Racing Through the Snow in Maine
Six years ago, Mary Haley was working for Main Street Skowhegan in Maine, brainstorming ideas that could create an economic driver for the town. She grew up riding horses, is an avid downhill skier and knows about skijoring events held out west.
“I had a gut instinct it would be a success in Maine,” Haley says. “Many people don’t know that the equine industry contributes $360 million to the Maine economy. I believed bringing two major industries [riding and skiing] together in one event would be a hit!”
Skijor Skowhegan was the first skijoring competition in the state. The inaugural event was held in 2019 at Eaton Mountain on an oval track in the field, and teams were timed with a handheld stopwatch. Today, the event attracts about 50 teams, according to Haley.
“Horse riders tend to come from mostly Maine, with a few from New Hampshire and Massachusetts,” Haley says. “Skiers come from farther away, and spectators come from all over New England, and our data shows a good handful of visitors coming from even beyond New England.”
Interest in skijoring took off with additional events — Topsham Skijoring and Skijoring Bangor — popping up. In 2024, event organizers teamed up to host a Triple Crown circuit to encourage competitors to enter as many races as possible and build awareness and a following for the sport.
“Competitors would earn points on how they placed at the race and bonus points for each race they attended,” Haley says.
Last year, rider Molly Thornton and skier Matt Alexander clinched the first-ever Triple Crown title after a tough start in the sport. In Thornton’s first race in 2023, they went off course, resulting in a time that was too slow to make the scoreboard.
Mel Merchant says fitness is everything with skijoring, and she breezes at least once a week and keeps her horse muscled up. Photography by Jamie Lawler Photos.
“I started training my horse for more speed and took her to local racetracks, clocking our time, plus going to friends’ houses that had made skijor tracks with jumps,” Thornton says. “I rode her every day, no matter the weather. I was determined that I was going to place and not make the same mistakes as the year before.”
The hard work paid off, and the team finished second at both Skijor Skowhegan and Topsham Skijoring, setting them up for an opportunity to win Skijor Bangor.
“I wanted to win Bangor badly,” Thornton says. “I was shaking so badly while trying to put my chaps on that I had to ask for help. When the pro division was called and our turn came, I could barely breathe.”
“IT’S AN AMAZING SPORT, AND IT’S THE PERFECT SPORT FOR ME BECAUSE I’M AN ADRENALINE JUNKIE WITH A NEED FOR SPEED!” — MEL MERCHANT
Her horse and skier were ready for the challenge, and together, they completed the course in the fastest time of the first round of runs. The track was deteriorating with every run, so the official called off the second run for safety reasons, and they were declared winners.
“While snow is always a concern, skijoring is unique in that it’s a snowsport that doesn’t need a ton of snow,” Haley says. “You only need a few inches of base to run. Getting snow for jumps is the main concern, and even then, organizers are resourceful by either creating wooden bases like Topsham does or hauling in snow from other sources, as we have done before. I think Mainers appreciate out-of-the-box thinking, and skijoring satisfies the need for Mainers to be different.”
The Triple Crown circuit is on hold for now, but Haley sees opportunities for it to return in the future. Riders and skiers will have two opportunities to enter skijoring contests in Maine this year, with the Topsham Fair Skijoring set for January 25, 2025, and Skijor Skowhegan scheduled for February 22, 2025, at the Skowhegan State Fairgrounds.
When Molly Thornton isn’t skijoring she’s training for speed and pleasure events or judging shows as a 4-H and Nationally carded judge.
“Main was the first state on the East Coast to start hosting skijoring, and to my knowledge, it’s the only state with multiple events,” says competitor Mel Merchant, who has been racing for five years. “It’s an amazing sport, and it’s the perfect sport for me because I’m an adrenaline junkie with a need for speed!”
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