Meet Nikki LaRochelle

Nikki LaRochelle is a ski mountaineering racer and ultra runner based in Colorado. Her passion for endurance sports took shape after she moved to Breckenridge in 2008, where mountains and access abound.

In 2016, Nikki earned a spot on the US Ski Mountaineering National Team and represented the U.S. at the 2017 ISMF World Championships in Tambre, Italy. She earned her spot again in 2018 and competed at the 2019 World Championships in Villars, Switzerland. That same qualifying year, she placed third at the High Lonesome 100 mile ultramarathon, all while working full-time and raising her first daughter, born in 2015. This is a testament to what parent athletes can accomplish with proper determination. In 2022, a year after the birth of her second daughter, she returned to the High Lonesome 100 and bested her previous time by two hours.

Today, Nikki competes in domestic skimo racing through the winter and turns to ultra running and mountain bike racing in the summer. Her deepest passion, though, lies in personal projects: long, technical ridge traverses and high alpine loops. A highlight was her 2018 completion and FKT on the Mosquito/Tenmile Range traverse – the longest, highest continuous ridgeline in the continental U.S., where the majority of the line is above 13,000 feet. For Nikki, these efforts are as rewarding as any race.

Beyond her own pursuits, Nikki is deeply committed to coaching. She works with USA Skimo, training national team athletes and youth racers, and helped prepare American athletes for the 2026 Winter Olympics in Cortina, Italy, where ski mountaineering made its Olympic debut. She also had the privilege of working as an Olympic technical commentator in Italy for the Olympic Broadcasting Services.

At Evoke Endurance, Nikki works with athletes of all levels from World Cup competitors to those training for their first 10k. She approaches coaching with enthusiasm, emphasizing consistent effort and collaboration, and tailors the coach-athlete relationship to each individual’s needs. She thrives on celebrating progress at every scale. Dedicated to her athletes’ success, Nikki is equal parts strategic mentor and their biggest cheerleader.