Last weekend I was walking back to my car after a skimo race at my local hill, Red Lodge Mountain.
It had been a great morning. The kind that reminds you why you love these mountain sports in the first place. The race started with a solid lung buster right out of the gate. About 2,000 feet of climbing to the top of Grizzly Peak. From there it was fast and a little chaotic in the best way possible. Bump skiing, boot packing, traversing, more climbing, more descending. The usual skimo mix of suffering and smiling.
I’ve been racing skimo for nearly 20 years now and I still love it.
It’s also been pretty fun watching the rest of the country finally start to learn what the sport even is...haha. With skimo making its debut in the Winter Olympics, a lot more people are starting to understand this weird little sport many of us have been obsessed with for years. The Olympics only included the sprint and relay formats, but there’s rumors that France, host of the 2030 games, will include the marquee individual race too.
Anyway, after the race I was heading to my car when I bumped into a good buddy who had also raced that morning.
He said he was heading back to the lodge for the important post race recovery program. A burrito, a coffee, and hanging out with friends. Hard to argue with that plan.
But then he casually mentioned he’d probably be going climbing later that afternoon.
Because it was spring, I asked the obvious question.
“Climbing ice or rock?”
He paused for a second and laughed.
“We haven’t decided yet.”
That’s one of the magical things about spring in the mountains.
Sometimes you can do both.
If you live around the mountains, there’s this short window each year where winter and summer activities overlap. You can ski in the morning, climb ice in a shady canyon, or chase the sun to dry rock in the afternoon. The options stack up in a way that just doesn’t happen any other time of year.
Honestly, it’s so freaking cool.
A few days later I ran into him again and asked how the climbing went.
He just chuckled.
“It was great. We climbed both.”
After racing skimo in the morning, they went out and climbed ice and rock that same afternoon.
That’s spring mountain living right there.
Those kinds of days don’t happen everywhere, and they don’t last forever once the seasons fully change. But if you have access to it, it’s worth leaning into that overlap while it’s here.
Stack activities. Mix seasons. Get a little creative.
That’s also where versatile gear really earns its place. When your day goes from cold snowy mornings to sunny rock in the afternoon, you want layers that move with you and stay comfortable through all of it. That’s exactly the kind of day our SkyGOAT layers were built for. The lightweight GOATgrid fleece balances warmth, breathability, and comfort so it works just as well on a ski ascent as it does hanging at a belay later in the day.
But honestly the real point is simpler than that.
Take advantage of whatever you have access to.
Ski. Climb. Ride. Hike. Fish. Race. Wander.
It’s all about getting outside to play and have fun.
Cheers to adventure! Ram