Merino Muster, live.

New Zealand's longest running ski marathon

The Merino Muster is a cross-country ski marathon at Snow Farm, about 1,500 metres above the Cardrona Valley in New Zealand.

The organiser calls the Merino Muster New Zealand's longest running cross-country ski marathon. It was first held in 1995 at Snow Farm, the site that John and Mary Lee established as the Waiorau Nordic Ski Area, about 1,500 metres above the Cardrona Valley.

The 2027 edition is on Saturday 28 August, in the southern hemisphere winter, and is part of the celebrations of 50 years of Worldloppet. The organiser has said that more details and entries will follow.

There are four events. The Merino Muster is the full 42 km, the Snow Rake is 21 km and the Snow Farmer is 5 km, and the program also lists the Mini Merino. The organiser invites seasoned Worldloppet skiers chasing another race, people taking on their first challenge and those who simply come to enjoy the atmosphere.

Snow Farm is New Zealand's only dedicated cross-country ski field. John Lee was a high country farmer, and before the ski trails existed his family mustered Merino sheep across these hills, along many of the ridgelines and valleys that skiers now travel on race day. That farming history is where the race gets its name.

On Livebib you can follow a skier who chooses to share their own live position from the phone they carry. This is not the organiser's timing, and the official results come from the Merino Muster.