Spring training camp concludes for skiers on Vail Mountain

Alpine and freestyle skiers of all ages got a chance to train on Vail Mountain in May during a spring training camp that wrapped up on Sunday.

The camp took place in the Golden Peak area, using terrain serviced by the Riva Bahn Express (No. 6).

Vail Mountain spokesperson John Plack said the Alpine skiers found serviceable terrain from the midpoint of the Chair 6 area to the bottom of the mountain and were primarily training Alpine technical disciplines.

“They have also been using the mogul venue for training and some snow features from this past season’s terrain park,” Plack said. “It’s always excellent to see world-class training occurring on Vail Mountain, and we’re proud to have (Ski and Snowboard Club Vail) conducting their spring camp on Golden Peak.”

Skiing on Saturday, moguls skiers Caden McCormick, 16, and Beckett Dickson, 14, said the rain that occurred last week and over the weekend didn’t hold up the camp, with skiers skiing through the wet conditions.

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Alpine skier Nick Kirwood, 19, said while the camp didn’t utilize the newly expanded terrain on top of Golden Peak, the area that contained Vail’s terrain park during the regular season made for a good training ground at the spring camp.

“We had courses set over the jumps,” he said. “They took out the jumps and it created little rollers in those areas.”

Kirwood, who lives in Vail, said the mountain had all the makings of a classic training camp — courses with gates set — without having to leave Vail as the club has often had to do in years past. And in the weeks to come, the club will still be able to train without having to travel too much farther.

“We’ll be heading over to Copper for the next three weeks,” Kirwood said.