The dragon will venture out of its lair at North Star Elementary. A giraffe will amble out of its comfy bedroom at Gailyn Taylor's house. Heather Wilson will chase a rainbow or two out of her home.
The Ultimate Frisbee Friends, the team that has wowed the crowd for 10 straight years at the Alaska Ski for Women with its giant, colorful costumes, is planning a retrospective for Sunday's race at Kincaid Park.
The sunflowers, the monarch butterflies, the peacocks, the volcanoes, the cellos, the flamingos – they'll all be back, though in smaller numbers than before. Even the maternity-leave costume from 2011 (pregnant bellies for everyone) will take a curtain call at the race, which doubles as Alaska's biggest costume party.
"Our strategy is to have two of each from the last 10 years, except for one dragon," team member Katie Hickey said.
There's only one dragon because each one of the long, winding costumes – the stars of the 2007 race -- requires several skiers. The dragon returning for an encore Sunday was given to North Star Elementary, which "uses it every year," Hickey said. "We have to get it back to them by Monday. They use it in their annual Chinese New Year celebration."
Other costumes have taken up residency at various locations. Team member Taylor has young kids, so she uses one of the giraffes to decorate a child's bedroom, Hickey said. Team member Wilson has a couple of rainbows that are useful for turning any room into an instant party room – and for years her husband has surrendered space in his Conex trailer for other costumes.
"He is thrilled now at the possibility of getting it back," Hickey said.