News & Stories

Hey-O, it’s Ski-O

Orienteering, the art of finding your way to points given a map and compass, is making its way to the City of Lakes Loppet lineup of events. The MN Orienteering Club is partnering with the Loppet Foundation to run the Ski-O Loppet on Saturday Feb 2.

While ski orienteering is immensely popular overseas, the sport is rather new to many Americans. MNOC is hoping that the Loppet Ski-O event will change that. “There is a lot of overlap between cross-country skiers and the orienteering community,” said Peter Wentzel, President of MNOC, who is excited to bring this exciting sport to folks attention. “We’re excited about the exposure the City of Lakes Loppet will bring the sport, and look forward to building off this inaugural year.”

The Ski-O Loppet is for both experts and novices alike. Individuals can choose between a short course and long course. Participants will receive their maps upon being taken to an undisclosed location. “The event combines speed in skiing – but more importantly speed in the right direction” smiled Wenzel. The goal is to locate a number of controls along the course. “Skiers will have to evaluate their own route choice and technique they use to get to the controls faster. It ends up being a different race experience for everyone. That is what makes this so fun.”

Competing in the Loppet Ski-O event is Alison Crocker from the US National Team. She is currently in the top 50 World rankings for Orienteering on foot and top 25 for ski orienteering. MNOC encourages all skiers and orienteerers to give this new event a try.