Anthony Lakes Ski Season Closes With Broadway Blast Racing Weekend

While competitors flew off the Rock Garden jump on a black-diamond run at Anthony Lakes Mountain Resort last weekend, Blaire Buchert was elsewhere: at the top of the start course cheering on younger racers, or inside the lodge helping them prepare. That constant, low-key presence earned Buchert the Anthony Lakes Ski Racing Association's Most Inspirational Teammate award to close out the 30th annual Broadway Blast.

The weekend of racing, held March 28 and 29, combined three disciplines into ALSRA's traditional season finale: a Super-G alpine run, a Nordic Sprint, and the Gelände Jump off the Rock Garden, one of the few surviving jump competitions at any ski resort in the region. Entry fees ran $30 for the Super-G, $15 for the Nordic Sprint, and $15 for the Gelände Jump. The event drew skiers and snowboarders of all ages from the public, not just the ALSRA team, and functions as a primary fundraiser supporting the association's coaching and travel budget through the winter.

That public format and the pull of a full-weekend race program brought families from across eastern Oregon into Baker County at a point in the calendar when late March typically signals the start of a quiet shoulder season. Lodges and restaurants in and around Baker City saw weekend traffic that the mountain's spring closing schedule reliably delivers when little else does.

Head coach Luke Brown has been part of ALSRA for more than 20 years, having first raced at Anthony Lakes himself at age 5 and returned as a coach in 2013. Under his direction the program grew substantially from lean years when fewer than 10 racers made up the team. The Broadway Blast's fundraiser proceeds feed directly back into that pipeline.

ALSRA credited its coaches and volunteers as the operational backbone of a program that could not otherwise function. Late-season alpine events at elevation require coordinated ski patrol, course-setting crews, and timing volunteers who manage gate integrity on the Super-G and crowd safety at the Rock Garden jump. Those roles are filled by Baker County families, not paid staff.

The association is already pointing toward the 2027 season, calling for continued community investment in sponsorships and coaching. The program that Buchert has helped define with her bench-level dedication depends on that renewal every year.