April means adventure with the Tesoro Arctic Man Classic.

• Author: Pilkington, Steve
• Position: Alaska this Month - Brief Article

For a brief time in April, an adventurous event takes place at Summit Lake on the Kenai Peninsula. Almost overnight it becomes filled with more than 1,100 motor homes and the accompanying winter toys, snowmachines and crazed speed demons on skis looking for something to get the adrenaline elevated to mountainous levels.

For winter sports enthusiasts, the Tesoro Arctic Man Ski & Sno-Go Classic is a fast-paced spectacle to witness if you have a snowmachine and can get parking. (Spectators need snowmachines to get to the finish line.) After all, the slogan is "Go fast, or go home."

"We've been called the Fort Lauderdale of the winter," said Howard Thies, founder, president and organizer of the Tesoro Arctic Man, which is in its 17th year. This year the race will take place on April 12. There are practice days before the race day, and then time the day after for the awards presentation and to close the event down.

The Tesoro Arctic Man is a race for teams of two partners relying upon the strength of the athlete and the horsepower of a snowmobile. Courage and training are essential elements of this team of snowmobile and skier. It's an incredibly tough downhill ski race, and an exciting snowmobile race all in one. The skier begins at a summit elevation of 5,800 feet and drops 1,700 feet in less than two miles to the bottom of a narrow canyon. The skier then meets up with a snowmobiling partner. The snowmobiler has a towrope and pulls the skier more than two miles uphill at top speeds of up to 86 mph. The skier and the snowmobile then separate and the skier goes over the side of the second mountain and drops another 1,200 feet to the finish line. If that sounds fun or easy, you're just who they are looking for.

"It's a 5 1/2-mile race; it all happens pretty fast," Thies said. "Safety is an important...