Whiteface Mountain in Wilmington, New York, just outside of Lake Placid, still holds an Olympic spirit in its heart twenty-six years after it hosted the 1980 Winter Olympic Games. Operated by the Olympic Regional Development Authority (ORDA), Whiteface proudly takes its place within the “winter sports capital of the world” as the Lake Placid region likes to be known. Whiteface continues to attract a host of national and international championships to its slopes and this year is no exception.

“Our connection to the Olympics begins with our event schedule. This year, we had World Cup events in bobsled, skeleton, luge and freestyle skiing prior to Torino. The exposure we receive from these events continues to extend the legacy,” shares Sandy Caliagiore, Director of Communications for the Olympic Regional Development Authority.

Charles A. Gargano, Chairman of the Empire State Development Corporation and ORDA, said, “It is good news that Lake Placid will be the site of so many exciting World Cup events and provide a preview to the winter games in Italy. This will be another opportunity to showcase the region and our legacy in winter sports.”

In January 2006, freestyle skiers hoping to qualify for the Torino Olympics competed in the Nature Valley Freestyle Cup. In March, after the Winter Games, the State Farm US Snowboard Cup and Nokia FIS World Cup competition in parallel, giant slalom, halfpipe and snowboardcross takes place at Whiteface. There is never at dull moment in the Whiteface venue.

“We are very thankful for the support of the international sports federations and the national governing bodies of bobsled, luge, skeleton, skiing and snowboarding for continuing to have faith in ORDA’s ability to execute world class events,” stated ORDA’s Director of Events Jim Goff.

With a base elevation of 1,220 feet and a summit elevation of 4,386 feet,
Whiteface provides terrain suitable for major competitive events while also catering to the recreational winter sports enthusiast on 220 acres of skiable terrain.

“Long runs are our forte particularly in the intermediate and expert areas. Our longest intermediate run goes from the summit of Whiteface to the base…a trip of 3.5 miles of continuous terrain” Caliagiore reports.

Whiteface offers 35 acres of “out of bounds” skiing on “The Slides” (as conditions allow) which is the highest skiable terrain at 4,867 feet. With thirteen acres devoted to terrain parks and a 450 foot Superpipe, Whiteface offers a diversified mountain to suit many interests.

For families of young skiers and riders, the Kids Kampus operates in its own section of Whiteface. Separate but not isolated, Kids Kampus features easy novice terrain, intermediate glades and a carpet lift. With its own parking lot and snowsports school, this area provides developing skiers and young children the ideal arena in which to learn skiing and snowboarding. There is also plenty of novice terrain accessible from the main base lodge area by riding the Bear chairlift which also provides access to the SuperPipe.

“The entire lower mountain is for novices who can use the three-year-old Face Lift high speed quad and get over 1,000 vertical feet of green and blue skiing and riding on Easy Street, Broadway and Boreen,” advised Caliagiore.

Advanced skiers and riders will want to ride the Cloudsplitter Gondola to the summit of Little Whiteface at an elevation of 3,676 feet. In addition to offering a priceless view, the gondola services a wide selection of advanced terrain with a vertical of 1,500 feet including trails used for competition in the 1980 Olympics and several terrain parks. For skilled skiers, glades can be found off of Little Whiteface as well as The Slides glades off of Whiteface Summit. With such a wide variety of terrain offerings, skiers and riders won’t run out of places to showcase their skills.
“In recent years, we’ve widened trails from summit to mid-mountain. Many of our runs, for all levels, are 6-8 lanes wide,” Caliagiore explained.

The Whiteface staff takes safe skiing and riding seriously. After two unfortunate fatalities two years ago, Whiteface notched up their commitment to safety and developed the Yellow Jacket patrol which is captained by a retired police officer.
Positioned in key locations on the mountain, the Yellow Jackets monitor any reckless behavior and respond accordingly. Use of safety signage and a safety mascot, Whiteface Willy also work to get the safety message across to skiers and riders.

Winter recreation lives and thrives in the Adirondack region of New York. At Whiteface, whether watching a major competitive event or skiing for pleasure, visitors will not be disappointed and will return again and again to catch some of the Olympic magic that is so much a part of the region.

Vicki Abbott Bancroft is a freelance writer who has written about skiing and snowsports for over fifteen years. She is a member of the Eastern Ski Writer’s Association and the North American Snowsports Journalists Association. Ms.Bancroft lives in southeastern Massachusetts with her husband and two children, all of whom ski and snowboard.