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Bjorn Widerstrom exchanging maps, Burton Creek (2005)

Royal Gorge Ski-O

Date: Sunday, February 6, 2005
Location: Near Norden and Soda Spring at I-80, CA
Event Director: - 650-969-5320
Course Setter: Matthias Kohler
Type: Ski-O

Related Information

2005 Ski-O Championships

The second ski-O event for 2005 will be at Royal Gorge, where the trail network is second to none and route selection possibilities are seemingly endless. This venue has 200+ km of groomed trails. Add to that a bunch of bushwacked trails that we make, and the courses can present interesting challenges.

Our course setter, Matthias Kohler, is setting five point-to-point courses for beginners, intermediates, and expert skiers. Choose your course carefully to challenge both your skiing abilities and strengths. The beginner courses will be relatively short on easier trails (great for kids and beginning skiers). The intermediate courses will be on intermediate trails with some significant hills (great for experienced skiers who enjoy non-stop skiing for 1-2 hours). The advanced courses use expert trails, long distances, offer lots of route choices, and definitely test your skiing skills and physical strength.

Tom Jahn sprints to his finish on the orange course (2004 Royal Gorge Ski-O, Photo: Tony Pinkham)

Registration occurs in the main building at the Summit Station trail head from 9:00 AM until noon. Go to the special events desk (not the main cashier) to get your discount trail pass and to register.

Beginners clinics will be offered in the starts area (unless the instructor finds a nice sunny spot somewhere else) beginning at 9:30 AM, and continuing through the morning. As always, these clinics are free. If you are new to ski-orienteering, take a clinic.

Starts begin at 10 AM and continue until 12:30 PM. We can start people later than that with special permission of the event director (Tony Pinkham), but everyone must finish their courses by the pickup time (2:30 PM).

E-punching will be used and required for all courses. If you need one, you can rent an E-punch finger stick when you register. There will be free map holders (sheet protectors) for all participants! Bring your own touring or skating cross country skis or rent them from Royal Gorge.

Kent Ohlund leaving the start (2004 Royal Gorge Ski-O, Photo: Tony Pinkham)

This event is one of three qualifying events for the 2005 Sierra Ski-Orienteering Championships. To compete in this championships, you must attend at least two of the four planned event days, and have the highest average placings for a racing category. When ties occur, we prioritize the results by the event day as follows: 

  Highest priority     - Bear Valley day 2 (point-to-point)
  2nd highest priority - Royal Gorge
  3rd highest priority - Burton Creek
  4th highest priority - Bear Valley day 1 (score-O)

Lodging

The closest lodging for the event is at:

Driving Directions

Take Interstate 80 East from Sacramento or west from Tahoe/Reno to the Norden/Sugar Bowl exit. Follow the orienteering signs from the highway exit to the Summit Station area for Royal Gorge.