About Copper Peak and Ski Flying
This page is an unofficial source of information about ski flying
at Copper Peak. "Ski flying" is the term used for ski jumping on
hills designed for flights longer than 170 meters. Olympic jumps
are rated at 90 and 120 meters. Think of those numbers as
"par" for good jumpers. It's all about distance.
Built in 1969, Copper Peak remains the only ski flying hill in the
western hemisphere. To our American ski jumpers, it should be
like Lambeau Field, Yankee Stadium, Churchill Downs, or the
Indianapolis Motor Speedway, yet no skier has flown from
Copper Peak since 1994.
A non-profit organization, staffed by volunteers, operates the
chairlift, elevator, and gift shop in the summer. Proceeds from
these operations are being invested in maintenance and
upgrades upgrades to the facility, both for the enjoyment of
summer visitors and in hopes of being granted a future ski flying
event date by FIS. To visit the official Copper Peak website,
click www.copperpeak.org.
The current distance record at Copper Peak is jointly held
by Austrians Werner Schuster and Matthias Wallner, at 158
meters (518 feet). If today’s best jumpers flew at Copper
Peak, they’d probably reach 170, 180 meters ... maybe more.
With future changes to the hill, they’ll certainly fly further.
US jumper Alan Alborn, of Anchorage AK, flew 221.5 meters in Planica, Slovenia in 2002, at that time just
3.5 meters short of the world record. It remains the longest flight by any American ... see it on YouTube. The
current world record is 239 meters, 784 feet, set at Planica in 2005 by Norway's Bjoern Einar Romoeren ...
view YouTube video.
US jumper Lindsey Van, then 19, of Park City UT, flew 171 meters at Vikersund, Norway in March 2004.
That’s the longest flight ever by an American woman. She also held the original distance record of 105.5
meters on the new Olympic jump in Vancouver, which she set during the Canadian National Championships in
January 2008 (only a handful of the best jumpers in the world exceeded that at the Olympics). But, of course,
the IOC still refuses to include women’s ski jumping at the Olympics. It’s the only Olympic event, along with
Nordic Combined (which involves jumping) that does not include women. In February 2009, at Liberec CZE,
women were included for the first time at the FIS World Championships, and Lindsey won the gold ...
becoming the first Women’s World Champion! see her winning jump on YouTube
Let's hope that we'll get to see some of the world's best, including Americans, again fly at Copper Peak. You'd
see athletes currently competing in the international World Cup and Continental Cup series, and we’d certainly
hope both men and women!
Copper Peak is very well known to fans in Europe, Scandinavia, and Japan. A photo of Copper Peak was
included in a great photo collage (above left) in the program from the 2002 Ski Flying World Championships in
Harrachov, Czech Republic. It shows all six ski flying hills in the world ... the crown jewels of this sport. You'll
notice that Copper Peak is labeled as "Ironwood" (all are labeled by location, because that's how they're
commonly identified). More info available about the other hills via links below the collage.
Please visit this page now and then to see if there's further news about ski flying at Copper Peak. For
information about visiting the facility, tours, chairlift rides, dates and hours for summer and fall operation, click
to their official site, www.copperpeak.org.
Did you know that ski jumping is a year-round sport? Jumpers learn, train, and compete in the summer on hills
with plastic surfaces that simulate snow. Several clubs in the midwestern US have year-round programs,
including St Paul and Coleraine MN, Fox River Grove IL (NW Chicago area), Madison, Wisconsin Rapids, and
Iola WI. The Olympic complexes at Park City UT, Lake Placid NY, and Calgary AB also have year-round
jumping facilities and programs, as does Steamboat Springs CO. You can find out more about the sport,
regional clubs, and view a schedule of events by visiting www.SkiJumpingUSA.com. Give yourself a treat ...
see some LIVE ski jumping!
Ski Jumping Video ... this video is used for recruiting youngsters!
The ski jumping clubs in the midwest US are showing this introductory video to give kids and parents a sense
of the excitement of ski jumping, and to show how youngsters begin to learn this terrific sport. Click here to
view streaming video ... it's a 15MB WMV file and runs just over 8 minutes; turn up sound! If you're on dialup,
try this low res 5mb version. There's also a high res 30mb version.
Program cover for the 2002 FIS
Ski Flying World Championships
Harrachov CZE
Brought to you by SkiJumpingUSA.com
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