Ski Joring Competition

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By Lindsey Scheetz

Story Published: Mar 14, 2010 at 5:32 PM MST

Story Updated: Mar 15, 2010 at 10:46 AM MST

Red Lodge
45.1928117 -109.2467751

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RED LODGE - Sunny skies, a little snow, and a lot of mud made for perfect conditions for Red Lodge's annual ski joring competition.

Nearly 70 teams with competitors of all ages participated in the weekend's event. One participant said, "It's a lot of fun, it's definitely contagious, once you do it once you're hooked."

So what exactly is it that hooked these athletes? Participant Cody Smith said it was the thrill of the sport. "I would kind of calling it like water skiing, behind a horse, on snow."

The goal of the game; to be the fastest to make it around the horse-shoe shaped track.

"The horse will stay on the left side of the track or the inside of the track and the skiers just on the right side," Smith said, "and typically there's just 3, 4 or 5 jumps and some stubby gates in between so kind of some slalom turns. A couple jumps and a finish line."

But it isn't just the sport that is captivating its participants. Skier Toby McIntosh said it is the collision of two different worlds that makes the sport unique. "It's not very often you get the cowboys and skiers together and so its just a lot of fun and even though we come from very different worlds everyone comes together and has a good time. You know we're all serious and competing hard out on the track but we're truly friends outside."

Friendships that horseback rider Dana Stiles said will last even after the competition is done. "Just they're just really good friends. I mean most of us keep in touch throughout the year, even though we don't see each other from year to year and we're all friends." Relationships that probably would not have developed if it hadn't been for this wacky sport.

The annual ski joring competition is held every year in Red Lodge at the Red Lodge rodeo grounds.

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