NCAA: Dartmouth Skiway boosts racecourse safety

The Dartmouth Skiway has completed the first of two phases of major improvements to its alpine racing facilities that will bring its giant slalom and slalom courses in line with the current standards for racecourse design and safety as set by the FIS.
THE DARTMOUTH SKIWAY has completed the first of two phases of major improvements to its alpine racing facilities that will bring its giant slalom and slalom courses in line with the current standards for racecourse design and safety as set by the FIS.
    The improvements at the Lyme Center, New Hampshire, peak include the installation of nearly 1,400 feet of permanent safety netting (A-net) on the Worden’s Schuss trail’s giant slalom course, tree removal and widening of both Worden’s Schuss and the Lowell Thomas trails slalom courses to the FIS-required 40 meters, as well as related grading and excavation work. The second phase of the Skiway’s improvements will consist of a major regrading of both Worden’s and Lowell Thomas and will be completed next summer. When both phases are completed, the Skiway will have invested more than $500,000 in the project.
    All of the improvements were made following a report by FIS and U.S. Ski Association course inspector Ted Sutton, who visited the Skiway last December at the request of Skiway general manager Doug Holler and Dartmouth men’s alpine coach Peter Dodge.
    “We considered several of the short- and long-term recommendations included in Ted Sutton’s report,” Holler said, “and, in the end, we committed to an investment in the long-term solution of tree clearing, regrading of the giant slalom and slalom courses, and installing the permanent A-net on Worden’s Schuss.”
    The increased trail width on Thomas and Worden’s and the net installation on Worden’s will provide much safer competition and training venues at the Skiway.
    “The additional width will give racers a much greater margin of error when pushing the limits of speed and technique, and the A-net will provide significant additional protection,” noted Dodge. “In addition, the increased trail width will allow us to set a greater variety of training and race courses, and the improved lines of sight and visibility will provide us with better observation of both training and racing runs.”
    The 14-foot-high A-net includes a fine-mesh “slip skirt” next to the snow surface to prevent skiers from becoming snagged in the larger-mesh net itself. The netting and the 16 support towers were manufactured by SPM Italia and were furnished by World Cup Supply, a supplier of ski race equipment and supplies based in Fairlee, Vermont.
    “SPM has designed and installed A-net systems at some of the most challenging sites and well-known Alpine World Cup venues in Europe, and this project represents their first installation in North America,” said Jeff Sirjane, vice president of sales for World Cup Supply.
    “This installation is significant for us, and we are excited to be working with Dartmouth on this historic ski racing venue. We have learned a lot as we’ve worked with Doug Holler and the Skiway staff, and we look forward to applying this experience to similar projects in the future.”    
    Other recently completed improvements at the Skiway include an expansion of the area’s snowmaking system, with new snow guns, rebuilt pumps, and improvements to on-hill drainage.
    The Dartmouth Skiway hosted the alpine portion of the 2002 NCAA championships. The Skiway regularly hosts numerous FIS-sanctioned races each winter and is also the site of Dartmouth’s annual winter carnival alpine ski races.