Getting back to the original topic, I think what Dane is suggesting is not another VertFest or citizen's race. He's thinking of something longer and more technical, I think. Something where you'd carry crampons and a harness and actually use them.
If you didn't have to deal with Forest Service regulations, an ideal course would be something like Watson's Traverse over Mt Baker. But I think that would be out, due to party-size limits in the wilderness.
Dane suggests that for practical reasons, you'd need to run such a race near an operating ski area. You'd want to run it as late in the operating season as possible, for the most predictable snow conditions. But if the snow conditions are too dangerous, you'd simply have to cancel it (assuming that the more aggressive course is the whole reason for this race).
It sounds interesting, but it could be pretty risky from an organizer's perspective. To make the race fair, you'd probably need trailbreakers, which gets complicated on a longer course.
