Ski racing 101: A guide to this weekend’s Birds of Prey World Cup races in Beaver Creek

It’s World Cup weekend at Beaver Creek which is an amazing opportunity to see a fast-paced sport that is watched all over the world in person and for free. If you don’t know the difference between a super-G and a giant slalom, however, here’s a primer on what you need to know going into race weekend.

The name

First of all, when you say World Cup, people may think you are talking about soccer, but this is ski racing at its finest — the White Circus as it is affectionately called throughout the season by racers, coaches, ski technicians and those who track the sport. The official name of this event is the Stifel Birds of Prey Audi FIS World Cup, with the FIS standing for the International Federation of Skiing, the highest governing body of the races. Birds of Prey is the name of the course that’s on the Golden Eagle trail in the Talons area of Beaver Creek.

The races

Beaver Creek will host three races this weekend, the downhill on Friday at 11 a.m., the super-G on Saturday at 10:30 a.m. and the giant slalom on Sunday with the first race at 10 a.m. followed by a second run at 1 p.m. that will consist of the top 30 racers who advanced to the second run based on their race times during the first run. The downhill and the super-G are speed events while the giant slalom is a technical event. Speed events are classified as having longer distances, higher speeds and fewer gates than the technical events. World Cup ski races are timed events — the clock doesn’t lie, and the first one to the bottom wins.

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History

The Birds of Prey course was built in the summer of 1997 in order to host the World Alpine Ski Championships in 1999, which is an international event held every other year on odd-numbered years that names the top skiers in six events. The course was designed by Bernhard Russi of Switzerland. Russi was a ski racer who later took his expertise and designed downhill race courses around the world.

Interestingly enough, Denver had been picked to host the 1976 Winter Olympic Games and Beaver Creek would host the alpine ski racing events. The citizens of Colorado, however, voted down hosting in 1972 because many thought it would lead to too much development. Denver became the only city in the history of the modern Olympic era to win the Games and then give them up.

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The course

The Birds of Prey course is noted by ski racers and coaches as being not only extremely physically challenging but also mentally demanding. After coming off of the relatively flat Flyway section at the top, it’s game on. Stacked terrain, jumps and fast turns await, and in a little over a minute and a half, the racers are at the finish line.

Different areas of the course have been named after American ski racers who have dominated on one of the only stops on American soil. Ligety’s Legacy is named after Ted Ligety, Miller’s Revenge is named after Bode Miller and Rahlves Roll is named after Daron Rahlves. Rahlves became the first American to win at the Birds of Prey downhill in 2003.

The top of the downhill course, the longest of the three races this weekend, stands at 11,424 feet above sea level and the finish elevation is 8,954, making for a vertical drop of 2,470 feet over a distance of 8,303 feet. A course map can be found at BCWorldCup.com if you want to see the different sections and learn the stats for the super-G and giant slalom.

The surface of the course is rock-hard. The course crew works tirelessly to keep the course in pristine condition from the first racer to the last each day. The Talons Crew is a dedicated group of course workers, many of them volunteers, and their efforts are always praised by the ski racers both domestic and foreign. The course is actually injected with water, so think of an ice rink — except it’s at a steep angle.

The Golden Eagle Run will be closed to the public for a while after the races. Other ski teams may come to train here and it takes a while to return it to civilian use, but if you get a chance to ski or snowboard from the top of Birds of Prey (No. 9) to the bottom of Talons once it is back open, go for it, and keep track of your time and see how you measure up against Daron Rahlves and Bode Miller.

Getting there

Park at the Elk or Bear lots in Avon by the Beaver Creek entrance ($13 per day or free after 1 p.m.) and then take the free shuttle bus up to Beaver Creek Village and then hop on another free shuttle bus that will take you from Beaver Creek Village to Red Tail Stadium. Once the bus drops you off at the race venue, you will need to climb several stairs and walk on snow, so wear appropriate footwear.

Allow about an hour to get from your parked car to Red Tail Stadium and go early to avoid lines on the buses. This is a very popular event. Once you get up there, the music will be pumping and a very funny emcee named Uncle E will entertain you with fun facts, interviews, trivia and prize giveaways. Drinks and concessions are available for purchase.

Due to the abundant snowfall and the hard work of the crews at Beaver Creek, ski-in, ski-out access is available this year. Bring your Epic Pass or purchase a lift ticket and board the Centennial Express (No. 6) and then follow the signs to the venue. Skiers and snowboarders will have access to the course via the slopes from 10 a.m. until 1 p.m. each race day and can exit the venue by either taking the Birds of Prey (No. 9) lift between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. or by skiing and snowboarding down the Dally run to the Beaver Creek Village base area.

Village fun

Beaver Creek’s atmosphere is electrified this weekend as a multitude of vendor booths with all sorts of giveaways and product samples will be handed out. There is also a full schedule of bands and DJs filling the village with music after the races are done.

Autograph signings will happen throughout the weekend as well, with the Men’s U.S. Ski Team doing a signing at 3 p.m. at Gorsuch and Ted Ligety signing his name at Kjus at 4:30 p.m. on Friday. On Saturday, River Radamus will be at the Celsius booth signing autographs at 4 p.m.

Fun fact about Radamus, who grew up in the Vail Valley and trained with Ski and Snowboard Club Vail, he had posters on his wall of Ted Ligety up until he was named to the same team as Ligety before Mr. GS retired in 2021. So, you never know which of the kids at the autograph signings will become the next stars of the sport.

At the Vilar Performing Arts Center, check out “75,” the latest installment of the Warren Miller franchise which commemorates 75 years of filmmaking at 5 and 8 p.m. on Friday. Also on Friday, stick around for the bib draw at 6 p.m. where the bib numbers the racers pick will determine the order they descend down the hill on Saturday. Fireworks will close out the bib draw at 6:30 p.m.

After the races on Saturday, the big highlight of the afternoon in the village will be the Beers of Prey at 2 p.m., featuring samples of plenty of Colorado beers and from locations beyond. This is a ticketed event, and prices go up to $45 the day of the beer tasting.

For more historical information, results from past years, statistics of the course, racers to watch and entertainment lineup, go to BCWorldCup.com.