The 30th Arctic Man Ski and Sno-Go Classic was called off Saturday after a second day of poor conditions forced organizers to nix the annual race in the Hoodoo Mountains.
The event, which began Friday, combines skiing (or snowboarding) with snowmachine racing over a 5.5-mile course. The race starts with a skier or snowboarder racing downhill to link up with a tow rope attached to a snowmachine, which then tows the racer to the top of a second hill. From there the racer skis to a finish line at the bottom.
According to founder Howard Thies, Arctic Man campgrounds in the Hoodoo Mountains at Summit Lake becomes the third-largest city in Alaska overnight. The event has grown in the past 30 years from 100 attendees to approximately 15,000. The grounds are overrun by RVs, snowmachines, and bonfires. Arctic Man artist Sandy Jamieson likens sno-going adrenaline junkies to the motorcycle crowd: "The people are pretty rough looking, and a lot of them are working people that this is their thing. "But there's no one here who wouldn't stop to help anyone else."
Read more: Arctic Man canceled due to storm
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