What is it? The La Sportiva Trail Race Trifecta is a trailrunning endurance race unlike any other. A bird of a different feather you might say. A horse of a different color even. It's different, that's what we're getting at. The Trifecta is a trailrunning stage race composed of three separate races; a 5-mile 'sprint', a hill climb and a half-marathon stretched over one glorious weekend on the breathtaking aspen-lined singletrack of Snowmass Village It's an omnium where your total elapsed time for all three races determines your place among the field of general classification (GC) contenders.

When is It? June 16-17, 2007. The 5-mile race will kick off the weekend’s festivities on Saturday morning at 9am and the hill-climb will start that afternoon at 1pm. Sunday will feature the ultimate stage in the Trifecta, the half-marathon. We’re gonna fire that gun at 9am. Awards, post-race feed and the all-important tapping of the keg' will take place shortly after the conclusion of the half-marathon. Registration and bib pick-up will be open from 5PM-8PM on Friday at the Snowmass Village Ticket Pavilion and will reopen at 7AM Saturday morning and stay open until 9. If you plan on racing individual events but can't make it to registration during those times we've still got you covered. Just head to the race start (look for the tents out on Fanny Hill) and we'll have registration forms, race bibs and all the info you need to get you squared away.

Do I Have To Race All Three? Nope. You can race one, two or even three of the events. In fact, you're encouraged to do so. The big prize money is for the GC (3-stage) competitors, but single-race entrants are welcome and are eligible for individual race awards and accolades.

When can I Register? Head to Active.com and REGISTER NOW! Via ACTIVE, You can register for a single event for $17-22 or all three for $45-55. A $5 (single stage) and $10 (Trifecta) day of race registration fee will apply for on-site site registration.

What are the Categories? Glad you asked. We've got 5 for each gender (plus everyone will be tracked on the ‘open’ GC). They are as follows: 19 and under, 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50+

Did You Say 5,000 Dollars? Yup. $5,000 smackers in cold hard cash will be divvied up amongst the iron men and women contesting all three stages. Tons of swag waits for the mere mortals.

Who Gets The Dough? All of it goes to GC (general classification or in other words, 3-stage competitors) competitors, but we’ve got great merchandise prizes for the individual races! The top male and female GC competitors will be designated 'Trail Champion' and their exploits will be shouted from the highest rooftops and the top 5 men and women on GC will be awarded cash prizes. To put this another way, this means that all 3-stage participants be racing in their age category and in a blended ‘open’ category at the same time, so 'Trail Champions' could literally come from any category.  Here’s the cash breakdown (it’s the same for men and women): 1st place: $1000, 2nd place: $700, 3rd place: $500, 4th place: $200, 5th place: $100. We've gone back and forth a bit on how to score the race and feel that we've come up with the simplest solution; lowest total time wins. Elegant in its simplicity, huh? Aspiring Trail Champions must participate in all three stages to be eligible for cash prizes.

How About Those Courses? UPDATED JUNE 2, 2007 - Those narrow ribbons of singletrack we promised you? Well, the snow has finally cleared and they actually exist! Here's the poop on each course:

RESULTS