Trollhaugen's Newest Competition, The Longest Lap
Trollhaugen has become one of the Midwest’s most recognizable ski areas, known for their blue and yellow park features and being the early season stop for pro skiers and snowboarders. From kicking off the season with farmed snow for the Openhaugen rail jam to the bracket-style Lord of the Ropes competition, the Trollhaugen crew is known for pushing competition formats outside the box.
Their newest event, Longest Lap, is the latest unique competition. Dreamed up by Marketing Manager Marsha Hovey, the rules are simple but brutal: whoever completes the most laps on the Valhalla tow rope from open to close (10AM - 2:30AM) wins.
Mileage and laps were tracked using Strava on a phone or smartwatch. Any breaks required pausing the recording, with penalties issued for failing to do so. When the rope turned on at 10AM, 28 competitors lined up to see how long they could lap. By the end of the 16.5 hour day, only 15 remained. Collectively, riders logged an impressive 3,336.33 miles across 11,740 laps—numbers that far exceeded expectations.
Nick Drye claimed the overall and men’s ski titles, finishing with 823 laps and 218.79 miles, all without earbuds. “Longest Lap was nothing like any other skiing or snowboarding event,” Drye said. “You were competing, but it didn’t pull people apart. It created space to meet and get to know almost everyone through short, delirious conversations on the rope.”
For Drye, the toughest part was the sheer volume. “Skiing was constant for 16 hours. You had to stay focused on consistent, fast laps,” he said. The next day, even sleep didn’t bring relief. “Every time I closed my eyes, I felt like I was skiing and getting yanked by the rope again.”
Longest Lap proved that at Trollhaugen, competition isn’t just about winning—it’s about endurance, community, and pushing limits together.
Photos: Stephan Jende and Trollhaugen
