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Anatomy of a ski race

By Michel Beaudry It was a bold claim. “We’re going to turn Aspen into the epicentre of the skiing universe,” promised Honda Ski Tour founder Kipp Nelson. “And we’re stoked you’re joining us. So welcome to the tour.

By Michel Beaudry

It was a bold claim. “We’re going to turn Aspen into the epicentre of the skiing universe,” promised Honda Ski Tour founder Kipp Nelson. “And we’re stoked you’re joining us. So welcome to the tour. We’ll see you on the hill… or in the pavilion… or at the after party.” His words definitely tickled my curiosity. Sure, I was interested in how his production team would showcase the skiercross and halfpipe competitions, which was purportedly the tour’s raison d’ètre . But I was also keen to see how the social side of the event would be handled. I mean, how could a new skiing-and-music-and-party tour with the same initials as the legendary Hunter S. Thompson go wrong in Aspen?

Turns out Aspen was a much bigger nut to crack than Kipp or his business partner, Steve Brown ever imagined…

But I’m getting ahead of myself.

I first heard about the Honda Ski Tour from my friend Zach Crist. “You gotta check this out man,” said the former X-Games gold medallist. “It’s right down your alley. We’ve got this four-event national tour with over $500,000 in prize money. And it’s not about snowmobiling or shovel racing or any other fringe winter sport. It’s all about showcasing the most progressive skiing disciplines going. We’ve got skiers like Darren Rahlves and Casey Puckett and Tanner Hall and Simon Dumont. On the musical side, we’ve got George Clinton and Sean Paul and Swollen Members and Blackalicious. I mean, this thing is about to blow the ski event doors wide open.”

I was intrigued. For it sounded to me like Kipp’s gang had taken a page right out of WSSF founder Doug Perry’s event management bible (if such a tome ever existed). Only these guys had decided to make a national tour of it.

“Kipp and Steve originally envisioned this as a dual GS race circuit,” Zach explained. “But Reggie (Crist) and I convinced them to go current.” No surprise there. Teammates on their university team, the HST partners were huge ski racing fans. Both had made significant fortunes in the ensuing decades and were now looking for a way to give something back to skiing. The Crist brothers, on the other hand, just wanted to make sure their Sun Valley neighbours were investing their money in the right place. “This is all about celebrating modern ski culture,” added Zach. “And you and I both know that skiercross and halfpipe are on the leading edge of that culture. We’re lucky these guys understood that too…”

And things were starting to look good for the fledgling circuit. The HST had already hosted two successful ski parties — one in the founders’ hometown of Sun Valley and one in Breckenridge. Now it was Aspen’s turn to experience the full blast of the Honda Ski Tour party machine. Would the Loudest Show On Snow (as the HST promoted itself) impress the denizens of the poshest mountain town around? I wondered…

I was also curious to see where Whistler might fit in as a future venue for the Honda Ski Tour. With the ascension of skiercross into the Olympic pantheon — and the high probability of its inclusion in the 2010 Games — events like the HST are vital to the technical development and image creation of the sport. At stake is the very soul of this young discipline. Is it going to buckle under FIS pressure and become rule-bound and static? Or is it going to keep its free-flowing, semi-outlaw flavour?

To their credit, the event organizers seemed to be following Doug Perry’s modus operandi with athletes too. “This is a skier-driven circuit, for sure,” Zach told me. “The aim is to create an event that shows off the best elements of our sport. And the best people to consult with are the competitors themselves. And that’s something that Kipp and Steve are totally committed to.” That was good enough for me. I was in…

Aspen never ceases to amaze me. As grown-up and sophisticated as we all think Whistler has become, it pales in comparison to Aspen’s casual urbanity. I felt like a country bumpkin from the moment I landed at the airport — without my luggage. A future of rental skis and loaned parkas loomed. And in Aspen of all places. I was already feeling out-of-control and the adventure had barely begun.

Fortunately I was reunited with my gear just in time to catch some of the skiercross practice the next day at nearby Snowmass. This is when I became aware of a big problem with the Aspen/HST relationship. For while the course itself was easily the most exciting — and most demanding — skiercross course I’ve seen to date, the venue was in the middle of nowhere. As a race site, it was impeccable. It was a real rock-and-roller with big air, big turns and some great passing sections. And the athletes were all treating it with respect. Especially after World Cup star Darren Rahlves launched himself off a bump and out of the next day’s race with a very nasty-looking crash.

“You can’t ever let your guard down on this course,” Whistlerite Davey Barr told me. “You’ve got to be on your toes from the time you push out of the start gate to the moment you cross the finish line.” One of the most consistent performers on the circuit, Barr is quietly establishing himself as a world-class competitor. So when he assured me this was going to be a good race, I took him at his word.

But how were they going to get casual spectators here, I wondered.   How were they going to get the party going?

They say location is everything. For Kipp and his team, that was the biggest hurdle they faced in Aspen. Exiled to the slopes of Snowmass, they never managed to establish a critical mass back in town. To turn Aspen into the epicentre of the skiing universe, as Kipp and his team claimed they would do, the HST staff would have to inspire themselves from the gonzo behaviour of the man with whom the tour shared its initials. They’d have to grab Aspen by the throat and shake it till its beau monde paid attention. Unfortunately that never quite happened…

But that’s not to say that the parties and musical performances weren’t top-notch. They were. I got a particular kick out of watching George Clinton and his merry band of funkmeisters playing it up for a room full of white kids in raccoon tans and designer jeans. But in Aspen, big performers come and go on a regular basis. And despite spending a reported $1.5 million on the event (“and still counting,” sighed co-founder Steve Brown), Kipp and his entourage never got much respect from the town’s business community.

Two incidents stand out for me. The first was watching Kipp and a group of Tour VIP’s being denied access to a late-night Tommy Lee show because the manager of the Sky Hotel (where the show was being held) had decided to invite his own guests instead. No matter that Kipp was footing the bill. There was no love waiting for him at the gate…

The second was watching Kipp finally lose it at the Belly-up Bar during a Gomez concert the following evening when he couldn’t get the mayor of Telluride in to the show (for which he was once again paying). “It’s the last straw,” he told me, his face creased in anger and frustration. “We’re never coming back to Aspen…”

As I wrote earlier, this place is no easy nut to crack.

“I don’t think we ever managed to convince Aspenites that our event was really something that they should get behind,” Brown admitted the next day. “Maybe it was because we came in too soon after the X-Games. Maybe we didn’t do enough advance prep. Who knows? But this was, by far, our toughest event. Will we be back next year? I really can’t answer that now. But we will certainly have to do a better job of it if we do.”

For the record, the on-snow stuff was outstanding. Though spectators were far and few between, the athletes put on a memorable show. The skiercross race was exceptionally good. And for Canadians, it provided a glimmer of excitement for 2010. Stanley Hayer, a Kimberley, B.C. resident who now races for the Czech Republic, stole the race with some masterful skiing in-tight and personal. As for Davey Barr, he was strong all day, and earned himself a top spot in the semi-finals. “I don’t know why I decided to alter my start in the semis,” he admitted to me later. “But I did and it cost me the race.” He ended up second in the consolation final and sixth overall. The TV show should be spectacular…

Limping back into Vancouver after a long weekend of Aspen hi-jinks, I couldn’t help but still be impressed with what Kipp, Steve and the boys had attempted. So what if it hadn’t been a complete success. So what if the HST had not totally transformed the town into the epicentre of the skiing universe as they’d promised. They’d certainly given it their best shot. And they’d certainly broken new ground on the racing side. At the very least, they deserved props for their boldness. And then I discovered that the bloody airline had lost my bags again. Damn!