The Beginning
2017 was a beginning of tradition, the first Annual Kelsey Hewitt Memorial Race. Kelsey’s Race is run each January in honor of 2006-2009 OISRA ski racer, state qualifier, team builder and wonderful sportsperson Kelsey Hewitt.
About Kelsey
Kelsey, along with her father Randy, formed the Grant High ski team in 2005. That team grew and thrived under her leadership, maturing to what is now the Eastside High Schools ski team composed of nearly 60 racers from 4, 5, or even 6 schools. Kelsey’s enthusiasm continues to propel the team forward.
Following graduation from high school, Kelsey went onward to successfully race at the University of Colorado, to free ski some of the finest ski mountains in America, to work and ski at Snowbird Resort in Utah, to assist her dad with coaching her alma mater high school racers, and to bring joy to all whom she met, whether on skis or not.
Sadly Kelsey died in a skiing accident at Jackson Hole, Wyoming just before Christmas, 2015.
Kelsey will be forever missed. But it has been said that “some people bring a light so great into this world, that even after they are gone, the light remains”. Participants in Kelsey’s Race step into some of that light.
Racing In Celebration
Although Kelsey’s Race is a tribute to a beloved racer who we heartbreakingly lost, it is run with a spirit of celebration – celebrating ski racing, camaraderie, the winter wonderland of Mt. Hood, and everything skiing. Kelsey’s Race is all about fun, frivolity, cheering, costumes, and even eating cookies.
Tucked within all that excitement is a ski race where all OISRA competitors are welcome to challenge themselves and their peers on two timed runs down a modified GS course.
Kelsey's Race 