STORY AND PHOTOS BY KAREN BOSSICK

It’s not just the Boulder Mountain Tour this year.

Sandwiched, as it is, between the Opening Ceremonies of the 2026 Winter Olympics and the Super bowl, the 53rd Boulder Mountain Tour has been dubbed the Super Bowl-der Mountain Tour.

“It’s pretty amazing,” said Race Director Jody Zarkos. “When you look at five people from our tiny valley representing TEAM USA in the Olympics, and then the spectacle of the Super Bowl and all—it’s so much fun.”

Eight hundred racers will toe the line at 10 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 7, for the full 34-kilometer race, which begins in Senate Meadows outside Galena Lodge and ends across from SNRA headquarters seven miles north of Ketchum.

Another 200 will take off from Baker Creek in the 15km Charley Course Half-Boulder at noon.

While the prestigious race has sold out the last four years, this year’s race sold out in 30 days this year, which is unprecedented, said Zarkos.

“In 2024 it took nine weeks to sell out; this year it took one month. I think a lot of it is carry over from the World Cup Finals that Sun Valley hosted last year; normally 60 percent of our racers are from Idaho and 40 percent from out of state. This year it’s 60 percent from out of state and 40 percent from Idaho,” she said.

“We put on a great race and people love coming here. And a lot of other races, such as the Ski to the Sun Race in Washington, have been canceled because of low snow across the West.”

Indeed, as of Sunday a tenth of an inch of snow had fallen at the Salt Lake City airport compared to the winter of 1933-34 which recorded a low of 14.3 inches.

The Olympic Nordic trails near Park City, Utah—a state that boasts “The Greatest Snow on Earth”--are made up of ribbons of manmade snow surrounded by brown bare ground.

Colorado has recorded its warmest winter since 1895, and Mountain Bachelor in Oregon has had just 27 inches of snow. Mount Hood in Oregon closed this week.

Nordic trails north of Ketchum have boasted ample snow and near-perfect grooming despite temperatures ranging 10 to 15 degrees above normal for the better part of the winter. Only this week did parts of the trails start to get firm, although plenty of sugary snow still abounds.

“The conditions are ripe for records to fall. We’ll see if anybody can catch the records Matt Gelso and Caitlin Gregg set in 2018,” said Zarkos.

Gelso skied the course in 1 hour 10 minutes and 28 seconds in 2018. Gregg, an Olympian from Minnesota who loves coming to Sun Valley, defended her 2016 Boulder Mountain Tour title, crossing the finish line in 1 hour 17 minutes and 41 seconds.

Those who will try to best their times included Peter Wolter, a Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation Gold Team member who won the Boulder a couple of years ago. Pushing him will be fellow Gold Team racers Will Koch who podiumed at the U.S. Nationals in Lake Placid and in competition at Soldier Hollow this year.

Also, Reid Goble who will join Wolter in serving as a guide for Sun Valley’s four-time Paralympian Jake Adicoff in the 2026 Winter Paralympics in March.

Annika Landis, who has narrowly missed winning the race the last three years, is seeded No. 1 for the women. She will be pushed by a strong women’s field that includes Kate Oldham, Tatum Witter, Emma Albrecht and, yes, Caitlin Gregg.

There’ll be five or six para-skiers in the Full Boulder and nine in the Half Boulder.

Others taking part in the race, include Wood River Valley residents Ryan and Anne Marie, Jed and Hazel Schmidt. All four competed in the Half-Boulder last year with each winning their age class. This year AnneMarie and 13-year-old Jed will take on the Full Boulder, while father and daughter ski the Half.

“The kids are members of the Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation Nordic team, which will be at the Junior Nordic Qualifiers in Jackson this weekend,” said Ryan Schmidt. “But we had so much fun last year with the soup and bread at the finish line. We have a world-class race in our backyard so why go to Jackson?!”

The race is capped at a thousand by Forest Service permit. And many of those who are coming have not even been on snow this year.

A small group from Connecticut cancelled, presumably because of bad weather across the East which has made travel problematic. And a few people from Seattlehavecanceled.

“I attribute that to the Super Bowl,” said Zarkos. “Maybe they’re superstitious and have to watch the game from a certain chair. A lot of people have been trying to get into the Boulder because of other races being cancelled, but I’m a one-woman show so I don’t have the ability toad new people when some cancel.”

That said, she does rely on nearly 300 volunteers to staff swag bags, set up banners and ferry post-race clothing to the finish line.

“Fortunately, I have a good crew, including Jenny Busdon, Ted Angle, Bobby Noyes,  Jim Keller and so many others who step up year after year to lead all these volunteers,” Zarkos said.

IF YOU GO:

FRIDAY, Feb. 6:

The BMT Expo will be held from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. today at The Argyros in Ketchum. There’ll be BMT merchandise and a chance to talk with industry insiders and vendors.

SATURDAY, Feb. 7: The race starts at 10 a.m. in Senate Meadows at Galena Lodge with 800 racers toeing the starting line for the 34-klometer challenge.

Three on-course aid stations will keep racers fueled and flying. And Galena Lodge will host a food tent at the finish line.

Spectators can grab shuttles to Galena Lodge beginning at 9 a.m. at Hemingway STEAM School, 111 8^th St. East in Ketchum.

Those driving to the finish line may park on Barlow Road, a quarter-mile south of the SNRA. Shuttles will run continuously there from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The BMT Awards Celebration will take place from 5:30 to 8 p.m. at The Argyros with cash prizes for the top three overall men and women and commemorative awards for the top three men and women in each age class. There will be raffle prizes, as well.

SUNDAY, FEB. 8

Demo Day will be held from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at Galena Lodge. Reps from Salomon, Fischer, SWIX, Rossignol and Madshus will have the latest gear to try.