Snow Alert for Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire; Green Mtns & White Mtns

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LAKE LOUISE
Calgary, AB – February 10, 2006 – The 4th Annual
Lake Louise Big Mountain Challenge
will take place at Lake Louise Mountain Resort February 22-26, bringing together top freeskiers from across Canada and the United States.
The competition is four days of extreme skiing and mental endurance. Contestants will ride their chosen line with as much style and control they can deliver and will be judged in five categories: line, control, fluidity, technique and aggressiveness. Additional points are provided to skiers who choose a more difficult line. Spectators will have the opportunity to enjoy the event by viewing some of the best freeskiing on the continent.

The competition will take place on the Ultimate Steeps of the “Powder Bowls” at Lake Louise Mountain Resort. The Powder Bowls is the biggest bowl skiing area in the Rockies, offering diverse terrain and unbeatable snow.

The event schedule is as follows:
Wednesday February 22: Registration, bib pick-up and venue inspection Thursday February 23: Qualifying Run (all competitors)
Friday February 24: Semi Finals
Saturday February 25: Finals
Sunday February 26: Weather day

Stay tuned for the Fernie Freeski Competition, taking place at Fernie Alpine Resort March 15-19. Registration is already being accepted for this event at
Freeski

Registration is $75 without lift tickets, and $175 with lift tickets. All participants much be at least 18 years of age to register, and may do so at www.skircr.com/freeski. Lake Louise

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Stowe
We’re calling all snowboarders and skiers who love to make their own videos to submit them to RideStowe.com for a chance to win a brand new snowboard or pair of skis, in addition to sweet monthly prizes from Gravis Footwear and Himaya Sunscreen. Videos will be judged based on the overall quality of the clip, riding quality and production quality as well.
We’re offering amazing monthly prizes and a HUGE Grand Prize (Your choice of a NEW Snowboard or pair of Skis) to aspiring video producers who love to ride at Stowe. We want to help make you famous so we’re going to let you upload or send your best video clips to us, and we’ll post the best ones on RideStowe.com for everyone to see. We’ll also feature the winning videos at our RideStowe.com Bash at the end of the season.
You can upload your clip online, drop off your videos at a local shop or just send your clip in to us directly at Ridestowe.com. Complete information, rules, and upload area for clips can be found at Ride Stowe

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Red Mountain Lodge

Conditions at 6 AM: 6 degrees with mostly cloudy skies and snow flurries. Gusty West winds at 5 - 10 mph, gusts to 25 mph.
Forecast: Today: Mostly cloudy with morning snow flurries, giving way to mostly sunny skies and highs in the upper teens by this afternoon. Gusty West winds throughout the day.
Open Lifts:5 of 8 Lifts: Cole Creek Quad, Grizzly Peak, Triple Chair, Willow Creek and the Mighty Mite. The Miami Beach Chair is not running today.
Trails: 52 trails. Additional trails could open later today as the ski patrol evaluates the conditions. Surfaces: Powder and packed powder on a 28 - 48" base depth on the snowmaking trails, 24 - 38" on the natural snow trails. Special lift ticket rates of $39 for Adults, $37 for Juniors and $13 for Kids.
Week 2 of the Beartooth Ford's Terrain Park Championship Series is this Sunday with the Slope Style contest from the Ski Station. Check out some of the best riders and skiers in the state compete for great prizes and a chance to win a car.
Red Lodge Mountian

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Big White and Silver Star
Big White and Silver Star are offering the best of both worlds – a great snow base of well over 200 centimetres at both resorts, and abundant sunshine! The weekend forecast is for predominantly sunny skies, with snowfall at higher elevations. Banish those Valley blues and come up to Big White and Silver Star for the very best in skiing, snowboarding, Nordic skiing, tubing, skating, and general good, clean winter fun!

With Valentine's Day happening on Tuesday, "love is in the air" at Big White and Silver Star! Actually, a newlywed Kelowna couple couldn't wait, and tied the knot at Big White just last weekend! Congratulations to local snowboarders Dan and Emily Eising, who exchanged vows at the Happy Valley Skating Rink, and then had their wedding party don snowboards (of course, the men had their tuxes on!) for a run down Hummingbird to the bottom of the Plaza Chair. Happy groomsman Dan Eising said, "it was fantastic riding the lift back up to the village, people were clapping and cheering and congratulating us. It was just an awesome day!" The newlyweds spent their wedding night in the luxurious Stonebridge Lodge before returning to Kelowna the next day.
Thanks to increasing popularity, the skating rink at Big White is now open until 10:00pm on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Lara's Gondola to the Village Centre Mall will now run until 11:00pm on those evenings.
... - Feb 12 46th Annual Vernon Winter Carnival
For information on all the exciting events, please log onto: www.vernonwintercarnival.com. Feb 6 - Feb 9 Over The Hill Downhill Training Camp Join a team of world-class coaches as they teach you a thing or two about going fast. Safety is always number one, so don’t worry about your day job! One day camp: $70 • 4 day camp: $225

Register with the Snowsport School at 250-558-6065 or email:lessons@skisilverstar.com
Feb 10 $5 Friday
$5 lift ticket
$10 regular ski or snowboard rental
$5 dinner special in Town Hall
Join us for fireworks afterward!
3:30 - 9:00 p
m
Feb 10 - Feb 12 26th Annual Over the Hill Downhill & Canadian Masters Downhill Championship Canada's longest running Master's Ski Race, skiers and snowboarders throughout Canada, the USA and Europe descend upon Silver Star for this annual event. Download printable race notice (.pdf)

Feb 10 Vernon Vipers Hockey Game
Come out and support our BCJHL Interior Champions as they take on the Victoria Salsa. Bus available to and from the game. Book your seat early! Bus departs at 6:00pm. Game time 7:00pm. Bookings: infodesk@skisilverstar.com

Feb 11 Torchlight Parade
Take part in the perfect ski holiday experience by joining our torchlight parade at 8:00 pm! Cost is $5 - Please pre-register at the Info Desk.

Feb 13 - Feb 17 Level 3 CSIA International Certified Intructor (Ski Instructors Course)
Big White

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Killington
Going Big.... that's what is going on at Killington. The NORAM event on Outer Limits continues Friday featuring the best, young mogul skiers in the country. Check out the photos from this event online at http://letters.killington.com/

Don't Forget about U.S. Ski Team Day at Killington Friday! Enjoy First Tracks on the K-1 Gondola from 8-9 a.m. with the 1992 Olympic Gold Medalist Donna Weinbrecht. Killington will donate $1 from every ticket sold Friday to the U.S. Ski Team.

The conditions are absolutely great at Killington, we are skiing and riding on Packed Powder / Loose Granular snow surfaces. Our Mountain Ops team is busy grooming 80 trails every night and snowmaking continues on 14 trails! PLUS - snow is in the forecast for Friday night, Saturday and Sunday!

Killington

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IOC news
Feb 10 2006 Officially presented on November 26, 2005, the Stadio Olimpico in Torino will host the Opening and Closing Ceremonies of the XX Olympic Winter Games, respectively tonight and on February 26, 2006. The facility, former Stadio Comunale, was opened in 1933 and starting from the ’34-’35 season it began to host soccer championship matches. After becoming the temporary seat of the Museo dell’Automobile and hosting extra-sport events (Universiades, concerts, etc.), the facility was abandoned in favour of the new Stadio delle Alpi, built for the Soccer World Championships of Italia ’90.
In occasion of the Olympic event, a renovation project, cost 30 million euro and assigned to two architecture companies in Verona, kept the existing structure and added a third tier of seats. The overall capacity was then taken to 27,168 places, all covered and sitting, reduced from the previous one (65,000 standing people) in order to fulfil modern security norms.
Today
OLYMPIC FLAME IN TORINO

February 9th 2006 – PIAZZA PALAZZO DI CITTA’ 6.50 p.m. Six pianos conducted by the director Palmino Pia will lead off the celebrations dedicated to the Olympic Flame 7 p.m. Italian television journalist Ilaria D’Amico will invite on the stage some torch bearers from Torino 7.10 p.m. Piccoli Cantori choir concert 7.15 p.m. IOC, Coni and Toroc delegates speeches 7.20 p.m. Italian Rhytmic Gymnastic team show 7.25 p.m. Mayor Sergio Chiamparino speech 7.30 p.m. Livio Berruti, last bearer of the day, gives the Olympic torch to the Mayor Sergio Chiamparino. The Olympic flame will be then taken in custody for the night at Palazzo di Città.

Photo: Torino 20006.org

Torino 2006

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US Ski Team News
U.S. CROSS COUNTRY SKIERS ANTICIPATE RETURN TO COMPETITION
PRAGELATO, Italy (Feb. 10)-- U.S. Ski Team officials anticipate that two U.S. skiers placed on a five-day 'no-start' provision will be able to compete beginning next Tuesday (Feb. 14). The two U.S. skiers were among eight athletes placed on a no-start list by the International Ski Federation after tests Wednesday (Feb. 8) showed slightly elevated hemoglobin levels. The FIS protocol is a health and safety provision.
“Elevated hemoglobin levels can be a natural response to changes in elevation and dehydration,” said Dr. Jim Sterling, chief medical officer for the U.S. Olympic Team. The athletes had traveled to Torino just 36 hours prior to the testing.
According to U.S. Ski Team Nordic Director Luke Bodensteiner, both Kikkan Randall (Anchorage) and Leif Zimmerman (Bozeman, MT) were not anticipated to start in the pursuit event Sunday (Feb. 12), the only event falling within the FIS' five-day window. The athletes will retest Monday (Feb. 13).
Us Ski & Snowboard Teams

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Valais Tourism
The 20th Winter Olympic Games begin today in Turin. It is now time for the representatives of the Valais to get down to business, both at the Olympic venues at the "Houses of Switzerland" in Turin and Sestriere and also as hosts at the Swiss Olympic Parks in Sion and Morgins. Both here and in Italy, there will be attractive events on the programme and interesting people to see throughout the duration of the Games, with for example Swiss entertainers such as Laurence Revey, Starbugs and Daniel Kandelbauer as well as Swiss sport stars such as Denise Biellmann and Franco Marvulli. Events in the Valais Region

A small selection of important winter events from mid February to the end of April :
03.03.-12.03.06 The "Caprices Festival", a music festival in Crans-Montana 03.03.-11.06.06 The "Camille Claudel and Rodin" exhibition at the Fondation P. Gianadda in Martigny 04.03.-05.03.06 The Swiss Telemark championships in Thyon/Les Collons 12.03.06 The international dog sled race in Champex-Lac 17.03.-19.03.06 The O'Neill Xtreme Snowboard Contest in Verbier 19.03.06 8. The "8th Birken Trophy", a fun competition for all and any way of "sliding down the slope" in Bürchen 31.03.-02.04.06 The Allalin open downhill races in Saas-Fee 27.04.-29.04.06 The "Patrouille des Glaciers" Zermatt-Verbier
Valais Verbier
Téléverbier SA is pulling out all the stops with La Chaux Express. This new installation is the only one of its kind in the world to serve two sides of the same mountain and to have an intermediate station.


Events
18/02/2006 24/02/2006 Verbier Ride
17/03/2006 19/03/2006 O'Neill Xtreme by Swatch
01/04/2006 01/04/2006 Verbier High Five by Carlsberg

Verbier

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Timberline Lodge

Its a clear and blustery morning up here at Timberline with bluebird skies and lots of sunshine. Unfortuantely mother nature has decided to once again, show her fierce side. So, due to these higher winds, we are operating only the Pucci triple chair lift with lift ticket prices adjusted accordingly. Currently night skiing is weather dependent so please check back for further updates.
Events
February 5th, 19th, & 26th USASA TIMBERLINE CLASSIC SERIES Halfpipe:
The 7th Annual Timberline Classic Series open to all ages and ability levels, snowboarders and skiers. Timberline joins forces with USASA to offer athletes the opportunity to compete on the USASA level. Non-USASA members are more then welcome to competefor 20 dollars extra. Helmets are required. The event is limited to 100 riders, for details call 503-622-0754.
February 14th VALENTINES DAY
Bring your sweetheart up to the mountain and the world-famous Cascade Dining Room for an afternoon or evening of romance in the unmatched ambiance of Timberline Lodge.

photo: Timberline Lodge Marketing / archieve
Timberline Lodge