Steamboat Springs Winter Carnival
The Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club, one of the largest and oldest winter sports clubs in the U.S., hosts the 96th Annual Steamboat Springs Winter Carnival, the oldest continuing Winter Carnival west of the Mississippi. For 5 days, the entire town of Steamboat Springs is given over to ski jumping, dual slalom bicycle race, snowboarding jam session, tubing party, pancake breakfast, soda pop slalom, telemark revival, international muzzleloading biathlon, chariot racing, the diamond hitch parade which includes the Steamboat Springs High School band on skis, street events with horse and rider pulling kids on skis down main street on Saturday and Sunday, and the Night Show Extravaganza on Saturday February 7th at 6:30pm with a huge fireworks display and the famous Lighted Man.
The Winter Carnival started as a way to help Steamboat Springs locals with cabin fever during the height of the winter season and has continued to this day as a way to celebrate winter, which is such an important part of our daily lives here in the Yampa Valley. Carl Howelsen, often acknowledged as the man who brought the sport of skiing to Colorado, started this tradition in 1914 with cross country skiing races and jumping competitions. In its second year, the town added skijouring competitions where skiers were pulled by horses.
On Saturday and Sunday hundreds of people line Lincoln Avenue to witness the Street Events. The Street Events are a wildly popular and entertaining show featuring children on skis (or a snowboard) being pulled behind horses down a snow-covered Lincoln Avenue. Horse Events include: Street Slalom, Ski Joring, the Ring & Spear, the Ring & Box, and the famous Donkey Jump. Horse Events are for children ages 6 to 14 years old, while Non-Horse Events are for children ranging in age from infants to 14 years old.
All kids interested in participating in this year's street events need to register in advance for the horse events. Registration for the Winter Carnival street events will open at 7:30a.m. on Friday, January 30th at the Steamboat Springs Visitor's Center. Registration closes on Friday, February 6th. You need to register in person for the horse events and we can not accept registrations over the phone. Get there early as availability fills quickly! Please see the list below for descriptions of the different events.
In addition to providing numerous fun-filled activities for locals and visitors alike, the Steamboat Springs Winter Carnival also serves as an annual fundraising opportunity for the Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club.
Winter Carnival button sales proceeds are the primary source of funds within the event. All spectators and event participants are encouraged to purchase and wear an official Winter Carnival button to show their support of Winter Carnival and of the Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club.
Buttons can be purchased at the Chamber Resort Association, Winter Sports Club and from the ResortQuest Steamboat concierge for $7.00 each. All proceeds from button sales support the Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club and its athletes. For more information about the Steamboat Springs Winter sports Club, visit their website at www.sswsc.org
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