PATIENCE PAYS OFF
October 7, 2018
Forbearance. Tolerance. Restraint.
Do. Not. Give. Up.
We all know that life presents challenges at virtually every turn:
in personal relationships, in business dealings, in creative pursuits, in competitive sports and even with the weather.
(Let it snow!)
Our Skijoring Community
offers many examples of how patience and perseverance pays off,
and we applaud all of you on your achievements!
This also reminds us at SJUSA to remain professional above all else,
stay the course and re-galvanize our efforts to
take equine skijoring to the next level as our sport evolves.
Erik Petersen
Filmmaker
"The Ride"
On October 5, 2018 Erik posted:
"This thing!
This little thing I made, just for fun and on the side. No sponsors or budget, just a great character and a powerful story.
This thing was selected for the Banff Mountain Film Festival this year.
And I couldn't be more thrilled!"
We wish Erik the best of luck at all of the film festivals in which "The Ride" has been accepted for entry and prizes.
Clearly, Erik's commitment to his passion of filmmaking and photography is paying off. We are excited and humbled to have him in our midst telling our story and those of our competitors in a compelling, beautiful, genuine and heartfelt fashion.
While "The Ride" is currently being shown only at film festivals,
here is an excerpt which you can view:
https://vimeo.com/255928455
Laura des Palmes
Silverton Skijoring
It gives us great pleasure to announce that
Silverton, Colorado
feels that they are able to begin planning a race this season
for Saturday & Sunday, February 16th & 17th, 2019.
Skijoring down "Notorious Blair Street" in Silverton
is a time-honored tradition and brings significant revenue to this
quintessentially historic Victorian western mining town.
Silverton's race, like Leadville's,
currently does not plan to affiliate with any organization in 2019.
We, at Skijor USA, respect a race's wish to remain independent,
and we, in fact, acknowledge that we have much to learn from such races,
so we are happy to promote and support the Silverton race in any way we can. In turn, Silverton has graciously offered to assist new races in their region such as Pagosa Springs on January 19th & 20th.
Again, this race is still pending, so look directly to Silverton for updates.
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~ PRESIDENT'S DAY WEEKEND RACES ~
We are also letting everyone know that the race initially scheduled in
Gunnison during their alumni weekend which shared the President's Day
weekend with Silverton's race is now in flux,
so there is no longer a real or even perceived conflict in this region!
While both organizers had, in fact, been aware of each other's races and were willing to depend on local support to sustain both events, it seems that,
if all goes as planned, Silverton will be the place to be
in southern Colorado on President's Day weekend!
We will keep you all informed as to new developments with Gunnison.
Keep in mind that on President's Day weekend
in the Northern Region,
Columbia Falls, Montana
will be hosting a two-day race
which is an SJUSA Points Qualifier
&
in the Central Region,
Pinedale, Wyoming*
Sundance, Wyoming*
and Hailey/Bellevue, Idaho*
typically have events on President's Day weekend as well.
*SJUSA is in touch with organizers and will keep everyone informed as we gather information on these three currently independent races.
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~ TAKING SHAPE ~
Our Columbia Falls, Montana race
is called
Soldiers, Saddles & Skis: The Race for Valor
&
Our Pagosa Springs, Colorado race
is called
Skis & Saddles: Pagosa Skijoring
Logos and websites are still under development
and will be unveiled soon!
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~ WEDDING BELLS ~
Aaron Griffen & Katy Klick
&
John Hyde & Kelli Wiseman
Both couples be tying the knot next Saturday, October 13th, in their respective states of Montana and Wyoming.
We wish these two skijoring couples all the best
in their journeys together!
&
We look forward to seeing them at our races.
John will be traveling in style with Kelli,
who moved to Pinedale, Wyoming from Evergreen, Colorado
and hauling his signature paint horses in his new Skijoring trailer.
While John's "go to" races have been Saratoga, Leadville and Pinedale, he will be going to Utah as well as other new races this year.
Aaron was the Skijor Overall Sport Skier Champion in 2016, the Open Skier Champion in 2017, and placed 5th and 10th as an Open Skier in 2018,
so he is no doubt ready to make a comeback!
We acknowledge the dedication of athletes like John and Aaron.
Their soon-to-be new spouses made quite the catch!
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~ MORE TALENT IN OUR MIDST ~
Trinity Seely
The title for today's newsletter was inspired by a Facebook post
in which Mark LaRowe, SJUSA Corporate Council Member and full-time professional photographer, expressed satisfaction to be able to photograph
this talented musician, who performed the National Anthem at the Helena, Montana race last year, for her new album cover.
Mark had been waiting for this opportunity for quite a while!
Trinity will be playing at Aaron and Katy's wedding and
Mark LaRowe and Ebbie Hansen
will be photographing the event.
Stay tuned as to whether Trinity may make an appearance at
Helena's Last Chance Skijoring: Race for the Gold
on January 5th & 6th.
http://www.trinityseely.com
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~ TEAMWORK ~
The SJUSA Corporate Council met informally
on October 2nd
and will be having a formal meeting this coming week.
As has been our practice and remains our commitment to you as part of our promise of transparency,
minutes will be posted within 24 hours on our website for all to see.
Other members of our Skijoring Community
are stepping up independent of any organization and voluntarily contributing and we would like to acknowledge and support their efforts!
Jennifer Butler
has designed and launched a phone app called
"Skijoring Nation"
Her vision is to share information that she was gathering for her own benefit as a competitor and have it benefit others as well!
Jennifer has been reaching out to race organizers directly, since they are the most reliable source of information, and invites them to contact her via email at:
skijoringnation@gmail.com
to share information about their races as they unfold.
This way our community of riders, skiers, volunteers and spectators
can access a "one stop shop" app via their hand held devices
for up to date information which will include
event details, race results and more.
Kat Licht
has created an interactive Facebook Page called
"Skijoring Road Conditions PNW"
https://www.facebook.com/Skijoring-road-conditions-PNW-440067759816450/
Kat's concept is to keep everyone well informed and thus, safer on the roads this winter as we criss cross the Rocky Mountain West.
The more we all contribute the greater we can all benefit from each other's first hand observations.
THANK YOU Jennifer & Kat!
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~ OUR NUMBERS ~
Please help us reach
1000 likes/follows
Go to: https://www.facebook.com/skijorusa/
Thank you for opening and subscribing to
our weekly newsletter.
Engagement is key!
&
Your input is always welcome.
Please share announcements, comments or concerns at:
info@skijorusa.com
We are listening.
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~ HALL OF FAME ~
Watch for our Hall of Fame Submission Form next week!
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~ SAVE THE DATES ~
Thursday, October 11th, Corporate Council Meeting
Monday, October 22nd, Advisory Committee Meeting
Tuesday, October 23rd, Organizers' Summit
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JOR ON!
Your Team at Skijor USA
Mark, Levi, Loren, Dana, Bruce, Clay and Jerry
&
Your SJUSA Member Race Delegates
Photos courtesy of
Mark LaRowe and Erik Petersen