What is Crescent Racing?
The Crescent Racing program is a series of races held approximately every other weekend from early January until early March. Participation is open to any member of a ski club which is part of the Crescent Ski Council. The racing season consists of two parts: the regular race schedule and the Crescent Finals in March. Results from the races are compiled for both individual and team competition. Individuals are grouped in "flights" with other racers of comparable ability, and the individual competition occurs within each flights. There are no age or sex categories; both male and female racers of all ages compete against each other in the various flights. Prizes (ski gear and trophies) are awarded throughout the season for both team and individual performance.

What is the racing format?
A race weekend typically consists of two separate races: slalom on Saturday and Giant Slalom on Sunday. A racer does not have to participate in both events if he / she chooses not to. Each race consists of two runs, and the winner of the race is the individual in each flight who has the best combined runs. Racers ski the course sequentially, not head-to-head. The order for the first run is by ascending bib order, and then the second run is conducted in reverse order. Typically there are two separate courses set up for each race (a Division I and a Division II course). The Division I course is slightly more challenging and is skied by the top half of the flights with the lowest handicaps.

How do I qualify to race?
There are three ways to qualify:
· have completed a previous Crescent race within the last two years,
· have competed in a NASTAR race within the last two years and finished with a handicap of 60 or less, or
· establish a Crescent handicap of 60 or less by running the course as part of the development program on any Crescent race weekend.
 

How much does it cost?
The racing fee for this year is $25 per racer. This fee is in addition to your club dues and the cost of weekend packages offered by the club.

What is Crescent Cup?
The Crescent Racing Series Finals (also known as Crescent Cup) are held on the last weekend of the season. Team scores are compiled for the weekend and a trophy is awarded to the club with the most points. Trophies are also awarded to individuals with the best combined scores for the weekend within each flight.

What else do I need to know?
Is ski racing fun? Yes, as long as you enjoy skiing and a little friendly competition. Is there a downside? Sure, the most frequent complaint that I hear from race competitors is in regard to the amount of time the events take away from free skiing with your friends or family. Races typically start at 9:00 AM (8:30 AM if you want to inspect the course before running it) and conclude about 1:00 PM. Since a racer must ski in the designated bib order, this means that one cannot wander all over the mountain without checking back to the starting gate to see how soon they will be expected to race. This issue is compounded if the flight that you are competing in is picked to gatekeep. There are many elements that contribute to a successful alpine race, and one of these elements is the use of gatekeepers to monitor the course during the event. It is the responsibility of the gatekeeper crew to ensure that each racer completes the course, and to help replace gates that may become dislodged during the race. For the Crescent races, gatekeepers are randomly selected each weekend by flight, which means that if your flight is selected, you will be assigned to gatekeeping duties. Typically, gatekeepers are assigned to a position on the course when they are not actually racing, which virtually eliminates all free skiing during the race.