Thursday, December 3, 2009

US Ski Team Interviews From Downhill Training

Check out some short interviews with U.S. Ski Team members Steven Nyman, Andrew Weibrecht, Marco Sullivan, Erik Fisher, Jeremy Transue and Scott Macartney. The interviews were recorded here at the Birds of Prey following Downhill Training.

The racing action continues tomorrow, start at 11am with the Super Combined. CLICK HERE for complete Birds of Prey details.

CLICK HERE to listen to the interviews.





Photos from DH Training today at the Birds of Prey













Photo (C) 2009 Zach Mahone

Check out a selection of photos taken during today's Downhill Training at the 2009 Audi Birds of Prey World Cup in Beaver Creek, Colorado.

Top honors today went to Michael Walchhofer (AUT), Didier Cuche (SUI) and Didier Defago (SUI). CLICK HERE for complete results.

Join us tomorrow at 11am as official race action begins with the Super Combined.

DH TRAINING PHOTOS - 12.3.09:
Photos (C) Zach Mahone

Bluebird Skies For Downhill Training Today














It's a beautiful day for racing here in Beaver Creek for the 2009 Audi Birds of Prey World Cup. Our second downhill training run will begin at 11am today as scheduled.

Check out a few photos taken moments ago from the Finish Area. Not a cloud in the sky!



Wednesday, December 2, 2009

A recap from Downhill Training Today

Today was a classic case of “hurry up and wait” as the world’s best skiers convened in Beaver Creek for the opening day of Downhill training for the 2009 Audi Birds of Prey World Cup Race Week.

Originally slated for an 11 a.m. start, the training run finally got underway at 1:45 p.m. as a winter storm rolled in to the Vail Valley, depositing approximately six inches of new snow on the racecourse.

Beaver Creek race crews and Birds of Prey volunteers worked through the morning and early afternoon to get the track ready for racing.

Switzerland’s Ambrosi Hoffmann captured the “abbreviated” run with a time of 49.07 as the training run started mid-way down the course due to soft snow on top. The time proved to be one-one hundredth of a second faster than teammate Ralf Kreuzer and two-one hundredths ahead of France’s Yannick Bertrand in third.

Top American on the day was Lake Placid’s Andrew Weibrecht, who finished in a sixth-place tie with Sweden’s Patrik Jaerbyn, while Erik Fisher finished eighth, Marco Sullivan in a tie for tenth and Scott MaCartney in 24th. Bode Miller finished 47th in the shortened session.

The second day of training is scheduled for tomorrow at 11 a.m., with the opening event of the weekend’s races, the Super Combined, on tap for Friday.

For complete Birds of Prey information please CLICK HERE.

Auction Sneak Peak: Ice Skating, NYC & The Tavistock Cup

We have announced more silent and live auction lots for the 2009 Black Diamond Ball. The Black Diamond Ball is the Vail Valley Foundation's largest annual fundraiser with proceeds benefiting a cross section of of the VVF's efforts in athletics, education and culture. The Ball will be held on Friday, December 4, during the Birds of Prey World Cup at 6pm at The Ritz-Carlton Hotel, Bachelor Gulch. You need not be present to bid. To bid in advance, please contact Molly McBride at 970-949-1999. Remember that your bid helps to sustain the quality of life in the Vail Valley!

NEW LIVE AUCTION LOTS!

















NYC AS A VIP:

You will enjoy 4 days and 3 nights in New York City February 16-19, 2010!

This package will include 3 nights stay at the Grand Hyatt NYC. Tickets to Carnegie Hall to see the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra – ranked among the top symphonies in the world. VIP tickets to the Dennis Basso fashion show along with backstage access and lunch with Dennis Basso plus a gorgeous sable shawl valued at $24,000. Front row tickets to watch the New York Knicks take on the Chicago Bulls. Tickets to various fashion shows during New York Fashion Week, and a night out in the trendy Meat Packing District with Bobby Hernreich to include dinner at the famous Scarpetta Restaurant and a nightcap at the exclusive Soho House.

Value: Priceless!

NEW SILENT AUCTION LOTS!











BLUE MOOSE AND ICE SKATING

Generously Donated By: The Blue Moose and Beaver Creek Resort Company

Enjoy a pizza party for 25 at The Blue Moose! Provide 24 of your closest friends a night out on the town or buy this for the upcoming birthday party of your favorite little one! The Blue Moose will take care of everything and you will enjoy pizza, wine and beer along with pre or post party ice skating compliments of Beaver Creek Resort Company. How can you pass up this awesome package!

Value: $1,500

***Scheduling subject to restaurant availability. Party reservations must be made at least 2 weeks in advance. Valid for use September 5th- November 15th, 2010. No substitutions, exchanges, exceptions or extensions please. Expires 11/15/2010.











THE TAVISTOCK CUP
THE WORLD'S MOST TXCLUSIVE PRIVATE GOLF TOURNAMENT
See Woods, Els, O'Meara, Goosen and others in action!
Generously Donated By: Michael Hagerty; and the Vail Marriott Resort and Spa


You and a guest will enjoy the world’s most exclusive private golf tournament in the world as spectators at the 2010 Tavistock Cup in Windermere, Florida. Watch the Tiger Woods led "Isleworth Country Club Team" with O'Meara, Appleby and other Isleworth members take on the "Lake Nona Country Club Team" led by Ernie Els, Retief Goosen, Justin Rose, Ben Curtis and company. This is a highly private golf tournament and tickets are only available to members of Lake Nona and Isleworth. The 2010 tournament will be held at Isleworth just outside of Orlando. It takes place on Monday, March 22 and Tuesday, March 23, 2010. Enjoy the upclose private golf action by day, and four-star lodging by night with three evenings at the J.W. Marriot Orlando Grand Lakes. Airfare is also provided. This is the ultimate package for any golf enthusiast!

Value: Priceless

Please Note: Must be used during March 22 and 23 dates. Restrictions apply with American Airlines tickets. Based on availability. Flights must be within continental US (48 states). Flight cities must be serviced by American Airlines. Please give at least 30 days notice when booking. These tickets have no cash value. Non transferable. Must be used for Tavistock Tournament only. Expires March 2011.

Thank you Hermann Maier from the Birds of Prey













Photo (c) 2008 Jonathan Selkowitz


It’s hard not to be over dramatic as the world’s top ski racers assemble in Beaver Creek for the 2009 Audi Birds of Prey World Cup Race Week.

No, we’re not talking about the fact that it’s an Olympic year. We’re talking about the fact that Austria’s Hermann Maier will not be in the starting gate for the first time since the course debuted in 1997.

Of course, there was the year he missed rehabbing from the motorcycle injury that nearly claimed his leg and almost his life, but that was different. We don’t think anyone, other than a doctor or two, had any doubts that Hermann would be back.

Now, that is no longer the case. On October 13, Hermann Maier officially retired from ski racing, following 13 years on the “White Circus”.

“Hermann Maier WAS ski racing to an entire generation of skiers,” explained Michael Imhof, Vice President of Sales and Operations for the Vail Valley Foundation, “not just in Austria, but around the world. He literally helped us put Birds of Prey on the international radar screen and we owe him a resounding and heartfelt ‘thank you’. It will be very hard to look at that first Downhill Training start list and know his name will not be on it. On behalf of all of us in the Vail Valley, I wish him the absolute best for his life after ski racing.”

From a rather inauspicious beginning, that included being sent home from the Schladming Ski Academy and told he would not succeed because of his slight stature, the “Herminator” would build not only his body as a brick layer in his native Flachau, but also a career record that would include four overall World Cup titles, two Olympic gold medals, three World Championship crowns and 54 individual World Cup wins.

For American race fans, Birds of Prey WAS Hermann’s racecourse. He won a record number of eight times in Beaver Creek, with six World Cup victories and a pair of 1999 World Championships gold medals. His Championships gold medal tie in Super-G with Norway’s Lasse Kjus marked the first time the FIS World Championships had featured a first place tie.

His presence, along with his victories, brought Hollywood to the races and to Beaver Creek as The Terminator (California Governor Arnold Scharzenegger) shared the podium with The Herminator at the 1999 World Championships. He would serve as a forerunner and official starter for the opening time trial of the 100th anniversary of the Tour de France that kicked off at the foot of the Eiffel Tower.

In fact, he got so used to attending the winner’s press conference in Beaver Creek that he did not require an escort. He just knew where to go after the awards.

But perhaps his greatest victory was returning to competition following the near-fatal motorcycle accident in August of 2001 that nearly claimed his lower leg. Forced to miss the entire 2002 season, Maier shocked the ski world when he captured a Super-G win in Kitzbuhel just two weeks after returning to competition in January of 2003.

Just last winter, Maier was in the hunt once again in the Birds of Prey Super-G, finishing in second position, just 45-hundredths of a second behind eventual World Cup Overall Champion Aksel Lund Svindal.

“We will miss the Maier ‘glare’ in the Birds of Prey starting gate,” offered Imhof. “We will miss the fire and determination that he brought to each and every race. But we will also remember ‘the gate’ in the 1999 World Championships that Hermann basically destroyed with a line much straighter than any of his competitors dared take. And, we will remember his flawless flight off Golden Eagle in that same race, en route to gold”. Hermann Maier has undoubtedly left his mark on Birds of Prey and hopefully, Birds of Prey holds a special place in The Herminator’s heart. We have no doubt that we will see Hermann again, perhaps as a spectator, perhaps as a Legend’s competitor in the American Ski Classic. But as the late Bob Hope would croon, “Thanks for the memories”.

HERMANN MAIER ON THE BIRDS OF PREY:
2008 SG - 2nd Place



2003 SG - 2nd Place:

Final Results Posted from Downhill Training

Final results have been posted from today's Downhill Training at the 2009 Audi Birds of Prey World Cup in Beaver Creek, Colorado.

CLICK HERE to view results.
CLICK HERE for complete Birds of Prey details.