Bridger Brewskis & Spurs celebrates Western culture and community

Bozeman may have a new favorite sport after this weekend’s Bridger Brewskis & Spurs skijoring event in Three Forks.

Hosted by Bridger Brewing and planned by KH Horse Consulting (KH), the event was brand new, and featured skijoring, brews and local vendors.

“[KH] came to us with the idea. We went over it and figured out what it would take to do it,” said David Breck, co-owner of Bridger Brewing. “We got pretty excited about it, and we got it going. So, this was almost a year in the making.”

Skijoring may be underground, but it certainly isn’t new. It has roots in Scandinavia as a method of winter travel, but evolved into a sport in Colorado in the late 1940s, according to the Wood River Extreme Skijoring Association (WRESA) website.

Today, the sport consists of a skier holding on to a rope as a rider on horseback pulls them forward. The athletes work together to navigate a course of jumps, gates and sometimes spear rings, according to the WRESA website.

The sport sounds dangerous — and it is, according to skier Marty Anderson.

“I was hesitant [to sign up]. I thought it was just dangerous, but I'm having the time of my life,” Anderson said. “It’s been a bit hectic; there's been some accidents, ambulances here and there, which is adding to the excitement.”

Over the course of the weekend, two competitors were hospitalized, but neither sustained serious injuries, according to Logan Howell, the volunteer coordinator for the event and KH’s assistant trainer.

The skijoring community showed out for the event with 150 teams signing up to compete, according to volunteer and MSU polo player Keely Flynn.

“It’s like there's a sense of family here. We all love horses,” Flynn said.

The event also drew around 1,000 spectators, according to Howell. “Our merchandise sales have been off the charts,” she said. “It’s been insane, and better than we could have ever expected.”

According to the Bridger Brewing website, the main goal of the event was to engage the community and celebrate Montana culture.

Breck emphasized the importance of giving back to the local community. “It’s just natural to want to support the community that’s supporting you,” he said.

Kaitlyn Hoyt, owner and founder of KH, organized the event. Many of the riders and horses competing belong to Hoyt’s barn, located in Belgrade, according to Howell. KH offers riding lessons, boarding, barrel racing and skijoring.

“We do horseback riding lessons for all ages and all levels. Then [Hoyt] runs the consulting side of things. She buys and sells horses to match to their perfect riders. She helps people purchase their dream horse,” Howell said.

Anderson competed on Saturday, but things took an unexpected turn when he lost one of his skis mid-run. Though it was only the pair’s fifth career run, it ended up being a memorable one for both Anderson and his partner Jessy Peterson.

“We were going fast right off the bat. I missed a few gates and then my ski fell off, and then I held on,” Anderson said. “Really, I blacked out. I don't remember much more than that.”

The incident, though unexpected, didn’t throw Peterson off and she focused on getting her horse to the end of the course.

“I didn't realize until the announcer was like ‘Get this guy a beer’ and I was like ‘Oh, did I just drag him?’” Peterson said.

The crowd fell silent in awe as the pair crossed the finish line without being disqualified.

“I remember in the rules that they said you have to have one ski on the snow by the time you get through, so that was really all in my mind at the finish,” Anderson said.

The excitement didn’t end there. After skijoring wrapped up for the day, spectators enjoyed live music and bet on teams for Sunday during the calcutta. Common in equestrian sports, calcutta is an auction in which spectators can purchase a team ahead of a competition and collect winnings if their team does well.

“The overall community, the people have just been fantastic. Everybody’s been having so much fun,” Howell said. “The competitors have all had a good time. They’ve told us that this track has been awesome, and it’s just been a great time for us.”