FLASH! 2009 NASTAR NATIONALS ANNOUNCED
The 2009 NASTAR National Championships will be held for the fourth year at Steamboat, Colorado, March 26-29.
Previously, resorts contracted to hold the huge event for three years in a row. This will be the first time in the 41-year history of the NASTAR National Championships, that it will be at the same resort four successive years.
It is the largest ski and snowboard race in the sport, with over one thousand recreational racers competing from all over the world, ranging in age from three years old to over 90. NASTAR is expecting more participants than ever, predicting that the 2009 Nationals will have "nearly 1,400 racers."
Racers must qualify to participate by being in the top three in their age and gender category at any of the nearly 100 resorts which host NASTAR on a daily basis. Anyone can pay the average fee of six dollars for two runs on the course. Their time is handicapped against a registered pacesetter, who sets each day's time. Racers can win platinum, gold, silver or bronze medals if they are fast enough. In 2008, there were over 100,000 people who raced NASTAR at a participating resort, with an average of five runs per racer throughout the season.
Many racers qualify and enter the National Championships year after year, making it the highlight of their winter season. But some of those annual competitors are already complaining about the date, which is two weeks later than the 2008 event. There have been a number of warming spells, with difficult snow conditions, at previous events held at the end of March. But a majority of the racers have agreed that so far, Steamboat has hosted the best Nationals of any resort. There was even a new six-passenger lift installed for the 2008 season to carry racers to the starting area faster.
The NASTAR Nationals are a money-making event for the hosting resort. Most racers bring family or friends; all of whom require lodging, food, and of course, race tuneups for their skis or snowboards.