40th Denali State Bank Sonot Kkaazoot

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Athabaskan: Sonot (pronounced “SAW NOT”, “springtime”) Kkaazoot (“kah-ZOOT”, “to slide your feet across the snow”)

Saturday, March 27, 2027

Save the date. It will be springlike for our 40th running of the Sonot Kkaazoot. New race organizers Alex Morris and Cyrus Freeman have ideas for making the event even better.

10 km race start at 10:00 a.m.

30 and 50 km race start at 10:15 a.m.

Sonot Kkaazoot Race Courses: All races are freestyle events. Classical tracks will be set for all courses. All three races will have the same route for the first 2 km, which starts in the stadium, up the main ramp, out Relay Start Loop, onto the South Tower to the top and back down to the end of Tower, then onto Roller Coaster Bypass to stadium.

10 km course:   After the above start route, the 10 km will head down the White Bear access and out onto the White Bear.  Will follow the White Bear to the Beacon Cutoff, then return via the White Bear, skipping Moilanen Meadows, back to the White Bear Access, finishing the White Bear Access to the stadium, then a hard right following the east side of the stadium and then ski the whole Warm-Up Loop and into the FINISH.

10 km Sonot Kkaazoot course with profile

30 km course:  After the start route as the racers come into the stadium from the Roller Coaster Bypass, they will ski directly across the stadium and down onto the Competition, then out onto the entire North Forty back to the Competition, then down onto the entire Back Hole back to the Competition then finishing the remaining Competition and back into the stadium. Skiers then proceed up the west side of the main ramp and down and around the Blue Loop, then down onto the Outhouse Loop to the Sunnyside. Ski the entire Sunnyside trail (not Cliffside), and back to the Outhouse Loop. Finish the Outhouse Loop then turn left onto the Relay Return to the top of the ramp. Turn right onto the Tower Loop, ski entire Tower Loop followed by Medevac and finishing the Roller Coaster. Ski right down onto the White Bear Access then right onto the White Bear, all of the White Bear including Moilanen Meadows, and the White Bear Access back to the stadium. Turn right and ski along the east side of the stadium, and the entire Warm-Up Loop, and into the FINISH.


Section 1 of 30 and 50 km Sonot Kkaazoot courses with profile
Section 2 for 30 and 50 km Sonot Kkaazoot courses with profile

50 km course:   Ski the 30 km course but after skiing under the bridge, the 2nd lap for the 50 km course will lap around the finish and take a right down on the Competition, then onto the North Forty for a little over a kilometer, then skiers will take the cut-off back onto the Competition, by-passing the Black hole, continuing up the Competition keeping straight and left back to the stadium, then right up the west side of the main ramp, and down the Blue loop, then the Outhouse loop, then  down the Sunnyside and Cliffside, across the base of the Ft. Wainwright Ski Hill just in front of the Ft. Wainwright Ski Lodge, and then turn left up the Sonot Connector all the way back to the White Bear. Turn right onto the outbound White Bear, then ski the rest of the White Bear and Moilanen Meadows and the White Bear Access to the stadium. Turn right and ski along the east side of the stadium. Ski the entire Warm-Up loop then under the bridge and into the FINISH!!!

Section 3 of 50 km Sonot Kkaazoot course with profile

PDF versions of the course maps can be downloaded at the Courses tab above.

Feed Stations will be staffed by the Lathrop, North Pole, and West Valley XC Ski team boosters and are located in the stadium and on the White Bear trail at Sonot Junction. A detailed list can also be downloaded at the Courses tab.

QUESTIONS:  contact@sonotkkaazoot.org

Sonot 2015 start_sm

Photo of the 2015 start by Chris Hemming

Banner photo courtesy of Retrospection Image.

Congratulations and Thanks

Congratulations to all the skiers who successfully finished their 39th Denali State Bank Sonot Kkaazoot event yesterday. The grooming team did a fantastic job of firming up the trails after our recent assault of fine-grained snow. However, the lingering cold weather made skiing challenging.

Please check the draft results and let us know if you see any errors in times, names, or age categories. Just send an email to contact@sonotkkaazoot.org and we’ll make the changes in the final results. The results won’t be updated immediately as head timer, Anna Sorensen is heading off for a well-deserved vacation.

Overall winners are listed on the “About” page above and on the “Sonot History” page. The winning times reflect the challenging conditions. Only Elsie Weiss of the UAF Ski Team was able to ski her event faster than last year’s winner.

Help me thank all the volunteers who made yesterday’s Sonot Kkaazoot possible. Please check the “Volunteers” page and provide the Sonot organizers with the names of others who assisted us.

Finally, save the date for the 40th Denali State Bank Sonot Kkaazoot, 27 March 2027. Race directors Alex Morris and Cyrus Freeman promise us springlike weather.

136 skiers ready to ski

The Birch Hill trails have been groomed to perfection with groomers using two pisten bullies last night. The color-coded kilometer markers are in place to guide the 59 skiers in the 10 km event and the 77 in the longer 30 and 50 km events.

The sun is out and temperatures will rapidly rise from the -6 deg at 8:00 a.m. Race Day bib pickup is open now.

Have fun on the trails today. Make sure you thank our wonderful volenteers.

Results will be posted when available on the Results tab above.

39th Denali State Bank Sonot Kkaazoot has 135 registered skiers

Registration for the 39th Denali State Bank Sonot Kkaazoot is closed. One hundred thirty-five skiers are signed up to compete on Saturday. Fifty-nine skiers will head off on their 10 km journey at 10:00 a.m. At 10:15 a.m., 37 skiers doing the 30-km course and 39 doing the 50- km course will start.

Race day bib pick-up is at Rikka’s Roadhouse from 8:00 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.

Please join us for the Awards Ceremony and Dinner at 6:00 p.m. upstairs in the main Birch Hill Recreation Building. If you qualify for an overall or age-class award and are unable to attend the awards ceremony, please try to find someone who can pick it up for you.

Results will be posted on the Results tab as soon as they are available. Please notify us if you see any mistakes in names and/or times. Email: contact@sonotkkaazoot.org

Last chance to register for Sonot Kkaazoot

Today is your last opportunity to register for the 39th Denali State Bank Sonot Kkaazoot. Please pick up your race bib tonight between 5 and 7 pm upstairs at the main Birch Hill Recreation Building.

Remember tonight is your only opportunity to chance your race distance and all registration ends at 1159 p.m.

As of this morning, 50 skiers are registered for the 10 km event, 68 for the longer distances.

Early Bib Pick-up Thursday from 5 to 7 p.m.

Early bib pick-up will be Thursday, 19 March 2026, from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. upstairs in the Birch Hill Recreation Center.

Three reasons you should attend early bib pickup:

You spare yourself (and friends and family members for whom you pick up bibs) the stress of waiting in line on race morning.

    Early bib pick-up is the ONLY time that you can change the race event that you are registered in. You may change to a race shorter than you registered for at no-cost. If you want to ski a longer race, you will be responsible for the difference in race entry fee. Bring cash or check for the fee difference when you change your registration. No changes after 7 p.m. on Thursday.

    Mark Ross, the artist responsible for this year’s Sonot Kkaazoot poster, will be available at early bib pick-up to sign posters.

    Timers needed for Sonot Kkaazoot

    Want to be have the best spot to watch skiers finishing the 39th Denali State Bank Sonot Kkaazoot? Volunteer to be part of the Sonot Kkaazoot timing crew.

    Head timer Anna Sorensen will train you and you’ll get to work with other key members of the NSCF ski community. Subway, a Sonot Kkaazoot sponsor, will supply sandwiches to fuel timers, while Gina and Margaret will supply sweet goodies. Hot beverages and indoor bathroom facilities will be available.

    The unseasonably cold temperatures likely mean that many skiers will not be setting personal records, so we’d really like to have adequate timing volunteers so that Anna can relieve volunteers when additional help arrives.

    Email: contact@sonotkkaazoot.org if you are willing to be a part of this essential Sonot Kkaazoot function.

    Regular registration ends soon

    Avoid late registration fees of $20/person for adult skiers if you register before 11:59 p.m. on Tuesday, 17 March 2026. Registration fees for junior skiers increase from $5 to $15 depending upon their age and ski club membership status.

    All registration for the Denali State Bank Sonot Kkaazoot ends at 1159 p.m. on Thursday, 19 March 2026. There are no race day entries.

    Beautiful day on the Blackhawk trail

    Beautiful tracks on Blackhawk trail set by Bill Husby and captured on video by Dan Johnson

    The sun was out and it was -6 deg in the Birch Hill stadium. With the classical only trails groomed yesterday, the SCUM headed out to the Blackhawk trail to enjoy Bill Husby’s grooming. We were treated to fresh new tracks except where a moose (untrained in trail etiquette) had disrupted the parallel grooves.

    Sarah Conn (all photos by Dan Johnson)
    Jeff Conn
    Don Pedergrast
    Byron Broda
    Bill Husby
    Bernardo Hernandez

    And Mother SCUM, who was going so slow, Dan’s fingers froze:

    No falls today with very controlled downhill speed

    Enjoy the trails before the moose destroy them. The sunshine had us all smiling today even though it was -20 deg F on the Classical Bear trail.