Posted by: Tom Boyd
Summer Mountain Games registration opens as Winter Mountain Games Preview event gets under way
Registration is now open for the 20th annual GoPro Mountain Games. The event, which welcomes thousands of mountain athletes and tens of thousands of spectators to Vail, Colorado, each year, is set to take place June 7-12, 2022.
The list of competitions reads like a “dream-come-true” for outdoor-sports enthusiasts. Early-bird registration rates will be available for events including: fly fishing, kayaking, rafting, SUP, climbing, mountain biking, road biking, trail running, yoga, disc golf, DockDogs, kids’, junior, and family events, and more.
“When the snow melts and summer comes around there is a lot of bottled-up energy in the outdoor and mountain sports world. People want to get outside, get moving, and get together, and all of that positive energy will find a home at the 2022 GoPro Mountain Games in Vail,” said Dave Dressman, Event Director for the GoPro Mountain Games, a project of the nonprofit Vail Valley Foundation. “There is a high amount of exhilaration and excitement from our athletes, our team here at the Vail Valley Foundation, our partners at the Town of Vail and Vail Resorts, and all of our sponsors, to welcome the world back to Vail and to take this event to the next level.”
New events and old favorites are available as registration opens for this world-renowned summertime celebration of athletes, art, music, and mountains. Register HERE.
Beginners, weekend warriors, and pro athletes are all encouraged to sign up and compete. More than $130,000 in prize money will be up for grabs.
Concerts, art, and FREE spectating activities are also a big part of the event. The Mountains of Music concert lineup, ancillary events, art installations, spectator entertainment and more will be announced in the coming weeks and months.
The 2022 event will be the 20th anniversary of the Mountain Games, which has become known as the best all-around outdoor mountain experience available anywhere in the world.
After a year off in 2020 due to the pandemic, the GoPro Mountain Games was among the first major events to open to spectators when a slightly pared-down version was held in 2021. The 2022 edition, said organizers, will bring the event back to and beyond 2019 levels of activity and celebration.
The event will feature two additional days of competition (Tuesday, June 7, & Wednesday, June 8) and will include new venues, new events, and a top-shelf concert lineup.
Announcement comes as Winter Mountain Games gets under way
The summer GoPro Mountain Games registration announcement comes as the Winter Mountain Games Preview event gets under way, also in Vail, Feb. 25-27. The event, which is also hosted by the Vail Valley Foundation, features USA Skimo national events, the Fat Tire Bike Challenge, XC Snowshoe 5K and 10K events, the 5K Dog Derby Snowshoe Race, the Nature Valley Bootlegger hill climb, plus live concerts from Low Cut Connie, Galactic, JoJo Hermann, and Moon Taxi, at Solaris in Vail Village Friday and Saturday evenings.
A full-fledged version of the Winter Mountain Games is planned for early 2023. To take part or learn more, visit winter.mountaingames.com.
What’s new for summer Mountain Games? A GoPro Dual Slalom … and more
Six days of celebrating mountain lifestyle and culture
For the first time ever the GoPro Mountain Games will take place over six days rather than four. The event will open with the highly-spectator-friendly GoPro Dual Slalom bike competition qualifying round to take place June 7, 2022, at the Minturn Bike Park in Minturn, Colorado, located 10 minutes away from Vail Village. GoPro Dual Slalom action will continue at the Minturn Bike Park through Wednesday, June 8. This action-packed new event will be held in partnership with the Town of Minturn, Vail Valley Mountain Trails Alliance, and Strait Acres.
Steep and sweet whitewater
The TINCUP Steep Creek Championships at Homestake Creek has long been known as the elite-level kayaking opener to the GoPro Mountain Games. The event will be held one day earlier than usual, on Wednesday, June 8, at its usual venue at Homestake Creek near Red Cliff, Colorado. This move allows competitors to rest and shift focus to the GMC Kayak Freestyle qualifiers at the I-Bridge in Vail Village on Thursday, June 9.
The return of climbing
Climbing makes its return to the GoPro Mountain Games for the first time since 2019 with the very popular CELSIUS Citizen Climbing as well as a North American Cup Series climbing event, in partnership with USA Climbing. The climbing wall will return to Mountain Plaza and events will take place June 9-12, with youth climbing leading the way on Thursday, June 9.
The adidas Terrex 20K Anniversary Run will celebrate 20 years
The adidas Terrex 10K Spring Runoff, the adidas Terrex Après 5K Trail Run, and the Rocky Dog Trail Run have long been staples of the GoPro Mountain Games trail running events. This year a new event, the adidas Terrex 20K Anniversary Run, will be added to the lineup to celebrate 20 years of the GoPro Mountain Games.
Concerts at The Amp, family-friendly competitions, and more
The GoPro Mountain Games will once again feature a vibrant and interactive Mountain House Gear Town sponsor village, where spectators can engage with top outdoor brands throughout Vail. Gear Town opens on Thursday June 9 and continues through Sunday June 12.
The event will also host a variety of daytime music in multiple venues along with nightly concerts at the Vail Valley Foundation’s Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater in Vail, the ever-popular Orijen DockDogs (and other dog-friendly) events, a wide array of kids adventure sports events and activities, slackline demonstrations, the return of the Nature Valley Mountain Mud Run, the legendary Pacifico 8-ball Kayak Sprint and so much more.
The 2022 GoPro Mountain Games will also feature more junior divisions in bike and run events to accommodate more levels and age groups of riders.
List of competition events announced to date*:
Tuesday, June 7
GoPro Dual Slalom
Minturn Bike Park
Wednesday, June 8
GoPro Dual Slalom
Minturn Bike Park
TINCUP Steep Creek Championship
Homestake Creek, Red Cliff
Thursday, June 9
YETI Catch Wars
Eagle River
GMC Kayak Freestyle qualifier
Gore Creek, Vail Village
Gore IV Kayak Challenge
Gore Creek, Vail Village to West Vail
Rocky Dog Trail Run
Vail Village & Vail Mountain
Try DockDogs
Lionshead, Vail
Orijen DockDogs Big Air waves 1-4
Lionshead, Vail
Dueling Dogs Qualifying Duels 1-2
Lionshead, Vail
Friday, June 10
North American Cup Vail presented by CELSIUS
qualifiers
Mountain Plaza, Vail Village
Pacifico Raft Cross
Gore Creek, Vail Village
CELSIUS Yoga
Vail, exact location TBD
adidas Terrex Après 5K Trail Run
Vail Village
Orijen DockDogs Big Air waves 5-7
Lionshead, Vail
Orijen Dueling Dogs rounds 3-5
Lionshead, Vail
Try DockDogs
Lionshead, Vail
Saturday, June 11
YETI 2 Fly X-Stream qualifiers and Semi-Finals
Vail Village
Kids Bike Race
Golden Peak, Vail Village
GMC Down River Kayak Sprint, Pacifico Raft Sprint and YETI SUP Sprint
Gore Creek, East Vail to Vail Village
North American Cup Vail presented by CELSIUS Semi-Finals and Finals
Mountain Plaza, Vail Village
Oakley XC Mountain Bike
Vail Village & Vail Mountain
CELSIUS Yoga
Vail, exact location TBD
Mountain House Disc Golf rounds 1-2
Maloit Park, Minturn
Nature Valley Mountain Mud Run
Family and ‘All Mountain Madness’ divisions
Vail Village & Vail Mountain
GMC Kayak Freestyle finals
Gore Creek, Vail Village
Orijen DockDogs Big Air waves 8-9
Lionshead, Vail
Orijen DockDogs Extreme Vertical
Lionshead, Vail
Dueling Dogs rounds 6-8
Lionshead, Vail
Sunday, June 12
Kids Cast & Catch
Big Horn Park, East Vail
Road Bike Time Trial
Vail Village to top of Vail Pass
YETI Fishing finals
Location TBA
YETI SUP Surf Cross
Gore Creek, Vail Village
adidas Terrex 10K Spring Runoff
Mountain Plaza, Vail Village
adidas Terrex 20K Anniversary Run
Mountain Plaza, Vail Village
Pepi’s Face Off presented by JUNK Brands
Mountain Plaza, Vail Village
CELSIUS Yoga
Vail, exact location TBD
Mountain House Disc Golf rounds 3-4
Maloit Park, Minturn
CELSIUS Citizen climbing and Youth Climbing waves
Mountain Plaza, Vail Village
Orijen DockDogs Big Air wave 10 & finals
Lionshead, Vail
Orijen DockDogs Speed Retrieve finals
Lionshead, Vail
Dueling Dogs rounds 9-10 & finals
Lionshead, Vail
Pacifico 8-Ball Kayak Sprint
Gore Creek, Vail Village
*Schedules and locations subject to change. Additional events expected to be added.
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