With a storm on the way, we drove into Santa Caterina, Italy with zero visibility. Nestled among mountains, we cozied in to the small resort town for one night before departing for our first hut, Rifugio Branca.

The Audi Power of Four is known to be one of the toughest ski mountaineering races in North America, especially given that it packs in 12,000 feet of ascent over 24 miles. That being said, there are various mindsets in which to approach the race.

In search of adventure, decent snow, and a big day on skis we got a little creative with our skimo training. Since the day we closed on our house we’d been scheming about leaving from our house, skinning up Mesa Cortina Trail to the Gore Range Trail skinning around Buffalo Mountain via Eccles Pass, skiing down Meadow Creek Trail to Lilly Pad Trail and finishing by skinning out of Wildernest back to our house. This past weekend (February 17, 2018) seemed like no better time.

Believe it or not, The Commando Run has nothing to do with skiing with no undergarments on, but was named for the 10th Mountain Division Troops who used to travel this route. The route leaves from Vail Pass, heads up Shrine Pass Road, onto Lime Creek Road, ascends a ridgeline that allows you to navigate into the back of Vail Ski Resort. The final descent dumps your right into Vail Village (for apres beers of course.)