46th Annual Atmore Memorial Ski Race at Spirit Mountain

DULUTH, Minn. — A few snow flurries were in the air Friday afternoon and the wind was whipping around reminding us that winter is far from gone. Plus, the first day of the 46th annual Atmore Memorial Ski Race at Spirit Mountain was another solid reminder that it is the middle of February.

Skiers and their teams from across the country are on hand in Duluth for the Rocky Central Region qualifying event for nationals. The Atmore Memorial Ski Race is a step in the skier’s hopes to make it to the next level. 140 men and 100 women who are 16 years and older are taking part in the slalom races that run through Sunday.
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For Erik Carlson, this is his second year racing in the Atmore Memorial ski race, but he has been at the event for many years. When he was just eight he was here helping distribute coffee to the racers. “Training here every night and then seeing all these people here and racing on the same hill that I spent all my time on is just pretty cool to see.” Said Erik Carlson. “The experience is just awesome and being able to race alongside them is all I need. “

Team Duluth has four women and one man taking part in the qualifying. The Program Director for Team Duluth says they were a little concerned about the rain on Thursday, but then it got cold and froze everything. He says that’s good, but it’s not a slope that the average skier would want to attempt.

Team Duluth’s Co-Lead Alpine Coach Jon Totushek is pleased to have the top-tier skiers at the Atmore.” Yeah, this race is super awesome,” said Tolushek. “We get athletes from all over the world. They use this as a stepping stone to bigger and better things in their career. We’ve had former athletes make it to the professional level “

Races begin at 8 a.m. on both Saturday and Sunday and finish up shortly after noon at Spirit Mountain and you’re encouraged to go out and see these athletes for yourself.