If there’s an upside to boilerplate, man-made snowpack, it’s that the guys on the World Cup alpine race tour legitimately love the stuff.
They had better, anyway. Because they’ll pretty much be skiing a vertical ice rink when the Audi Birds of Prey Race Week lands at Beaver Creek for its annual celebration of speed on skis.
Racing gets underway with a super combined (downhill and slalom) Friday, followed by the prestigious downhill showcase Saturday before wrapping up with giant slalom Sunday. The slick course is by design, of course, testing the abilities of American stars such as Ted Ligety and Bode Miller sliding the steep mountain face at highway speeds with times separated by hundredths of seconds.
The firm snow elsewhere on the slopes simply serves as a convenient excuse to take some time off to watch the pros in their only U.S. races of the season. There is no admission price, and the week is loaded with public events.
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