What the devil is a loppet?

Just like most other sports, cross-country skiing has its own dialect of the common English language.  One of the first terms that new cross-country skiers need to navigate is loppet.

If you type loppet into any word processing program you’ll see that spell-check also has no idea that it exists.  But it does. 

The term loppet has its roots in Scandinavia and essentially means “a whole bunch of people going skiing together.”  If you’re a cyclists a similar term might be granfondo.   While some loppets definitely have a competitive edge at the front of the pack, most loppets are dominated by recreational skiers who take advantage of skiing a marked course with food and drink stops along the way.

The Huckleberry Loppet is a two-day affair with a classic event on the first day and a skate-ski event on the second day.  The Huckleberry Loppet awards a full pound of locally picked huckleberries to the male and female winners in the longer-distance events.  There are, however, prizes and distances for every age and ability. The Huckleberry Loppet traditionally takes place in late January or early February – watch the Golden Nordic Club’s website for more info.

If you’ve recently taken up cross-country skiing, or you’re an avid skier, now is the time to try a loppet – come to Golden!