What is skimo…and why on earth are these people skiing uphill instead of taking the lift?

Today we're kicking off Skimo Gold's Olympic Dispatch with Travis Macy and Andrew Vontz (host of Choose the Hard Way and co-host of Beyond the Peloton) for a rapid-fire, beginner-friendly breakdown of ski mountaineering—built for the skimo-curious and anyone watching the sport hit the Olympic stage.

Travis unpacks the two Olympic disciplines—the Sprint and the Mixed Relay—and explains what makes them so brutally fun: head-to-head racing, steep climbs, sketchy descents on skinny race skis, and the make-or-break details of transitions. You’ll learn what’s actually happening in the zones (skinning, bootpacking, skiing downhill), why transitions become pure muscle memory when you’re “tasting blood,” and how the best athletes can “tighten the screws” until mistakes start showing up.

They also get into the bigger question skimo fans love to argue about: Is the Olympic format “real” skimo? Travis shares the case for the short, explosive events and the long, high-consequence mountaineering-style races—plus why the Olympics might be the perfect gateway for new fans to discover the full spectrum of the sport.

If you’ve ever watched a clip of a double skin rip and thought, “what did I just see?” — this one’s for you. Let’s go!

Special thanks to TRAINING PEAKS, DYNAFIT and POMOCA for sponsoring Skimo Gold's Olympic Dispatch!

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Thanks to our sponsor CAMP

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Skimo Gold is produced by Palm Tree Pod Co.