From February 3-10, 2015 Heimo and I accompanied a fan group of 20 people to the World Cup races in Beaver Creek, Colorado.

Colorado is located in the west central part of the U.S., and is the highest state, with a mean elevation of 2,073 meters.

Denver, the capital, has a population of 600,000 and is a 2-hour drive from Vail.

Many people know Colorado from the time of the gold rush around 1850 and the story about the native people, the Indians.

We find our way to Vail and Beaver Creek to watch the World Cup races, and support the Austrian racers.

Delta Airlines takes us to Denver with a stopover in Atlanta. After more than 20 hours of travel, we arrive in Vail tired but safe, and move into our centrally located hotel.

The races will all take place in Beaver Creek. A well-organized shuttle bus will take fans to the finish area. All award ceremonies were held at 6:30 p.m. in Vail in the center of town; a 10-minute walk from our hotel.

From 7 days we could experience 6 days with sunshine and pleasant temperatures. Vail Valley showed itself from its best side.

The atmosphere and mood during the races were great. Our Kaunertal musicians were gladly heard and also provided great entertainment on two evenings.

We have experienced exciting ski races and could cheer the Austrians with their medals a few times. Celebrations were held at the Lech/Zürs House in Beaver Creek and at the Austria House in Vail with Pepi Gramshammer.

Vail is the largest ski resort in the USA and famous for the “back bowls”; these are huge deep snow basins. This is what we wanted to discover and we strapped on our skis for 3 days.

Beaver Creek has 16 lifts and 146 ski runs. The snow condition is drier than in our regions. We ski at altitudes up to 3,500 meters and experience powder snow and empty slopes. However, the pleasure comes at a price. A day ski pass costs $145.

On the last evening we celebrate farewell with very good steaks in the Lanzelot Restaurant, which is run by a Klagenfurt resident. The Kaunertaler play and we review the last days with a good glass of red wine.