In the backyard of the "ski haus," the qualifying rounds of the fourth annual Bjorn Bakken Ski Championships of America were getting underway Saturday afternoon.

On the deck overlooking the backyard, Joe Dubay counted down to the race's start as college cross-country skiers prepare on the start line.

"Boop boop boop boooooooop," the College of St. Scholastica senior said into the microphone to kick off the untimed race in lieu of an automated countdown.

St. Scholastica senior Chris Parr, on skis but dressed in a business suit, took off down the course, headed over a jump and around a bend in the backyard full of snow in - despite a fresh dusting overnight - a still mostly snowless Duluth.

The recent meltdown in Duluth didn't stop the race from happening this year. Parr, the organizer of this year's event, explained before the race that organizers found snow piled up in parking lots and trucked it into the backyard of the house in the Kenwood neighborhood, where members of the St. Scholastica's Nordic ski team live on the edge of campus.

The day is a fun way for the college ski community and alumni to come together at the end of the season, said Paul Schommer, a 2015 St. Scholastica graduate who organized the inaugural ski day.

"Most of all, it's just getting people involved in the great sport of cross-country skiing," Schommer said.

The event is named in honor of Bakken, the first St. Scholastica skier to reach the NCAA skiing championships, and Bakken called into Saturday's event to wish the participants luck. He attended the event in 2014, but is now completing a medical residency in Portland, Parr said.

"He has a name that's worthy of a ski race," Schommer said.

To compete, skiers race one lap around the backyard in elimination rounds until there's a champion. Parr said they were expecting about 50 skiers to attend, many of them wearing costumes.

Harris Dirnberger, a St. Scholastica junior, encountered difficulty when his ski came off after the jump, but that didn't stop him from completing the race on one ski while carrying the other.

"You just gotta commit. You just gotta do it," he joked afterward.

Everyone's invited to attend the event - and there are plenty of spare skis around if someone wants to give it a try, he said.

Two women stood amidst the crowd of college students, noting that they're twice the age of the students. Wanting to be identified only as "the old spectators," they explained that they stumbled upon the event information Saturday morning and decided to attend.

"It's pretty funny. It's a hidden secret, I think," one woman said. The other replied, "This is just classic Duluth, in my opinion."

Wearing a fish costume on his head, Aidan Lee was making his way toward the finish line when he took a tumble.

"Big Fish is struggling. Big Fish cannot make his way up the hill," Dubay announced. The crowd chanted "Get up!" as Lee was able to finish the race. Afterward, he said of his head attire, "This is just another adventure for this costume."

Lee, a freshman at the University of Minnesota in the Twin Cities, was attending the race with some friends who had an extra seat in their car for the trip north to Duluth.

"It's such an opportunity. You hear about this. You have so many great skiers. It's really just a privilege. You learn from the best. What a great day, too," he joked. "I mean, who hasn't heard of the Bjorn Bakken? I mean, really, it's a classic."

As the qualifying round continued, a dog wearing ski goggles was hooked up for skijoring on the course. The hook comes undone, though, and the dog took off - leaving the trailing skier standing alone on the course before the dog ran back to be harnessed up again.

Throughout the afternoon, Dubay kept up a running commentary of the events unfolding in the backyard. A skier took a tumble and Dubay announced - in a race that's not timed - "He's untangling himself from the tree. This is going to really impact his time. It's going to add at least a minute."

He continued, "This is a ski technique that has not been unveiled in the Nordic world," as a skier went over a jump.

Rounding out the qualifying round was a woman wearing a high school cheerleader outfit, followed by a woman wearing a tank top bearing the phrase, "You only live once."

Krystof Kopal, a Northern Michigan University junior, drove five hours with seven of his ski teammates for Saturday's event. It has a great atmosphere, he said, noting that some of St. Scholastica's team members will be attending their end-of-the-season event in Michigan next weekend.

Sharmila Ahmed, a 2015 St. Scholastica graduate, explained that the college ski community is small and many of the teams in their conference come to Duluth for the annual get-together.

"This is the greatest ski race in America," she joked.

Online

Go to duluthnewstribune.com for video from Saturday's Bjorn Bakken Ski Championships of America.