Skijoring + Fondue = Skijordue!

If you like a little snow with your cowboy culture, then the sport of skijoring is probably for you. And if you live in or around Calgary (and love melted cheese), you can watch the competition and enjoy fondue at the annual event called Skijordue.

Yup, you read that correctly. It’s a festival that celebrates the sport of skijoring, great cheese, and all things après-ski.

Skijordue was created by Sam Mitchell of Skijor Canada, the sport’s official governing body, who returned to Canada a decade ago after spending several winters in Switzerland where he discovered skijoring and après ski traditions. This year’s event took place February 15-16 at the Confluence Historic Site and Parklands.

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“When we moved back home, we missed the après-ski vibe in Zurich, which I know sounds really snobby,” Mitchell told the Calgary Herald. “But it’s not. Après-ski is a scene there, with yodelling competitions and fur hats — it’s just a whole thing that we don’t really have here.”

For newbies, skijoring is a high-octane sport where a rider on a galloping horse tows a skier or snowboarder towards a snow ramp for aerial moves (the skier, not the horse).

The sport has caught on, not just for its thrills but also for its style. You’ll see all types decked out in furs and neon as well as the requisite cowboy hat. Or to quote the Skijordue webpage it’s the “greatest show on snow” and is “a blistering blend of snow, speed, style and cheese. Gritty cowboys, gnarly freeriders, fur, fringe & fashionistas.”

What’s not to love? Check out a video of some of the action and fashion here.

And yes, horse welfare is an important part of the culture. Skijor Canada offers guidance on skijor horse training and conditioning, limit the number of runs a horse can make in competition and advocate protective gear and traction shoeing. All events have veterinarians on course and officials are authorized to excuse any horse or human appearing unsafe or unsound.