Eighty-Two Miles & Change – watching Ski to Sea from top to bottom | story by Scott Lommers
The legendary Ski to Sea Race course traverses great distance and hugely varied terrain as it meanders from Mt. Baker to Bellingham Bay. And it’s a good thing Ski to Sea has that extra room to stretch out, with 400+ racers on the course at any given time, 3,000 teammates stretched across Whatcom County, and countless team support members and spectators slowly rambling toward the Fairhaven District of Bellingham. With all of that course acreage to choose from, one would think that finding a respectable viewpoint to watch the action would be a simple process. It’s not. Follow my advice and don’t find yourself getting stuck out on the side of the Mount Baker Highway with bicyclists flying by so fast that you wouldn’t recognize your own brother.
Leg One / Cross Country Ski about 4 miles (race start 8:30am)
• Start & Finish: Mt. Baker/Heather Meadows Day Lodge/Ski Shop area
• Spectator Viewpoint*: The cozy and warm Heather Meadows Day Lodge, by any of the large windows facing Mt. Baker.
With the start and finish lines about 30 feet apart, there isn’t much variety of viewpoints for spectators at the first leg. But sometimes comfort is better than variety anyway. So head inside the Heather Meadows Day Lodge, grab a seat in front of any of the large windows facing the mountain, crack open the Thermos full of hot chocolate and watch the skiing spectacle unfold in front of you.
Leg Two / Downhill Ski or Snowboard about 2.5 miles
• Start & Finish: Mt. Baker/Heather Meadows Day Lodge/Ski Shop area
• Spectator Viewpoint*: skier-to-runner exchange point. There are often huge mounds of snow nearby; you can get a good look from atop one.
You’ll need to come out of the Day Lodge for this one. Experienced Ski to Sea athletes know that the handoff between the downhill skier and runner is not to be missed. Why? Because it often is missed by the athletes themselves. For some reason (my money is on the cold weather combined with the skimpy running outfits) there are more missed handoffs here than at any other transition. If you’re ranking spectator activities, watching a runner bursting out of a portable toilet while his teammate waits, smoldering, at the exchange area has to be right up there with American Idol and the Super Bowl. Good times.
Leg Three / Run
about 8 miles west on Mt. Baker Highway/542; a 2,000-ft drop in elevation
• Start: Mt. Baker/Heather Meadows Day Lodge
• Finish: Shuksan D.O.T. Station
• Spectator Viewpoint*: Just up Highway 542 from the Hannegan Pass Road. Watch for the road to change from downhill to uphill.
If you’ve never had to walk backward down stairs for the two weeks following the Ski to Sea Race, then you’ve most likely never tried the running leg. The course drops more than 1,700 feet over eight miles as it winds down the Mt. Baker Highway That steep downhill is very good for a P.R. attempt, but very bad for the legs. Strangely enough, the toughest spot for most runners is a slight uphill in the last half-mile of the course, a slight uphill that feels like Mount Everest to legs that have been flying downhill for over seven straight miles. As a spectator, that’s where you want to be—right where the road changes from downhill to uphill, cheering and willing your laboring runner to the finish line…and silently congratulating yourself on your decision to just be part of the support team.
*Plan Accordingly—Official Ski to Sea Note: Mt. Baker Highway will be closed at 8:30am at Canyon Creek Road, Glacier, going east toward the mountain. Any viewers, participants or additional support vehicles who want to go to the top of the mountain must pass Canyon Creek Road prior to 8:30am. The road will be closed westbound at 9am at the Mt. Baker Lodge and will not reopen until 10am. No vehicles will be allowed to travel down the mountain prior to 10am. After 10am and for the duration of the race, vehicles traveling down Mt. Baker Highway (west) will be dispersed in groups of 5–7 to ensure the safety of the participants. Dispersal is based upon the flow of the race.
