former FIS ski racer from Washington state
turned veterinarian,
for the best time of the weekend, a 15.74.
The next day Hedy skied with Jennifer Butler and Millie Berger,
crossing the finish with the only two times under 18 seconds.
Horses Speedy and Thunder Lips propelled them along.
Jennifer Butler and Hedy Seeber
again with horse, Speedy,
captured the Womens Overall with a combined score of 33.183.
Jennifer often competes with her son, David Rizzolo
and Phoebe with her Dad, Dennis Alverson.
For them, skijoring is a family affair.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
~ SECOND ROUND LEADERBOARD ~
Let's get to the point"s"!
Rankings have changed in Novice and Snowboard.
Womens is a new category.
Twisted Switch and Snowboard Lite remain the same.
New additions are in bold.
Follow the points series and to watch as rankings change go to
https://www.skijorcup.com/
and follow us on our socials!
https://www.instagram.com/skijor.cup/
https://www.tiktok.com/@skijor.cup
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Novice Division ~ Riders
Cody VanOrden 10.36
Olivia Salter 4.15
Mandy Erickson 2.51
Samantha Detrick 2.5
Kat Prendergass 1.2
Amanda Abbott 0.92
Monica Plecker 0.92
Shayda Valdez 0.8
Megan Smith 0.45
Sawyer Anderson 0.37
Novice Division ~ Skiers
Devon Voegele 10.22
Matt Dietz 2.51
Asher Weinberg 2.13
Richard Weber 2
Kylee Klotz 1.84
Byrne Dobrient 1.7
Kendall Delp 0.45
Baker Hilsendeger 0.37
Max Holmes 0.37
Jared Galloway 0.18
Novice Division ~ Horses
Boomer 1.36
Tank 0.97
Junior 0.85
Sassy 0.6
Cutter 0.55
Echo 0.48
Georgie 0.3
Mouse 0.21
Easy 0.20
Ruskie 0.15
Odie 0.08
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Snowboard Division ~ Riders
Justin Bailey 13
TJ Simmons 8.85
Brandon Nygard 8.15
Tamara Campbell 7.88
Jennifer Butler 5.91
Krista Menzel 4.3
Courtney Anderson 2.8
Cyndel Liebel 2.65
Tyler Ferguson 2.3
Monica Plecker 1.6
Cadence Brown 1.43
Cayley O'Dell 1.15
Lacey Ammons 0.76
Snowboard Division ~ Boarders
Charlie Tyler 14.6
Jakobe Chacon 13.75
Steve Noyes 12.86
Kevin Wilder 11.15
James McGraw 7.88
Dan Currie 1.43
Kalei Pitcher 1.15
Derek Schreiner 0.76
Snowboard Division ~ Horses
Jezabel 4.6
Turbo 3.1
Nooney 2.9
Shaw 1.75
EZ 1.4
Junior 1.31
Bird 0.8
Morty 0.79
Mousse 0.55
Jolo 0.48
Dali 0.32
Jax 0.17
Monte 0.17
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Womens Division Riders
Jennifer Butler 9.89
Millie Berger 6.8
Haley Hodge 3.61
Phoebe Alverson 2.96
Eva 2.55
Monica Plecker 0.51
Womens Divison Skiers
Hedy Seeber 19.65
Julia Manus 3.61
Phoebe Alverson 2.55
Womens Division Horses
Speedy 2.2
Thunder Lips 1.5
Ozzie 1.22
Dakota 0.80
Moose Knuckle 0.11
Please note:
Points were not assigned for Banff since it was an exhibition.
Points were not assigned for the Heber City, UT event
since competitor's and horse's names are not listed on their result sheets.
Only team names are given and many of these are not accounted for on their website
under the Meet the Teams tab.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
The Junior Division
does not pay money for awards,
but they are included in the points series since
we would like to acknowledge all of our youthful competitors
and their faithful horses, friends and family members
who lead them safely down the track.
These are only from Gallatin Skijor.
Points are 10 for 1st ranking, 9 for 2nd ranking and so on.
Junior Riders
Josey Woodring 10
Hayden Miller 9
Svea Wilkenson 8
Katy Anderson 7
Junior Skiers
Wyatt Woodring 10
Fin Merkel 9
Josey Woodring 8
Svea Wilkenson 7
Anders Wilkenson 6
Emily Krebener 5
Junior Horses
Stella 10
Tater Chip 9
Jason the Wonder Horse 8
Freckles 7
I'm Your Huckleberry 6
Black Ice 5
For complete and official results
for Gallatin Skijor visit their Facebook page.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
~ RACES THIS WEEKEND ~
Estes Park Skijor
is presenting its 2nd Annual
skijoring competition at the fairgrounds.
https://www.runningwildevents.com/skijor.html
The inaugural event was a raging success
attracting teams from Denver and Boulder's front range,
eastward to Oklahoma and Nebraska,
and up and down the thousand mile Rocky Mountain corridor.
Spectators will once again flock to the picturesque alpine town,
the gateway to Rocky Mountain National Park and
home to the famous Stanley Hotel.
The Open, Sport, Snowboard, Novice and Junior Divisions
will run both days with a Novice qualifying round
on Friday night.
Cash prizes are awarded in Open, Sport and Snowboard
for 1st through 3rd placements.
The total purse is $20K!
Novice and Junior winners will receive other types of prizes.
Estes Park Skijor
will be livestreamed on the Rocky Mountain Channel app.
There is no cost involved. Only an email is required.
Click here to join:
https://www.rockymountainchannel.com/
Gallatin Skijor Invitational
will run the Open, Sport and Switcheroo Divisions
this coming weekend
as a follow up to last weekend's event.
It will be live-streamed on the Cowboy Channel Plus app.
A subscription is required.
Click here to join:
https://www.cowboychannelplus.com/
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
~ SKIJOR SNOW WOES ~
Sheridan, Wyoming
has cancelled the skijoring portion
of WYO Winter Rodeo due to lack of snow.
This festival typically attracts 7500 attendees so it is
great exposure for the sport,
but we respect the organizers' decision not to risk injury
to horses or humans given the dry conditions
and expense involved in making snow.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Chewelah, Washington
has changed their date to February 31 & March 1
in hopes that weather patterns will change.
This will be the 3rd annual event
supported by 49 Degrees North Mountain Resort
and hosted by Melody Riders Saddle Club.
https://www.facebook.com/people/Skijor-Chewelah/61578960660859/
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
~ IN RELATED NEWS ~
We have been in discussions with expert snow makers recently
and were also interviewed by a national publication
regarding how the changes in weather are affecting the 2026 skijor circuit
and the future of the sport overall.
Stay tuned for the article.
Skijoring the Big Rock
in Boulder, MT
scheduled for January 31st and February 1st
is making excellent progress with their snow creation.
Their story was covered recently in a local publication,
The Boulder Monitor.
https://www.boulder-monitor.com/news/no-snow-for-skijoring-snow-problem/article_e3341c8d-1915-4e20-968c-7893fad4a12d.html
Wood River Extreme Skijoring
will be hauling in snow for their race
and they, too, are feeling confident about their event
scheduled for February 14th & 15th.
The midwest and northeast are doing just fine with ample snowfall,
so Minnesota, New Hampshire and Maine are a go!
Maine has three events in
Bangor, Topsham and Skowhegan.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Suffice it to say,
as a snow sport, we are not alone in the challenges we face.
Some ski towns in France are beginning to be labeled,
"ghost resorts"
since they cannot absorb season after season of income loss
due to warm conditions and lack of snowfall.
https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/residents-alarmed-troubling-ghost-resort-033000247.html
Snow polo has had to reassess its position.
Events like the St. Regis World Snow Polo Championship in Aspen
have had to rely more heavily on artificial snow production
and seek permission from local authorities for water usage to produce it.
https://www.aspendailynews.com/news/snow-polo-snowmaking-allowed-amid-stage-2-water-shortage/article_9cf51417-c83d-4f54-b25a-7c13df548938.html
Events in St. Moritz have noticed that the playing surface is not ideal.
They have "slush" instead of packed snow making full polo matches impossible.
This is calling into question the future sustainability of the sport in a warming climate.
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/31/world/europe/snow-polo-st-moritz-climate-change.html
Environmental concerns are also being raised
since snowmaking requires significant power and/or fuel.
Lack of snowfall also means drought conditions that will affect
farmers' and ranchers' fields come spring and summer.
There may also be impact on wildlife and fish.
Guarding water supplies in municipalities
for fire protection in drier years is also a rising concern,
yet if the water is available and pressure high enough in hydrants
snow making equipment can be used to help
combat fires like it was at Sierra-at-Tahoe Resort years ago.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
JOR ON!
Loren Zhimanskova,
Founder, Skijor USA & Skijor International