4. ROMP OR RACE ON SNOWSHOES Grab or demo snowshoes and sign up at Onion River Sports for their annual Montpelier Snowshoe Romp, a half mile lantern-lit loop, along with hot chocolate, ice cream and a warm fire. It takes place in Hubbard Park on January 22 from 6 pm, to 8 pm. Want something harder? Sign up for the sixth annual Face Race up Suicide Six of Feb. 2. Race up a black diamond and down a blue square run for 1.6 miles of “fun.” Even harder? Peak Adventures’ Snow Devil Ultra in Pittsfield on March 13 has races that range from a 5K to a marathon, with a 100-miler starting the day before. 5. LEARN TO ICE CLIMB While places such as Smuggler’s Notch and Lake Willoughby have become ice climbing destinations, there are plenty of spots around Vermont where even beginners can learn and practice climbing the blue ice that forms on so many of Vermont’s cliffs and crags. Sign up for a class. Petra Cliffs and Adventure Spirit operate out of Burlington and Rutland’s Vermont Adventure Tours also offers introductory courses with all the equipment.
6. FATBIKE THE TRAIL NETWORKS Most bike shops will let you demo a fatbike but for a day of fun, head to one of the trail systems that’s been groomed for big wheels. More and more Nordic areas are turning parts of their trail systems over to fatbiking with lessons and rentals. The fat tires roll easily over bumps and grip on ice, making you feel like a kid on a giant Tonka toy. Grafton Trails and Outdoor Center in southern Vermont, Rikert Nordic Center in Ripton and Kingdom Trails in the Northeast Kingdom all rent fatbikes and have miles of groomed trails. 7. TAKE SKATE OR CLASSIC SKI LESSON If Vermont’s cadre of Olympic skiers hasn’t already inspired you to do so, this is the winter to learn to skate ski (or classic). Rikert Nordic Center in Ripton is limiting its clients to Vermont residents this winter. With 55 kilometers of groomed trails, snowmaking and rentals, you can get three private lessons (each one hour) for $195 or join in the group lessons (for both classic and skating) that happen daily at 10 am and 1 pm. At the Trapp Family Lodge Outdoor Center, you can take an adult lesson (minimum of two people) for $40 or do a package with rentals and lift tickets for $85.
Get back to you Has taking the stairs become unbearable? Is joint pain keeping you from skiing or snowshoeing? Are you missing out on other activities you once enjoyed? Gifford’s Orthopedics team can help you get back to you. Our specialists provide surgical and nonsurgical care to treat a wide range of conditions and injuries to hip, knee, hand and wrist ailments.
Call today to schedule an appointment. Randolph: 728-2430 Berlin: 224-3200
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8. BECOME A BIATHLETE Become a biathlete and learn to shoot and ski. While the Ethan Allen firing range is closed this winter and the Ethan Allen Biathlon Club isn’t hosting its regular beginner clinics, the Strafford Nordic Center is offering clinics for up to six people by appointment only. Cost is $40 per person, rifle and instruction included but bring your own Nordic gear or rent there. 9. GET READY TO RUN RunVermont, which puts on events such as the Burlington City Marathon, has always had training programs to help newbies or experts get ready to do their best. This year they hope to run the marathon on its regular time slot Memorial Day. But coaching has gone virtual with the 2021 Rdy2Run Digital Coaching Services platform. It includes bi-monthly discussions on goals, mileage tracking, nutrition tips, and access to 5K, 10K, half-marathon and marathon training plans. The program is free if you sign up for a Passport (which also gets you 20% off races), or you can buy it for $45 to $75, depending on how long your goal event distance is. Runvermont.com 10. ENTER AN ONLINE RACE Tired of training on your own, indoors? As long as you have a compatible smart trainer, download the Zwift app (or another) and enter the alternately fun/ grueling/obsessive/compulsive world of online racing. You can choose routes based on real rides or runs around the world or from the fictional island of Watopia. You set your pace, your weight and your ability level. Do your own training plan, a preprogrammed one or race against other (alert: you’ll get competitive and yes, people do cheat). The app works with compatible smart trainers for bikes or treadmills. 11. GO DOG SLEDDING If you’ve dismissed dogsledding as a tourist attraction, think again. For Jim Blair, owner of Eden Dogsledding, it’s a sport he’s much of dedicated his life to. Over the last 18 years, Blair has carved a trail system out on his 140-acre property in Eden. His more than 30 Alaskan Huskies, a group he calls the UnChained Gang, have helped him win numerous dogsled races and earned him the title of International Sprint Champion. Blair offers cabins on his property for rent, a chance to interact with the dogs (whom he treats ethically, as pets) and private trips. Sled trips start at $495 for up to six Vermonters (weight dependent) or $695 for others. Umiak Adventures is now also organizing trips in both the Stowe area (evening tours) and the Mad River Valley. Cost is $399 per sled (with a 350 lb. weight limit) for a two-hour tour.
12. BREAK INTO BACKCOUNTRY SKIING There are several ways you can learn to backcountry ski. One is to buy the gear (try Outdoor Gear Exchange for consignment gear), order David Goodman’s newly-released second edition of Backcountry Skiing in the Northeast and figure it out yourself. The other is to head to the Bolton Valley Adventure Center. Bolton Valley has become Ground Zero for folks getting into backcountry, thanks to its Adventure Center which rents backcountry alpine touring and splitboarding gear from Dynafit and Burton. The ski area also offers private guided tours (including access tickets and two lift rides) starting at $175 for one person, and $60 for each additional person (up to four). With acres of backcountry terrain as well two cabins you can access and overnight in (reservations must be made through the Green Mountain Club for Bryant Camp and Bolton Lodge), it’s a perfect taste of backcountry, just 30 minutes from Burlington. Need advice on gear? Tune into @outdoorgearexchange on January 26 for an Instagram Live chat on all things backcountry skiing. 13. SKI THE CATAMOUNT TRAIL What the Long Trail is to hiking, the Catamount Trail is to skiing. The 300mile trail intersects with some of the best backcountry skiing zones in the state . But perhaps the most fun part of the Catamount Trail is tackling various sections that can be done as point-topoint. The most famous, Bolton Valley to the Trapp Family Lodge is an arduous, all-day tour but has great skiing and views. The Catamount Trail Association which manages the trail organizes single and multi-day tours. For dates and details see catamounttrail.org. 14. EXPLORE A NEW BACKCOUNTRY ZONE Beyond the sidecountry accessible from most ski mountains, a number of backcountry zones are being developed and mapped by groups around the state. These range from the Dutch Hill Alliance of Skiers and Riders work in southern Vermont to the Brandon Gap and Braintree Mountain terrain that the Rochester/Randolph Sport Trails Alliance has made famous to new areas that the Northeast Kingdom Backcountry Coalition is working on in the Willoughby State Forest and other areas. For a list of these chapters, an overview of the zones and live links, see vtsports.com. And if want to find a zone of your own, a number of guides can show you around. Among them: Sunrise Mountain Guides out of Stowe and Killington Mountain Guides. 15. TAKE AN AVALANCHE COURSE While you may not be traveling in avalanche country this season, now is a
