Snowshoe racing is a unique sport that harkens back to days when these tools were instrumental in surviving winter in the mountains. Early humans developed snowshoes from branches, wood and leather to walk on deep snow, but in snowshoe racing athletes use small, lightweight snowshoes made of modern materials to run mostly on machine-packed trails. Even with modern innovations, running on snowshoes is extremely difficult. The snowshoes themselves weigh around two pounds per pair, while the courses include lung-searing climbs in cold temperatures at altitude. While the courses are typically groomed, the snow is still soft, resulting in an altered stride.
In the 1990s, Leadville became somewhat of an epicenter for sport snowshoeing. Mary and I happened to be living there at the beginning of this small and obscure sports craze. We competed in several snowshoe and multi-sport events that typically combined snowshoeing with cross-country skiing. The most grueling snowshoe race we did was an epic 30K (18.6 miles) run routed around and across Turquoise Lake west of Leadville. While snowshoe racing had its moment in the 1990s, interest waned over the years, leaving only a handful of small races, including the Colorado Cup, hosted by CMC and organized by Harrison’s coach, Darren.
Fast forward, and here I was decades later, driving to Leadville on a Thursday afternoon to be there early the next morning to help the CMC running team set up and mark the course for the Colorado Cup Snowshoe Race, and to watch Harrison run in the event. I was looking at three straight nights of dorm life to make this happen for him. It was a gloomy day with spitting snow. After arriving at the college I went out to run on the trails with Harrison and Nate.
Very early the next morning, we headed out with Darren and the team to set the snowshoe course. Teammates took turns pulling a sled loaded with signs, posts and flagging. Thick condensation rose from everybody’s breath in the cold mountain air. Harrison was especially interested in marking this course, and with Darren’s guidance hammered signposts into the snow. We also strung survey tape across trails to keep racers from taking wrong turns. I watched as these young adults worked together and thought to myself that they probably would not realize until later in their lives the memories and bonds they’d created over the past two years. I mean, who does this in college? Go out in the woods early on a cold morning to flag a snowshoe race course? Maybe some of their memories would also include the joy of a neurodivergent teammate participating in these activities.
Toward the end of the loop, when we reached the fabled “Mine Dump” hill, the sled was nearly empty. This hill is nearly a drop-out and is near the end of the loop, followed shortly by a very steep uphill to the finish area. Harrison and Connor got on the sled, and Nate gave them a good shove. We watched and laughed as they went careening down the hill, nearly wiping out sideways before straightening out and crashing into some loose snow near the bottom. After we finished marking the course, we all went for a shakeout run and then rested up for the race the next day.
The morning of the race was partly overcast and a little warmer. Harrison really wanted to run in the longer 10K, but Darren and I discussed it and decided to keep him in the shorter race. I jogged out to check some of the course flagging since the wind had been blowing overnight. Mary arrived and decided to enter the race herself. Darren asked me if I wanted to run. I thought about it for a few seconds, then said, “No. I want to watch.” Then I headed out to get stationed at my usual vantage points.
Harrison was bouncing with excitement on the starting line. At the word “go,” he made a bold statement, charging up the first small hill with a smile on his face, and leaving the field scattered and gasping behind him. Clearly he was looking to put an exclamation point on his previous year’s performance. His facial expression changed to serious as he ran like a crazed Bigfoot through his natural habitat, up and down the hills, bombing the Mine Dump, then sprinting uphill to the 5K finish. He had won the Colorado Cup Snowshoe Race, but in the larger scheme of things, he’d gained so much more.
Notes from The Blur
The Thursday afternoon before the snowshoe race, my dad arrived and we went for a run with Nate on the college trails. I was running on the groomed snow when just before the halfway point, I encountered a woman walking the other way. I just ran on by her. I was doing a five-mile run and it was shortly after this when I reached 2.5 miles and turned around. When I ran past her from behind, she yelled out, “You scared me” then when I got farther from her, she followed that up by yelling “Asshole!” to me. Of course I panicked after realizing she was angry at me like that. I knew I was partially in the wrong because I didn’t warn her beforehand that I was behind her. When I got back to my dad and Nate, I told them what happened. They told me to calm down and just to remember for next time that it’s polite to let someone know when you are running up behind them. I was still elevated when I got back to the dorm. Zoe heard me from her room on the third floor. She opened her window and called down to ask what was wrong. I told her what had happened and she said she felt like punching this woman for yelling at me like that. She was of course just joking but it helped to calm me down.
It was a lot of fun to mark the snowshoe course with the team and a blast to take the sled down the big hill at the end. I sort of wanted to run the 10K race but Darren thought I should stick to the 5K. I was getting more excited as the race grew near.
I started the race out hard but quickly found it more challenging to maintain my pace than a regular running race because, of course, I had snowshoes strapped to my feet, and it was cold. The leader in the 10K caught up to me and I paced off of him for while. As I got closer to the finish, I passed him to win the 5K and also set a new course record. Then, I went back out on the course to cheer on my other teammates. Connor and Kenneth were second and third, then Brooklyn came by and gave me a fist bump as she ran past.
I was ecstatic about winning this race and setting a course record. My teammates were happy for me too and congratulated me on the race. Winning this snowshoe race was a really unique experience. I also felt like this race would pave the way to a successful track season.
The next day I got to celebrate some more by going to the Super Bowl party at the college. The party was organized by Chef Cody in the cafeteria. He prepared lots of special items, including mocktails and other snacks that are typical for a football party. The San Franciso 49ers were playing the Kansas City Chiefs but I did not pay much attention to the game. It was a popular event with most of the dorm residents, attending. Nate was especially excited because he is really big into football, especially the Denver Broncos. I definitely don’t have as much interest in football as Nate. But I had a great time and I did try to watch the game. It would become a special memory for me to experience a big party like this at the college.
The Blur Goes to College is a free online book published as a series. Subscribe to receive future chapters delivered by email. If you would like to support our writing, we appreciate upgrades to paid subscriptions.
Great work there, Harrison. You look so fit. Have you run the race again since then?