Audi FIS Ski World Cup Tour Makes A Stop at Palisades Tahoe
Lake Tahoe, February 2023 – Lake Tahoe, the jewel of the Sierra, is never a place of little notice. As the home of some of the Sierra Nevada’s most sought-after outdoor adventure and vacation destinations all year round, Lake Tahoe is also very comfortable in taking center stage globally when it has the opportunity.
This week in Lake Tahoe, the Worlds Best Ski racers and their fans will ascend into the Reno / Lake Tahoe basin for the Audi FIS Ski Ski Racing Event – The Stifel Palisades Tahoe Cup Saturday, February 25, and Sunday, February 26.
The men return to the storied Olympic venue Palisades Tahoe in 2023, which hosted the Olympic Winter Games in 1960, for giant slalom and slalom. The mountain’s challenging terrain and dedication to snowsports have produced countless Olympians and World Cup champions since then, with seven Team Palisades Tahoe athletes currently on the U.S. Alpine Ski Team.
One of only four U.S. resorts featured on the Audi FIS Ski World Cup circuit this season, Palisades Tahoe will host men’s slalom and giant slalom events on Dog Leg and Red Dog Face. The course raced in 2017 for the women’s alpine event, is one Olympic champion Mikaela Shiffrin has described as “one of, if not the toughest” course venues on the women’s World Cup circuit.
The atmosphere at these world cup events is electric and fun for the entire family. Fans will travel from around the world to see this weekend’s men’s event at Palisade.
The events will kick off on Friday with a Kickoff Parade in the Palisades Village. Celebrate the start of The Stifel Palisades Tahoe Cup! 1,000+ athletes will lead the way from Coffeebar to KT Base Bar. Followed by the public bib draw hosted by Olympic Gold Medalist Jonny Moseley, John Haines and the Palisades Tahoe Patrol dogs & handlers.
The Giant Salom event will occur on Saturday, with opening activities at 8:30 am and the official opening ceremonies at 9:30 am. The Village Village will be open at 8:00 am. Catch all of the Giant Slalom action of Palisades Tahoe Cup at the Red Dog Course. Opening ceremonies kick off at 9:40am with run 1 following at 10am.
The Salom race events on Sunday will follow the same time schedule with opening ceremonies at 9:30 and first runs at 10am.
The Course
Red Dog is a spectacular race course. It has four primary sections: No Name Face, Dog Leg, Coaches Corner and Red Dog Face. The Giant Slalom course covers all four sections. From the starting gate, athletes gain speed across No Name Face. Athletes then drop into Dog Leg, where each turn gets steeper. Then, the course goes from relatively flat to extremely steep. The technical terrain makes it quite challenging for athletes to create a rhythm.
After the upper portion of the Dog Leg, there’s a false flat at the top of Far East Express. From here, athletes are forced to tackle a big change in direction at Coaches Corner. The course bends to the left and through a saddle before entering Red Dog Face, the start of the Slalom course. At this point, athletes can see straight to the end of the course. They’ll start to hear cheering from fans, as the race hill begins to fall away to the right, where athletes are forced to make strong right footers.
Finally, they reach the heart of The Face which becomes challenging with a test of balance over multiple terrain variations as they battle a real roller coaster course to the finish. Watching these athletes will make for some great spectating.
Spectator Information
Free Standing Room Viewing
Free standing-room viewing will be available near finish arena as well as skier spectator viewing on looker’s right of Red Dog Face. Live stream viewing will also be available at dining locations in The Village at Palisades Tahoe.
All general parking at Palisades Tahoe is first-come, first-serve and free. Follow directional signage when you arrive at either mountain. We encourage all spectators to arrive early and travel together as a group.
Driving by Car Tips + Carpooling
Vehicles with 3+ passengers can park in our premium lot at Palisades for free. This lot is available on a first-come, first-serve basis.
- Arrive before 7:30am. Get breakfast in The Village or in the Alpine Lodge. In The Village, try out SunBowl, Starbucks, or Coffeebar. In the Alpine Lodge, stop by Treats in the breezeway or Mogrog Cafe by the Subway chairlift.
- Carpool. Gather your friends and family. Vehicles with 3+ get premiere parking on a first come first serve basis. Plus, carpooling is just better for the environment and lessens congestion on the roads.
- Check Parking lot status. Download the Palisades Tahoe app to see our live parking lot status. Enable push notifications and turn on location services so you get an alert when we have parking updates. Parking updates are also shared on our @palisadestahoeops Twitter. If parking fills up, please do not attempt to come to the resort.
- Check road conditions. Find traffic incidents and webcams by using the CalTrans QuickMap app.
- Leaving the resort. Don’t leave right at 4pm. Stick around for apres ski fun or one of our nighttime events instead. Otherwise, aim to leave by 2:30pm.
Free Bus Service
Tahoe Area Regional Transit (TART) is a free bus service from Tahoe City, Truckee, and the North & West Shores with a direct stop in Olympic Valley.
- Services run 6:30am – 5pm
Free Park & Ride
Park & ride lots in Truckee and Tahoe City with free shuttle services to Olympic Valley. This is open to both guests and Palisades Tahoe employees.
- Truckee Location: Tahoe Truckee Unified School District Administrative Offices on Donner Pass Road, behind the fire station and Wild Cherries.
- Tahoe City Location: Tahoe City Transit Center
Exploring Near Lake Tahoe
If you are visiting from outside the region North Lake Tahoe area, where Palisades is located, is packed full of great outdoor options. Â
Besides the world-class skiing on the mountains of course, the local region has tremendous snowshoeing and nordic skiing opportunities nearby.
Perhaps a short drive on the west side of the lake to the Ez’Berg Sugar Pine State Park. Home of the Winter Olympics Nordic Events in 1960. Or a visit to Truckee to experience the Royal George Nordic center.
Seeking a little more Lake Tahoe magic, consider a trip up towards Mt. Rose and explore the Sierra Chickadee. A local treasure Chickadee Ridge will allow you the opportunity to feed the Mountain Chickadee from your hand while looking over the lake. Dont forget your bird seed.
