Shiffrin describes her best runs as a ball of energy that keeps building with every turn, a continuous surge that never quite peaks. 'It's not about wanting to win,' she explains. 'When I think about winning, it never works. I just focus on the skiing.'
The Wildspitzbahn gondola takes skiers to the heart of the Pitztal Glacier, where pristine snow and high-altitude adventures await. The top station features Austria's highest cafeteria and offers delicious cakes as well as spectacular views of Austria's glaciers almost year-round.
The new mountain bike terrain will feature 19 miles of trails serviced by the Silver Chair, which has a vertical drop of 1,404 feet. The trails will be designed by former pro mountain biker and now master trail designer Matt Hadley.
What makes it shine are the behind-the-scenes moments throughout this five-part series. Without getting lost in technical detail or overselling the sport, it leans into what ski racing actually is: long travel days, fragile confidence, and moments where everything - a season, a career - comes down to a few seconds between gates.
Beginning Monday, Chair 13, Chair 14, and The Outpost have officially closed for the 2026 season. Additionally, the Roller Coaster Express (4) is taking a scheduled midweek break; the lift is set to reopen this coming Friday, May 1, and will operate on weekends only moving forward, provided conditions allow.
"There's nowhere else in the world where you can sit down with a drink and watch skis being made right in front of you," Ted Eynon said, CEO of Meier Skis, in the announcement. "We've always believed in making the ski-building process visible. The Couloir turns that into something people can experience."
Part of the opinion here might stem from growing up in Colorado. Where, up until this year, the snow was always good and skinny skis made up a nice decoration in the garage. When snow days would come by during my high school days I would always be ecstatic to strap on my 118 underfoot skis and ride from first chair till last.
Being a snow groomer can be seen as a thankless job at a ski resort; however, it is one of many jobs that must be done and is vital to operations. It involves long nights, being alone in a snowcat, and pushing snow around the mountain for eight or more hours. However, for the right person, it has also been described as one of the best jobs on the mountain.
If you grew up in a region that received snow, you're probably familiar with the multitude of skiing superstitions. Whether it was wearing your pajamas inside out or flushing ice cubes down the toilet, every kid had their preferred method of playing with fate to force a snow day. Skiers, however, have taken snow superstitions to the next level. A common superstition in the skiing world is the refusal to call the last run, as doing so can apparently heighten your risk of getting injured.