At the stroke of midnight on Friday, March 25th, my partner Brent and I started the 20th-annual Grand Traverse Ski Mountaineering race at Crested Butte Mountain Resort in Colorado. Covering over thirty five miles and traveling over backcountry terrain from Crested Butte to Aspen, the Grand Traverse brings over 200 two-person teams to the Elk Mountains to test their mettle on an ungroomed, undulating course which spends most of its time over 10,000ft elevation.