Last Skier Standing event is going back to Black Mountain…of Maine

Ski the Whites announced it is moving its signature event to Black Mountain of Maine. (Austin Perry)

Last Skier Standing has a new home.

Ski the Whites, a backcountry ski, bike, and run specialty shop in Jackson, N.H., is moving the annual event from its original home the last three years at Black Mountain to…well, Black Mountain. Of Maine. 

Last Skier Standing is an endurance ski event for those in search of a personal challenge. Each skier must complete one lap up and down the ski area every hour, on the hour, until there is only one skier left. The record currently stands at 65 hours.

The first three years of the event were held at Black Mountain in Jackson, N.H. But that relationship soured last season when Black Mountain owner John Fichera told Ski the Whites’ Andrew Drummond that his alpine touring operation was no longer welcome at the ski area in Jackson, N.H.

“It was like a bad high school dance every time he had an event,” Fichera said in March. 

Fichera, who has owned the ski area since 1995, called police one Friday night when more than 500 people unexpectedly showed up for the weekly event with only himself and one bartender on staff. Many of the guests had brought their own beer to Fichera’s liquor-licensed property, Fichera said, adding that it was a problem that had stained the relationship between the mountain and Ski the Whites since the beginning. 

This year, Last Skier Standing will transition to Black Mountain of Maine, Feb. 10-13. Located in Rumford, Maine, Black Mountain is an independent resort that Drummond said has the perfect amount of elevation gain and terrain for this event.

Registration for the event is now open at skithewhites.com.