BEST OF NEWB: BETTER LATE THAN NEVER, LUNAR CUP

12 Jun BEST OF NEWB: BETTER LATE THAN NEVER, LUNAR CUP

Editor’s Note: Better late than never. Gavin Anstey of Telluride Newbs dropped me a note saying he had missed this year’s Lunar Cup event  – and this week’s Monday deadline – because mom was in town. His video from last year’s Lunar Cup should suffice, however,  for an auld lang syne to winter 2012. You might also want to check out Jesse James McTigue’s spin on the same subject for Telluride Inside… and Out: https://www.tellurideinside.com///2011/07/lunar-cup-not-your-everyday-ski-race.html.

Although many things differentiate Telluride from your run-of-the-mill, Aspen-like ski town, probably one of the most apparent – and most fun – is the Lunar Cup. Originating in 1977 and continuing on almost an annual basis (thanks to Roby and Herb Manning), the Lunar Cup is the final sayonara to winter for both hardcore skiers and locals, which most often than not are the same people.

Last summer’s Lunar Cup was one of the best experiences of this Newb’s first Telluride summer. Unfortunately, due to a lack of snow and a schedule conflict, I was unable to make it to this year’s race, which moved up a month to accommodate the minimal amount of snow left in Savage Basin. Either way, you can’t truly be a local without participating in the race at least once. It’s a hell of a time.