Aspen X Games are over, exit to Sochi!

Our Luxury Ski Vacation blog has moved, follow us at Luxury Ski Trips! Thanks!

The Winter XGames from Aspen are wrapped for another year. ESPN has continued the contract to the coveted Ski, Snowboard and Snowmobile Games til 2019! Sweet gig for Aspen's Buttermilk, the smallest of Aspen's four ski mountains including Ajax, Highlands and Snowmass. This season, skiing and snowboarding's best athletes brought big tricks to a boisterous Colorado crowd. For many athletes, this year's XGames were  stepping platform to the performance in the Sochi Olympics February 8 2014. The XGames are like the MTV Awards to winter sports, edgier than the Olympics or the Grammy's -which aired simultaneously with the XGames last night.  We you channel flipping from ESPN in Aspen to ABC's Grammy coverage from Hollywood?

Big winner at Winter X include Kelly Clark, the 30-year old snowboarder from Vermont won her fourth X Games Gold in Snowboard SuperPipe. Clark is going to Sochi to compete in Olympic Halfpipe with teammates Kaitlyn Farrington - who took XGames Silver at Aspen, and Vermont's Hannah Teter.

In Men's Snowboard SuperPipe, Danny Davis won Gold, with Louie Vito earning silver and Greg Bretz bronze. Gold medal winner 6x Shaun White did not ride in the XGames, saving his snowboard strength for Sochi. You will see White compete against his teammates Danny Davis and Greg Betz at Sochi's Rosa Khutor on Feb 11 in Olympic Superpipe. Shaun White will also perform in the first ever Olympic Snowboard Slopestyle on Feb 8.

In Men's Ski Slopestyle, Nick Goepper won his 2nd X Games Gold. He'll compete at Sochi  in the first ever Olympics ski slopestyle, along with teammates Gus Kenworthy, Joss Christensen and Bobby Brown. If you have been to the Dumont Cup at Sunday River, you have seen these guys compete alongside Simon Dumont. Unfortunately, Dumont injured his ACL, sidelining him from both the XGames and Olympics.

In Men's Ski Halfpipe, David Wise won his 3rd XGames Gold, he'll head to Olympic Ski Halfpipe's debut along with Torin Yater-Wallace - the 18 year old super skier from Aspen. In Women's Ski Halfpipe Maddie Bowman won Gold, she is competing in Sochi's first Women's Olympic Ski Halfpipe, along with Andover, Mass. teammate Annalisa Drew.

In Men's Snowboard Cross, Nate Holland won his 6th Gold, beating fellow Olympic bound SBX Alex Diebold and Trevor Jacob. In a surprising twist, Sugarloafer Seth Wescott was eliminated early at Aspen, and unfortunately did not secure a spot on the Olympic Snowboard Cross team to defend his two Gold medals. Nick Baumgartner will go to Sochi as the 4th man instead.

In Women's Snowboard Cross Lindsey Jacobellis won her 8th Winter X Games Gold. Jacobellis is going to Sochi, you may remember she hit a gate and was disqualified at Vancouver 2010 Olympics, and missed Gold at the 2006 Olympics when she led the pack but went for a victory grab on the final jump and fell, grabbing silver instead. Next up Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics in Russia...this should be very interesting! I think these USA athletes and the  US Alpine Ski Team should haul some serious medals at Rosa Khutor. Game on Team USA...

Early December snow, ski fests and ski racing wins!

Our Luxury & Family Ski Vacation blogs have moved, follow us at Family Ski Trips and Luxury Ski Vacations! Thanks!

What a great early December ski weekend across the US, with snow, unseasonable cold, and victory for our US Ski Team.

In New England skiing, 210 Santas took to the ski slopes at Sunday River Maine, part of the 14th annual Santa Sunday - a local fundraiser that brings out skiing and riding Santas dressed all jolly and jovial. The Santas ski free with a donation to the local rotary, and get a 2nd free lift to use before Christmas after they participate in an 11am photo shoot. If you have never seen 200 Santas schussing the snowy slopes... well, it's a White Christmas sight! Sunday River also launched their new T72 Trail this weekend, the longest jumpline in the East. This terrain park trail is the brainchild of Simon Dumont, X-Games freeskier from Sunday River, who is on his way to compete in the first ever skiing halfpipe at Sochi Olympics 2014.

Out West, snow and cold swept through Colorado, Utah and Montana. The US Ski Team men made a brilliant showing at Beaver Creek's Audi Birds of Prey World Cup - with Ted Ligety winning the GS, and teammate Bode Miller a second behind for silver.

In Utah, a snowy Deer Valley Celebrity Classic brought snow and celebs like Dr Oz sporting cool OSBE Italian made ski helmets. Sponsors of this great Celebrity Skifest, televised on CBS, include Montage Deer Valley, Paul Mitchell, OSBE and Southwest Airlines. Highlights include watching TV stars on skis and witnessing the brother rivalry of  Phil and Steve Mahre in the race gates.

Meanwhile, in beautiful Lake Louise Canada, US Ski Team sweetheart Lindsey Vonn was back in the gates, just weeks after re-injuring her knee at Copper Colorado, and 10 months after her huge Schladming Austria crash. Vonn managed to place 5th in Super GS in at Lake Louise, she's vowing that she's back and better and gunning for Gold at Sochi!

The US women's ski team is bound for St Moritz Switzerland, while the men's alpine World Cup tour heads to Val D'Isère France next. The Road to Russia, and the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics looms ever closer...game on!

Stay tuned to Family Ski Trips and Luxury Ski Trips for all the ski resort and ski racing news you can use!

Lindsey Vonn's ski verdict twists in the knee

Our Family Ski Vacation and Luxury Skiing Vacation blogs have moved, follow us at Luxury Ski Vacations and Family Ski Vacations! Thanks!

Nov 19, 2013 at Copper Mountain in Colorado, Lindsey Vonn left the ski slopes in a ski patrol sled. Hardly the exit she has been training for. Vonn was training downhill and had just tweeted a great photo catching air on her Head skis. @lindseyvonn Catching some air today in Downhill training @gopro #headwhatsyourlimit.

The next day's ski training she crashed. Vonn was seen standing after the fall, non weight bearing and with support from coaches under both shoulders before being loaded into the patrol sled to be sent for a diagnostic MRI.


Lindsey Vonn, our great girl hope for the U.S. Ski Team, had successfully returned to the slopes a few months ago,  following extensive rehab and recovery from her dramatic knee injury (MCL, ACL, fractured tibia, etc) on February 5, 2013 at Schladming Austria. After that horrific accident, Vonn was medevac'd off the mountain, then flown home on Tiger Wood's private jet to the Sports Medicine Ortho Clinic in Vail, Colorado- her hometown.

Tom Kelly, US Ski Team spokesperson, said the ski patrol toboggan was standard procedure. 29-year-old Vonn saw her Vail doctor and a statement was issued today, Wednesday, that she partially tore her ACL and  strained a  ligament in that same right knee, in addition to shoulder contusions and mild facial abrasions.

Lindsey Vonn was expected to make a return to World Cup ski racing next week at Beaver Creek, with further plans to compete in Sochi Olympic Winter Games in February 2014, defending her Downhill Gold Medal. Now that is all a big question mark.

Sunday night Lindsey Vonn was spotted with boyfriend Tiger Woods at the Chiefs-Broncos game. Last week Woods and Vonn were seen skiing at Breckenridge Colorado.

Stay tuned for word on what Lindsey's ski future is... and her dating status...we still contend she should dump Tiger the cheater, and focus on not dumping on the slopes.. ouch!

www.familyskitrips.com www.luxuryskitrips.com

100 Days to Sochi & US Ski Team #Winning

We are 100 days away from Sochi 2014 Winter Games. NBC and the Today Show want you to know, as they bring you their throw down show down countdown. US Ski Team's Ted Ligety is in New York City today, Oct. 29, accepting the U.S. Olympic Committee's Olympic SportsMan of the Year Award exactly 100 days out from the Winter Games.

Befitting since the handsome, humble Ligety already won the ski season opener World Cup last weekend in Solden Austria, a promising start to his ski racing season. Bode Miller raced in Austria too, but couldn't catch Ligety split in his best GS event, Ted has won this GS three years straight on the Rettenbach Glacier in Solden Austria. Bode Miller got 19th, his first World Cup race since Feb. 2012.

U.S. Ski Team women Mikaela Shiffrin and Julia Mancuso placed sixth and 27 in Solden.  Lindsey Vonn did not compete in Austria, she was in NYC on the Today Show yesterday and late night with Letterman. Tiger's girlfriend (for now- remember I predicted she cut the Woods out come ski season)  is expected to return to the snowy gates Nov. 29 - Dec. 1 at Beaver Creek, Colorado's World Cup.

NBC is building up to  their coverage of the  XXII Olympic Winter Games from Sochi, Russia, which begins Feb. 6, 2014. In 100 days, NBC will kick off the first night of Olympics with the debut of men's and women's snowboard slopestyle in the Winter Games, starring my favorite snowboarding ginger Shaun White. The following night will be the Opening Ceremonies, in a change of format and formalities. Look for more NBC human interest stories, brought to you by Bob Costas, on alpine skiers, snowboarders and winter Olympic athletes on their Road to Sochi, Russia.

Meanwhile enjoy  The World  Series, get out and ski at Killington, Arapahoe Basin & Loveland, and check back here for World Cup news!

Go Red Sox, Go US Ski Team!