Ski for the Pass fundraiser, race will be scaled-back due to the pandemic
Annual fundraiser supports the Independence Pass Foundation
The Independence Pass Foundation has received a green light to host a scaled down Ski for the Pass event Feb. 14, according to executive director Karin Teague.
The Pitkin County Public Health Department has approved an event for 50 people, Teague said Monday. They will participate in a staggered start at 30-second intervals beginning at 10 a.m.
Start times will be emailed to participants and posted on the Ute Mountaineer’s website the day prior to the event. Race bibs, which will contain start times, will be available at the Ute Mountaineer on Feb. 13, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. or at the race start.
This will be the ninth year IPF has held the winter fundraiser. Proceeds help fund its mission to restore and protect the ecological, historical and aesthetic integrity of the pass.
Ski for the Pass starts at the winter closure gate 5.5 miles east of Aspen on Highway 82. The event travels 4.2-miles to Lincoln Creek on the closed roadway.
Registration is online only at http://www.utemountaineer.com. It is first come, first reserved with registration available until 1 p.m. Feb. 12. There will be no registration on the day of the event.
The cost is $15 for adults and $7.50 for youth 18 and younger.
Teague said she is grateful to be able to stage a reduced-size event given the coronavirus pandemic. “Due to current COVID regulations, a few things about the (event) will be different,” the IPF website said.
Chief among them are social distancing steps. There won’t be aid stations, so participants should bring their own food and drink. In addition, participants are asked not to invite spectators. Additional guidelines are available at the Ute and IPF websites (independencepass.org).
