O
OUTSIDE
Ski Race Returns, In Honor of the Mailman
GO HERE By Trevor Bradford
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McKenzie Pass ski event honors trailblazer John Craig
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credit Ted Scheinman
T
hough the ski season may be winding down, don’t “summerize” those Nordic skis just yet. The Oregon Nordic Club is bringing back the John Craig Memorial Ski Race and Tour up McKenzie Pass on Saturday, March 19. The event starts at the East Snow Gate on the McKenzie Pass Highway (9 miles west of Sisters) and is a self-timed race and casual tour that honors John Craig, a pioneer mailman who died in 1877 while attempting to cross McKenzie Pass. Craig truly imbibed the mailman’s creed of “Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds.” “Twenty-five to thirty years ago, this race was sponsored by Dannon on a national circuit,” said Ted Scheinman, this year’s event coordinator. “They brought in a semi-truck full of swag and yogurt, of course, and there’d be up to 500 people racing.” Though popular for many years, the race diminished in scope and size for various reasons. “It got down to the point of about a dozen people a couple of years ago and most of those were board members of the state organization [ONC],” added Scheinman. “Obviously, I can’t bring the race back to what it was in the old days but I think it’s an important event for Central Oregon and has a good story behind it,” said Scheinman. That story involves the history of John Craig. John Templeton Craig was born in the McKenzie River Valley in 1832. When he was 30, he went to work for Captain Felix Scott to build a livestock trail from Eugene to Central Oregon. Scott wanted a route over the Cascades to drive cattle from the Willamette Valley to prospectors in Eastern Oregon where a gold-rush boom was taking place. The route aimed toward a low pass near North Sister but encountered massive lava flows and deep snowfields. Craig wanted to chip a route out through the lava, but Scott decided to skirt the edges of the flow to another pass higher up, which is now known as Scott’s Pass. Believing that a lower elevation route was possible, Craig eventually formed the McKenzie, Salt Springs and Deschutes Wagon Road Company in 1871. He and his crews cleared trees and chiseled out a roadbed through the lava to McKenzie Pass. A year later, Craig opened his toll road and charged $2 per wagon, a $1 per horse rider, 10¢ per cow and 5¢ per sheep. Later on, Craig won a federal contract to deliver mail from
Get your green on this Saturday in Sisters.
Skiers enjoy groomed conditions for the John Craig Memorial Ski Race. credit Ted Scheinman
LUCKY LEPRECHAUN RUN 2022
Celebrate all things green with a walk/run through beautiful Sisters
Near the summit of Mckenzie Pass, a monument honors the memory of pioneering mailman John Craig, whose body was found in the spring of 1878.
Camp Polk over McKenzie Pass to the Willamette Valley. In summer he traveled by horseback and in winter on skis. He built a cabin just west of McKenzie Pass, about the halfway point on this journey. It was in his cabin that rescuers found his body curled up atop cold ashes in the spring of 1878. Craig had set off from Camp Polk on Dec. 3 and may have been ill or exhausted when he reached his cabin. Perhaps it was a raging blizzard, as well, but the reasons why he died will forever be woven into Central Oregon lore. To honor this pioneer postman, a memorial monument was erected near the summit in 1930, and the first John Craig Memorial Ski Race was hosted in 1934. In 1972, ONC took over the organization of the race. This year’s event will blend a selftimed race and casual tour to entice all skiers of various abilities. ONC will have the course groomed for skate and classic Nordic skiers, with volunteer course monitors, aid stations and medical support on hand. Participants can complete either a 12-mile round-trip ski
to the Dee Wright Observatory at McKenzie Pass or complete a shorter course of about 6-8 miles round trip to Windy Point. “What I’m looking for is to put together an informal and fun event this year that will start bringing this event around,” said Scheinman. Registration is open on the ONC website. Cost is $20 for adults and $5 for youth, under 18. After March 12, registration will increase by $5 for adults. Membership in ONC is not required. The race and tour start between 10 am and noon. A pizza buffet in Sisters will follow the race. For more information or to volunteer, contact Ted Scheinman, at johncraigmemorial@onc.org or by phone at 503-914-9584 or go to the Oregon Nordic Club Website at www.onc.org. John Craig Memorial Ski Race and Tour Sat., March 19 McKenzie Pass Hwy., Sisters onc-pdx.org/events/john-craig-memorial-2022 Adults $20, youth (under 18) $5 before March 12; late registration add $5
According to worldhistory.org, “Leprechauns are figures in Irish folklore who guard hidden treasure. Regarded as small and incredibly agile male fairies or goblins, they most often guard a pot of gold.” In honor of St. Patrick’s Day and these mythical and lucky creatures, bring your family and friends out to run, walk, skip or trot through Sisters at the Lucky Leprechaun 5/10k Race held on March 12. Come decked out in green or dress up as a mischievous leprechaun in order to bring the celebration full circle at this chip-timed race. Participants can choose between either a 5k or 10k race that starts at the Sisters Depot, loops around the scenic town, and ends back at the Depot. After the race is when the real celebration begins with a free beer, great live music and a best dressed lucky leprechaun contest that’s sure to get all the little green people riled up. Fire pits, commemorative beer mugs and the timed results of your race will also be available at the finish line. Registration costs for the race runs at $45 for the 5k and $50 for the 10k. The races begin at 10am for the 10k run, 10:15am for the 5k run and 10:20am for the 5k walk, leading to all festivities ending at noon. Strollers, dogs and magical creatures are welcomed and encouraged to compete in both the race and costume contest! For more information and to register, visit runsistersrun.com.
VOLUME 26 ISSUE 10 / MARCH 10, 2022 / THE SOURCE WEEKLY
By Damian Fagan
