September 22-23 | Start Time Varies

A 10-12 mile obstacle course through mud, chilly water and fire? Sure. Sounds easy enough! Well, don’t get ahead of yourself since this event is not for the faint of heart.  Designed by British Special Forces, Tough Mudder, will test your strength, stamina and mental pluck. However, it is designed as a team event, so you won’t go at it alone! With half a million participants thus far, and approximately $3 million raised to benefit the Wounded Warrior Project, Tough Mudder is a life-changing challenge you should consider!

Held at Squaw Valley in 2011, Tough Mudder returns to the Lake Tahoe region this year at Northstar California Resort. This offers participants to tackle new terrain.  Registration is currently open, and the fee includes an event T-shirt, one beer and live music during the post-event party.

Registration is now open for the Tough Mudder event at Northstar. The entry fee includes an event T-shirt, one beer and live music during the post-event party. The post-party events are definitely worth the course pain!

For more information about the Tough Mudder event at Northstar and to register, click here!

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We bet you already have plans for the July 4th holiday. You’ve created the menu and prepped the grill. You’ll host your annual Independence Day soirée. Perhaps travel to the lake house or rough it in the great outdoors with other campers. Spend the afternoon on water; kayaking, boating or paddleboarding. You’ll top off the holiday with tradition: fireworks. If that’s not the case, and you’re in the Lake Tahoe-Truckee area, here’s what you can find for the whole family!

Beth Weber Arts & Crafts Festival

July 1 to 4

Enjoy the fair along the cobblestone Kings Beach Plaza – just 50 yards from the water – which has been running for more than 30 years. All work and masterpieces created by participating artisans. Shop nearby shops and choose from an array of local restaurants. 10am to 5pm, 530.546.2768 for details or questions. 

Full Moon Rising Party

July 3

Watch the full moon rise over Lake Tahoe at this stunning lakefront location! Drink in the romance while being serenaded by a solo violinist. 5pm to 11pm, reserve your table or choose a bar seating, West Shore Café & Inn. 

Peter Joseph Burtt Live Concert

July 3

Enjoy the spectacular view on the lawn at West Shore Café & Inn with this live performance. A lifelong drummer, Peter Joseph Burtt, attributes his musical influence to time spent in Africa. Much of his music is played on traditional instruments: the lute like Kora, the Mbira, or thumb piano. 2pm to 5pm, free, West Shore Café & Inn. 

Fireworks Show & Deck Party

July 3

Watch the fireworks over Lake Tahoe from the sandy beaches of Kings Beach, CA. Make it an evening by purchasing tickets to North Tahoe Business Association’s Deck Party, and enjoy premium seating, food vendors, live music and a no host bar. 6:30pm, Kings Beach, CA, 530.546.9000 to purchase tickets.

Run to the Beach

July 4

Run to the Beach 5k and 10k starts at the North Tahoe Regional Park.  From the park you have the option of participating in the 5K or 10K trail run, both of which finish on the “big” beach in Kings Beach, CA. 8am, registration cost varies $30-$55, Tahoe Vista, CA.

Firecracker Mile Run

July 4

Start off the 4^th of July with a bang and race the one mile fun run from Tahoe Forest Hospital to Historic Downtown Truckee, through the crowds waiting for the parade to star. Registration opens at 9am, run starts at 10am, $20/adults, $15/children, benefits Auburn Ski Club Nordic Programs, Truckee, CA.

Tahoe City Fourth of July Fireworks

July 4

Celebrate Independence Day at Commons Beach for a spectacular fireworks show! 9:30pm, Tahoe City, CA.

Truckee Fourth of July Fireworks

July 4

Enjoy Independence Day fireworks over Donner Lake from West End Beach. The West End Beach event is just for Truckee Residents and Homeowners, but the public can view the fireworks from anywhere around the lake. Dusk, $6.00/advance entry fee, 530.582.7720, Donner Lake.

Truckee Fourth of July Parade

July 4

Independence Day festive parade traveling 1.5 miles on Donner Pass Road from Truckee High School Track parking lot into Historic Downtown Truckee, 10am to 12pm, $50 parade entry fee, Truckee Chamber of Commerce, Truckee, CA, 530.587.2757.

What’s on the agenda for your July 4th holiday?

IRONMAN slots generally sell out, as Lake Tahoe 2013 did in 19 hours.

General entries are sold out! But are you really that surprised?

Ten days ago the North Lake Tahoe Resort Association announced it will host the first full-distance IRONMAN® event in California since 2001, scheduled for Sunday, Sept. 22, 2013. Registration opened Monday, June 18 at noon PST and filled in just 19 hours!

We can understand the demand for the first full-distance IRONMAN event in California in over 10 years.

IRONMAN Lake Tahoe will start with a two-loop, 2.4-mile swim in the pristine waters of Kings Beach, California. Athletes will enjoy a lakeside transition before starting a two-loop 112-mile bike course that is challenging and comparable in difficulty to the bike routes at IRONMAN Lake Placid, IRONMAN Canada and IRONMAN Wisconsin. Cyclists will travel along the lake into Tahoe City before following the Truckee River past Squaw Valley and into Historic Downtown Truckee.

From there, the course turns south back toward Lake Tahoe, has a short loop in Martis Camp, continues past Northstar California and climbs to Brockway Summit. After a decent back down to Kings Beach, athletes will complete a second loop, and then a final, flat 17 miles to finish the bike course at Squaw Valley. Definitely a gorgeous loop, but not for the faint of heart!

With a transition to the running portion at The Village at Squaw Valley, runners will proceed along the Truckee River bike path into Tahoe City, and continue south along the shores of Lake Tahoe to a turnaround in Homewood, California. The flat course traverses one of the most scenic lake vistas in the world before finishing back at the heart of the Village at Squaw Valley.

IRONMAN Lake Tahoe will bring approximately 2, 500 athletes to the region, and is also a multi-year contract for the Tahoe region.

Are you an IRONMAN? If so, does Lake Tahoe sound like an appealing course?

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Shane McConkey's quirky alter ego, Pain McShlonkey.

As an on and off mountain event, the Pain McShlonkey Classic is a wacky part of Tahoe culture in which all proceeds from the weekend benefit Make-A-Wish Foundation, along with environmental education programs. The event was dubbed after one of Shane’s funny alter egos, Pain McShlonkey. Hosted on March 23-24th at Squaw Valley, the McShlonkey offers the world’s top winter atheletes a chance to compete for the podium on none other than snowblades! Saturday’s on-mountain antics promise true slope-side entertainment for all ages.

“One thing about Shane is that what you saw is what he was: a man full of stoke, passion, ingenuity, humor and a zest for making your moments on this earth count,” says longtime friend Scott Gaffney. “Shane loved to laugh, play, compete against and make fun of friends and make fun of himself. The Pain McShlonkey Classic is a perfect amalgam of all of these elements that were so important to a guy who inspired us to no end.”

The Red Bull Air Force will kick off the festivities on the afternoon of Friday, March 23 as athletes like Charles Bryan, JT Holmes and Tim Dutton skydive into The Village at Squaw Valley.  Now that’s just the beginning. From there, the party rages on at Rocker@Squaw with a DJ, food and drink specials and poster signings with pro competitors.

The real throw down begins Saturday, March 24 at 9 a.m. as the athletes line up atop the legendary KT-22 chairlift for an all-out snowblade banzai. The pros will take on 30 of McConkey’s biggest fans in an anything-goes battle to the finish on Squaw’s GS Bowl. It’s a sight to see, especially the costume choices you’ll see whiz by.

To top off the weekend, don’t miss the 80’s after party at Squaw’s Olympic Village Lodge. Guests must be 21 or older to attend with valid ID required. To find out more, purchase tickets to the after party on March 24th ($25/each), or make a donation to the Shane McConkey Foundation, click here!

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Although the Lake Tahoe Marathon this is not a flat and fast qualifying course, like the California International Marathon in Sacramento, CA; it is a Sunday morning run you will never forget. Due to the nature of course, there is little chance for a personal record, so be sure to bring your camera and take in the sheer beauty for 26.2 miles!

Photo Credit Alena Grace Photography

Looking for a challenge? Are you an altitude athlete? Do you love Squaw Valley terrain?

Lace up your running shoes for the 31st annual Squaw Valley Mountain Run. This 3.6 mile run begins at the base of Squaw Valley, at 6200ft above sea level and finishes at an excruciating 8200ft. Although a short distance, the 3.6 climb in elevation is sure to bring out the toughest racers around. For those who don’t wish to push themselves that much they can walk the course or take the tram up. Or you could take a lovely self-guided flower walk in the high mountain meadows of Squaw Valley.

Pre-register now!