Alta Questad and Alex Grant Take the Win at the 2023 Arkoosh Cup
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
HAILEY, Idaho – Feb. 20, 2023 – Nearly 200 athletes took to the dual giant slalom course on the face of Rotarun for the 2023 Arkoosh Cup earlier today. Hundreds of family members and friends cheered on the skiers and snowboarders, and the competitive spirit was high for those trying their first hand at racing and the more experienced racers alike. Girls and boys under the age of fourteen raced for age class awards, with the first place winners in the U10 category named this year’s Arkoosh Cup.
“It was the perfect day for youth ski racing in the Wood River Valley,” said Chuck Harris, Arkoosh Cup Chief of Race. “A huge thank you to Rotarun for providing an impeccable venue for the race, to the coaches for their hard work, and to all the parents who support their kids and help share the love of ski racing.”
The Cup is named for the Arkoosh family from Gooding, who in 1957 gave Rotarun a 99-year lease for $1 per year. In 1993, the property was deeded over to Blaine County, with the underlying lease from the Arkoosh family intact.
“The Arkoosh Cup holds a truly special place in the history of Rotarun,” said Scott McGrew, Rotarun’s executive director. “It’s an opportunity to remember and celebrate the incredible family who made everything we do at Rotarun possible, while continuing to foster a love of ski and snowboard racing among the youth in our community. There’s nothing quite like seeing the excitement and healthy competitive spirit come together on Arkoosh Cup day!”
Since the mid-1960's, the Arkoosh Cup has seen winners like Picabo Street, who won the Cup in 1983 and eventually went on to become an Olympic and World Champion. Winners from more recent years are currently racing at the FIS elite level including Paige DeHart (2017), Jessica Blackburn (2016), and Haley Cutler (2009). Others have gone on to become SVSEF Alpine coaches, such as Sage Rheinschild (2012), Haley Cutler (2009), KJ Savaria (2008), Charlotte Gourlay (1999), and Amanda Stelling and Connor Farrow (2007).
The ‘Arkoosh Cup’ was awarded to the winning female and male of the U10 category. Award categories for the event are U12, U10, U8, and Snowboard.
The overall fastest times for boys and girls in the U10 category and winners of this year’s Arkoosh Cup were, Alex Grant crossing the line in 27.52 and Alta Questad in 25.21.
TOP FIVE PER AWARD CATEGORY RESULTS
U8 Men:
-
Evan McGregor
-
Ridge Crist
-
Ford Rixon
-
Dillon Wells
-
Vance Gardiner
U10 Men:
-
Alex Grant - 2023 Arkoosh Cup Winner
-
Halsten Bruun
-
Asa Sattler
-
Wyatt Matthews
-
Lachlan Hollis
U12 Men:
-
Kelby Harris
-
Alex Brown
-
Max Smith
-
Eli Sattler
-
Matthew Thurman
U8 Women:
-
Kayla Kloster
-
Dylan Spengler
-
Estelle Turzian
-
Lila VanderWyst
-
Morgan Thomas
U10 Women:
-
Alta Questad - 2023 Arkoosh Cup Winner
-
Sophie Robins
-
Lauren Larrabee
-
Amelia Beck
-
Arielle Ries
U12 Women:
-
Savannah Pringle
-
Jennings Fraser
-
Ava Gilmour
-
Bria Smiley
-
Amelie Ries
Snowboard Division:
Girls:
-
McKenna Minas
Boys:
-
Liam Romero
-
Barrett Gorringe
-
Everett Gorringe
-
Lucca Anguiano
-
Henry Baker
For complete 2023 Arkoosh Cup results, please CLICK HERE.
Photo of Alta Questad by Heather Foster.
2023 Arkoosh Cup Expecting More Than 150 Racers
HAILEY, Idaho –February 17, 2023 – The 2023 Arkoosh Cup will take place on Monday, Feb. 20 at Rotarun Ski Hill. The event is open to all children under the age of twelve. The Cup is named for the Arkoosh family from Gooding, who in 1957 gave Rotarun a 99-year lease for $1 per year. In 1993, the property was deeded over to Blaine County, with the underlying lease from the Arkoosh family intact.
“The Arkoosh Cup holds a truly special place in the history of Rotarun,” said Scott McGrew, Rotarun’s executive director. “It’s an opportunity to remember and celebrate the incredible family who made everything we do at Rotarun possible, while continuing to foster a love of ski and snowboard racing among the youth in our community. There’s nothing quite like seeing the excitement and healthy competitive spirit come together on Arkoosh Cup day!”
Since the mid-1960's, the Arkoosh Cup has seen winners like Picabo Street, who won the Cup in 1983 and eventually went on to become an Olympic and World Champion. Winners from more recent years are currently racing at the FIS elite level including Paige DeHart (2017), Jessica Blackburn (2016), and Haley Cutler (2009). Others have gone on to become SVSEF Alpine coaches, such as Sage Rheinschild (2012), Haley Cutler (2009), KJ Savaria (2008), Charlotte Gourlay (1999), and Amanda Stelling and Connor Farrow (2007).
The ‘Arkoosh Cup’ will be awarded to the winning female and male of the U10 category. Award categories for the event are U12, U10, U8, and Snowboard.
Online registration is open at Rotarun.org through Sunday, Feb. 19 at 6:00 p.m. The registration fee is $20. There is no race day registration. Results will be provided on Monday, Feb. 20 following the conclusion of the event.
EVENT SCHEDULE for Monday, Feb. 20
U12 & U10 SCHEDULE
8:00 a.m. Lift open to Coaches and Staff
8:00 a.m. Check-in / Bib & Lift Ticket pick-up
8:30 a.m. Lift open to U12 & U10 Racers only
8:40 a.m. – 9:10 a.m. Inspection
9:30 a.m. 1st Run
10:15 a.m. 2nd Run
11:00 a.m. Awards
U8 & SNOWBOARD SCHEDULE
11:30 a.m Registration
11:30 a.m. Lift open to U8 and Snowboard Racers only
11:40 a.m. – 12:10 p.m. Inspection
12:30 p.m. 1st Run
1:15 p.m. 2nd Run
2:00 p.m. Awards
For more information about Rotarun, visit rotarun.org
About Rotarun
Located just three miles west of downtown Hailey, Idaho, Rotarun Ski Area has been a community hub for local snow sports enthusiasts since 1948. Rotarun offers affordable youth snowsport programming and public skiing throughout the winter season. Since 2017, Rotarun and the Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation (SVSEF), separate 501c3 organizations, have worked together to collectively further learn-to-ski and ride programs and advanced training opportunities for the youth of the Wood River Valley. For more information, please visit www.rotarun.org.
###
Collective Effort and Shared Vision Lead the Way for Rotarun Ski Area
New snowcat and equipment garage bears fingerprints of our local community and beyond
Rotarun Ski Area has grown up over the last few years with the addition of snowmaking, and now thanks to the completion of a major capital improvement project, the operations at the ski area are increasingly sound. The new snowcat and equipment garage will house the snowcats and snowmobiles, to protect them from the elements, and allow for on-site maintenance and secure, year-round storage.
“This has been the epitome of a ‘community coming together’ project,” said Wally Limburg, Rotarun’s board president. “Without the generous support of individuals, foundations, and businesses along with their understanding of the value this project would bring to Rotarun, this simply would not have been possible. We are so incredibly grateful for how everyone chipped in how they could, whether it was through their time, their treasure, or their talent.”
Community support is certainly not new to Rotarun. Since the “little mountain with a big heart” first started turning its tractor-and-pulley rope tow in 1948, it has been the helping hands of Hailey and communities in the Wood River Valley that have kept it going year after year. Volunteers come back year after year to help run the platter lift, to teach skiing and riding with the Rota-Rippers, and simply to enjoy this special place that welcomes skiers and riders to learn, train, and race, while still exuding the accessibility and spirit of smaller ski hills gone by.
“Those who have stepped in to support this project and so many others along the way are really the fabric that make up Rotarun,” said Scott McGrew, Rotarun’s executive director. “From digging the dirt and pouring the foundation, to framing the walls, putting on the roof, and hanging the doors—this project has been a labor of love for everyone involved and it will serve an invaluable purpose for decades to come.”
From initial ground breaking, the project took five months to complete on time and under budget, even as construction costs continued to rise over the course of the build. Limburg served as the project manager, with a heavy lift of support both literally and physically from Carl Rixon and Rixon Excavation.
“I feel that it is so important for me to give back to help see the success of Rotarun Ski Area!” said Carl Rixon, Owner and Operator of Rixon Excavation. “Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation has been such a huge supporter of me and my family through the years, and with how involved they are with supporting Rotarun, and with the value both of these non-profits bring to the entire community, I am happy to contribute any way I can.”
Collaboration at every level starting with the Sage Springs Homeowners Association, Blaine County Planning Department, the Board of Blaine County Commissioners, and Wood River Fire Marshal Mike Elle, was essential to the project’s future. Creating the vision and plans required to bring the building to fruition was a team effort between de Reus Architects, Maxwell Structural Design Studio, Galena Engineering, and Blueprinting, Inc. Ketchum. Delivery of the materials and labor was made possible by Brooks Welding, C&R Electric, JMF Construction, Miley Roofing, R&M Steel Company, Superior Steel Products Boise, Thornton Heating, Valley Wide Co-Op, and WILRO Plumbing. And bringing it all together, Skip Merrick and the team at Merrick Construction were instrumental in the project’s success.
Raising the funds to complete a project of this size for a non-profit was a significant task in itself, and Rotarun is eternally grateful to everyone who played a part at every level. From organizations including the J.A. and Kathryn Albertson Family Foundation, Marshall Carroll Charitable Fund, Nancy Eccles and Homer M. Hayward Family Foundation, and Spur Foundation; to individuals including Kathy and Wally Limburg, Mark de Reus, Mark Kandianis, and Susan and Scott Robinson; it was the collective effort and belief in the project’s importance that brought it to fruition.
Additional thanks to Andrew Harris, Brian Caulkins, Brian Opp, Riley Berman, Wilson Construction, and the Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation staff for their support along the way.
Rota-Rippers Find a Love for Winter
Eye on Sun Valley's Karen Bossick paid a visit to Rotarun to meet up with the Rota-Rippers and had the opportunity to catch the kiddos in action and to hear what they had to say!
CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE VIDEO STORY
Thank you, Eye on Sun Valley!
Rotarun Ski Swap
Thank you to everyone who came to the Ski Swap! We hope you found some great gear for the upcoming season, and appreciate your support of our little ski hill!
A huge thank you to Sturtevants for all their essential support to make the Ski Swap a success!
Thank You, 100 Men Who Care WRV
The team at Rotarun extends more than 100 THANK YOUs to the 100 Men Who Care, Wood River Valley!
Through their collective generosity, Rotarun Ski Area has received a $4,600 gift to support learn to ski and ride programming!
We are so grateful for Marty Lyon's vision, inspired by this quote from Margaret Mead...
"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed individuals can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has."
52nd Annual Arkoosh Cup
Sam Robins and Savannah Pringle Race to Victory in 52nd Annual Arkoosh Cup
HAILEY, Idaho – Feb. 21, 2022 – Earlier today, under chilly, crystal clear blue skies and sunshine, 165 skiers and riders from three to eleven years old, turned out to race for good times, glory, and trophies at the 52nd Annual Arkoosh Cup at Rotarun Ski Area in Hailey. Both experienced and first-time racers took to the dual giant slalom course, with the music pumping, the race commentators coaxing a fun competitive spirit, and family members, teammates, and friends cheering everyone on with cow bells in hand.
“It was such a magnificent celebration of community and snowsport and kids and families and these activities we love,” said Scott McGrew, Executive Director at Rotarun. “One of the largest ever with 165 skiers and riders—all homegrown kids enjoying the sunshine on impeccably prepared slopes. You can’t beat a $10 entry fee and the joy that comes along with this incredible day—magnificent all around.”
Dating back to 1970, the Arkoosh Cup has seen winners like Picabo Street, who won the Cup in 1983 and eventually went on to become an Olympic and World Champion. Award categories for the event are U12, U10, and U8. The actual ‘Arkoosh Cup’ is awarded to the winning male and female of the U10 category, and their names are then etched into the trophy, which has a permanent home in the base lodge at Rotarun.
The overall fastest times for boys and girls in the 2022 Arkoosh Cup were posted by U10 athletes and winners of this year’s Arkoosh Cup, Sam Robins crossing the line in 22.20 and Savannah Pringle in 22.37.
RESULTS
U8 Men: 1. Ford Rixon 2. Tucker Thurston 3. Asa Sattler 4. Logan Steel 5. Mason McNulty
U10 Men: 1. Sam Robins 2. James Holman 3. Kelby Harris 4. Jack Kantor 5. Alex Grant
U12 Men: 1. Jaxon McGrew 2. Raleigh Johnson 3.Charlie Dulcich 4.Wesley Sewell 5. Matthew Thurman
U8 Women: 1.Alta Questad 2. Marie McNeal 3. Téa Smither 4. Amelia Beck 5. Freya Campbell
U10 Women: 1. Savannah Pringle 2. Jennings Fraser 3. Makenna Steel 4. Kinley Letson 5. Ava Gilmour
U12 Women: 1. Liv Harrington 2. Fernanda Hurtado 3. Irie Black 4. Amelie Ries 5. Dakota Wilkins
Snowboard Division: 1. Calvin Stoddard 2. Liam Romero 3. Clive Freytag 4. Quin Enoch 5. Felix Pott
For complete 2022 Arkoosh Cup results, click HERE.
