Story originally published in The Sylva Herald Feb. 5 edition.
Outhouses are a rare sight these days and occupied outhouses on skis sliding downhill even rarer. Visitors to the Sapphire Valley Ski Area can enjoy the sight in February when the Great Sapphire Outhouse Race hits the slopes.
“It’s like NASCAR on ice,” said RJ Grady, Sapphire Valley Resorts market manager. “It’s really a colorful, fun event to where you are gonna come and just laugh for the next three hours until you leave and you’re gonna laugh the rest of the night because it’s just so hilarious.”
The 18th Annual Great Sapphire Outhouse Race will be held on Feb. 15 at the Sapphire Valley Ski Area. The event will start at 11 a.m. with food, live music and a static parade before the race. Check-in for participants will start at 1:30 p.m. and the race will kick off at 3 p.m.
Over the past 18 years, the Outhouse Race has grown from only a couple hundred attendees to nearly 5000. The race has been capped at 20 racing teams due to the high interest and uniqueness of the event.
“As far as I know, this is the only outhouse race on skis to actually go downhill by themselves,” said Grady.
As the name suggests, the Outhouse Race involves homemade outhouses stuck to skis. Each outhouse team has the creative freedom to decorate their outhouse, as long as it meets the requirements.
The three-person team includes two outhouse pushers and one sitter who rides inside the outhouse as it goes down one of Sapphire Valley Resorts’ bunny hills. The pushers push the outhouse down the first few feet of the hill. After that, the outhouse and sitter go down the rest of the hill without steering control.
“There are regulations for the outhouses: they have to have a potty hole and a toilet thing hanger,” said Grady. “The competitors all decorate their vehicles. They have different themes, we had the Wizard of Oz castle, Thomas the Tank Engine, fire trucks and all kinds of different vehicles.”
The Cashiers Valley Rotary Club will have a concession stand to purchase food and drinks. Proceeds from the admission fees and concessions will be donated to local charities and Hurricane Helene relief.
The final day to register is Feb. 13. Call 828-743-1163 to register to participate, volunteer and learn more information.
