Ski Mountaineering Racing

SkiMo has been a feature of the British snowsports season for some years now, thanks to the efforts of Di Gilbert, Louella Hamilton and Skimo Scotland.

Since 2012, a hardy bunch of lycra clad competitors have been taking to the slopes to pit themselves against the Scottish conditions, in a variety of races including individual and vertical.

Whilst the scene has thrived, it has remained relatively small, lacking a framework for development of the sport and its athletes.

Unlike in the European Alps, where Skimo is a well-resourced pursuit with formed competitive teams, the British scene has remained entirely amateur. Those who have raced internationally, have done so independently, with the British Mountaineering Council acting as the representative body, issuing race licences, and providing support in the form of race suits.

It was widely acknowledged that, for the sport to develop, more structure was required.

Back in 2013 Di Gilbert (SkiMo Scotland Rep) first began pushing for support and a route to getting Skimo and Skimo athletes more representation. Meetings with Sport Scotland and Mountaineering Scotland, amongst others, followed. Unfortunately, nothing took off, and the project went back into hibernation.

It was only in 2023, when a chance meeting between Di Gilbert and Andy Syme, President of the BMC, in the CIC Hut led to a rekindling of effort.

Catalysed by the announcement that Skimo was to be trialled as an Olympic event, the BMC offered additional assistance, support and resource, and collectively set about finding athletes and supporters who might want to be involved.

The BMC Skimo Steering Group was born!

The initial Steering Group meeting was held in May of 2023, with mixed representation from across the Skimo and outdoors community. First, a terms of reference document was developed, with the relatively modest aims of promoting the sport, providing a framework for athletes to develop, and looking forward to the 2026 Winter Olympic Games in Milano Cortina.

Since then, the Steering Group has grown, become more organised, and begun to put in place the structures required to truly grow the sport of Ski Mountaineering Racing in GB.

A big thank-you to the team of enthusiastic volunteers who have got the project off the ground, and continue to take the sport from strength to strength.

While recreational ski mountaineering and long-course SkiMo race events are typically carried out in high mountain terrain and involve ski-touring and mountaineering techniques such as skinning uphill, boot packing, freeride descent and roped glacier travel, Olympic ski mountaineering races take place on developed pistes.

Sprint and Relays: for the fast and furious

The Sprint is an individual athlete event involving a short ascent and descent lasting around 3-4 minutes, combining all the technical elements of skinning uphill with some tricky turns and boot packing before a descent on a slalom-like course with gates and features including small jumps. In Milano-Cortina 2026, 18 athletes per sex will skin up an initial section, boot-pack a 10m section, then put their skins back on for a final ascent before a 70m downhill section. Smooth transitions will be key!

Relay is typically Teams 3 or 4 with two climbs and descent. One competitor after another. Typically 15 minutes each. The Mixed Relay in Milano-Cortina will involve 18 male-female pairs completing four loops in total on a longer 7-10 minute course. Each loop involves two ascents and two descents, with a bootpacking section on the second ascent. The women will take the first and third leg, the men the second and final.

Vertical Events: for the fast mountain goats

The Vertical race is what it says on the tin, just up and up on skins or maybe bits of bootpacking only as fast as you can. Generally 700m.

Team and Individual Races: for the more adventurous in the high mountains

The Team (2 or 3 athletes) event typically involving three ascent of around 2000m total and three descents lasting around 3 hours long, combining all the technical elements of skinning uphill with some tricky terrain steep and exposed ridges and cols needing more mountain experience. To succeed the team must work well together in all conditions.

Grand Course team events

These have more ascents and descents resulting in longer races, Some of these are multi-day stage races across whole mountain ranges and may extend into the night.

The Individual event

This is similar to a Team event but as a solo athlete.

Ski Mo races consist of four elements (skinning, boot packing, transition and downhill)

Participants will ascend the slope using grippy, removable skins on the base of their skis, with ski-touring bindings that can be released at the heel to enable them to slide uphill as they walk (skinning). Athletes can also ascend by boot packing their way up more technical, stepped terrain after removing their skis and carrying them on a backpack. Next comes the fun part: after removing the skins (transition), skiers descend in downhill sections. The first past the finish line is the winner.

There is a race in the SkiMo calendar for every level of athlete - from those wishing to try the sport for the first time, to elite athletes competing for their country on the world stage.

Recreational SkiMo Racing

The SkiMo race scene is enabled and championed by SkiMo Scotland (www.skimoscotland.co.uk). This race series is held in Scotland each winter. They warmly welcome both newcomers and seasoned competitors.

This series is a brilliant opportunity to see what a race involves, and try it out. For many, this is a chance to have a fun race using their everyday touring kit, without having to invest in race kit without knowing if they enjoy the sport.

On holiday? Keep an eye out for local events, usually organised by National Bodies or Local Clubs

Or watch a rave then take advantage of the manufacturers (like Dynafit) accompanying ski touring tryouts.

International Ski Mo Races

Races organised by the ISMF (international ski mountaineering federation) or ‘La Grande Course’ races require competitors to have a racing licence from their home country’s SkiMo federation.

The ISMF races include a ‘World Cup’ series and a biannual European or World Championships. These competitions see teams of athletes competing for their country in sprint, individual, team and vertical races. Each country can put forward 4 male and 4 female athletes for competition in each discipline (sprint, individual etc) at these championships. More details about these race formats can be found here ISMF (ismf-ski.org).

La Grande Course is a series of six long-standing team races held over a two year rolling cycle. Some of these are multi-day stage races across whole mountain ranges. Frequently one of these races is chosen as the ISMF Long Distance Team Championship for that particular season, and with their historical significance these races can be considered to be the Monuments of the sport.

In order to compete in these races, athletes need to have a licence from their home federation. This is essentially to ensure that those applying to compete have the necessary skills and experience to take on the often complex terrain.

In the UK, athletes wishing to be considered for an ISMF licence should consult the BMC Ski Mo Racing Steering Group page for details of the application process.

Competitors use lightweight skinny touring skis, boots, poles, skins, a helmet, sunglasses and a backpack, plus a tight and bright aerodynamic suit. No baggy insulated ski salopettes required - skiing uphill keeps the athletes very warm!