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Mt. Baker Ski Area prepares for world-famous snowboard race

Course setting for Legendary Banked Slalom is an 'art form'

By Julia Tellman Local News Reporter

Mt. Baker Ski Area CEO Gwyn Howat has set the Legendary Banked Slalom course for 34 years, and no two courses are the same. This week, aided by an experienced team of skiers, riders and snow-movers, she once again carved the flowing ribbon of race track into the mountain’s uniquely well-suited venue.

“It’s super organic and each course has its nuances. You can’t map it out — setting the course is an art form,” she said.  

The world-famous snowboard race, now in its 36th year (with a few years off due to COVID and the occasional low-snow postponement, including 2024), is always on the weekend of the Super Bowl — this year’s event is Feb. 7–9. 

The LBS is on the Natural Halfpipe run that snakes away from the top of Chair 5. The race combines elements of gated racing, halfpipe and freeride as riders compete to see who can get down the course the fastest. 

Howat said she couldn’t be happier with the timing of last weekend’s storm, which blessed the hill with 41 inches of light snow. Starting on Saturday, Howat and two other skiers broke trail down the closed and untouched run, slogging through hip-deep powder. Then in the following days, snowboarders rode the course to firm up the surface, ensuring it wouldn’t change dramatically during the 1,200 or so runs taken by racers during the event. 

“It’s funny, it takes skiers to set the course because of the maneuvering, but it takes snowboarders to carve the course because of the way they hit turns,” she said. 

The ample snow allowed Howat to set an open, flowy, fast course — when the base is firm or icy, it results in a tight, technical track instead. Duncan Howat, the 80-year-old former general manager, came out of retirement to drive a snowcat and shape two huge rollers and a sharp turn at the finish line. As the sun emerged during the week, workers put in gates, spectator fencing, timing systems and finish line infrastructure.

A new finish shack graces the bottom of the Legendary Banked Slalom course at Mt. Baker Ski Area. The shack was built by volunteers and painted by Gail Howat and the chief race-timer of more than 30 years, Marty Cunningham. (Photo courtesy of Gwyn Howat)

Howat said she has hunted far and wide for similar venues but has determined Mt. Baker has “the only perfect natural halfpipe in the world,” thanks to its width, length and pitch.  

Unlike a big mountain competition or the Olympic halfpipe event, at LBS every single competitor takes on the same course, meaning an 8-year-old grom, a 65-year-old “super master,” a para-snowboarder and a pro can all compare times and lines.  


Registration is capped at 400 and those entry slots are in very high demand, so Mt. Baker doles out registrations to a variety of folks: top finishers from prior years; the lottery system; finishers from other banked slaloms; sponsorship spots; invitations; and local qualifiers. 

At least 50 spots are given to qualifying racers in the Locals+ Qualifier for the next year’s event. This year, the 2026 LBS Qualifier will be held on March 15 and 16.

Tate Harkness, a 23-year-old snowboarder who grew up riding at Mt. Shasta in California, was one of the racers who secured her spot during the Locals+ Qualifier in 2023. 

“It felt really good to qualify, because there’s a lot of lore surrounding LBS and it feels like a great completion of my time in Bellingham to race,” she said. 

She said it’s also intimidating to line up at an event that “draws a really high caliber of racers, and suddenly little old me is associated with that.” 

With the postponement of the 2024 event, Harkness and other qualifiers were allowed to roll over their entries into this winter. 

“The postponement just added to that anticipation and excitement,” she said. “It definitely feels built up even more now.” 

Know before you go: Racer qualifiers happen Friday and Saturday, and finals are run on Sunday. The awards will be at 4 p.m. Sunday at White Salmon Day Lodge. The race cannot be seen from any lodge — spectators need to be on the mountain, and are not allowed to hike, snowshoe or skin up to the venue. Find a full race schedule and more information at lbs.mtbaker.us.

Julia Tellman writes about civic issues and anything else that happens to cross her desk; contact her at juliatellman@cascadiadaily.com.

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