Buck Hill
| Buck Hill | |
|---|---|
 | |
  Buck Hill Location in theUnited States | |
| Location | Burnsville, Minnesota,U.S. |
| Nearest major city | Minneapolis |
| Coordinates | 44°43′26″N93°16′59″W/ 44.724°N 93.283°W |
| Vertical | 262 ft (80 m) |
| Top elevation | 1,211 ft (369 m) |
| Base elevation | 949 ft (289 m) |
| Trails | 16 total - 6 easiest - 6 more difficult - 4 most difficult |
| Lift system | 2 quadchairlifts 1 triple chairlift 3rope tows 2magic carpets 1 snowtubing tow |
| Snowfall | 60 in (150 cm) |
| Snowmaking | yes |
| Night skiing | every night |
| Website | buckhill.com |
Buck Hillis aski hillinBurnsville, Minnesota,asuburbsouth ofMinneapolis.It is one of three ski areas in theTwin Citiesmetropolitan area; the others areAfton AlpsandHyland Ski and Snowboard Area.Buck Hill opened in 1954 and offersski,snowboard,andtubingtrails.Artificial snowis often used to maintain the slopes, because while Minnesota's winters are cold, the average annualsnowfallis low for a ski area: less than 60 in (150 cm).[1]
Buck Hill faces east, overlookingInterstate 35.It is owned by David and Corrine "Chip" Solner. The ski area is lighted for night skiing, and operates threechairlifts(2 quads, 1 triple) and multiple surface tows (trail map). The base area consists of a parking lot and a short strip of lodges. The ski runs use the east face of the hill, with the other sides occupied by residential housing, and a municipalwater towersharing the summit. The ski area's vertical drop is 310 feet (94 m).[2]
History
[edit]Buck Hill was named by early settlers, who noticed its summit was a gathering spot forMdewakantonDakotato watch maledeer(bucks) drink at Crystal Lake.[3]
The ski area was started by Chuck Stone, who discovered the sport as a child recovering frompolio,and had worked as a lift attendant atSuicide SixinVermont.Returning to Minneapolis, he wanted to start a ski area, and went to the public library to search out viable topography. The present ski area of Buck Hill was the tallest hill close to the Twin Cities, but was on private land, part of a remote farm owned by Grace Whittier. Stone and his girlfriend Nancy convinced Whittier to lease them the property, succeeding where previous wooers had failed, and the ski area began operating in 1954. Whittier left the property toSt. Olaf College,inNorthfield, Minnesota,upon her death.
World Cup racers
[edit]World Cupski racersKristina KoznickandLindsey Vonnlearned to ski and race at Buck Hill.[4]Koznick, now retired from international competition, was a topslalomracer. Vonn (néeKildow)[5]races in all five disciplines and is dominant in the speed events. She is among the best female ski racers in history, with four overall World Cup titles (2008,2009,2010,2012) and was the gold medalist in thedownhillat the2010 Winter Olympics.She was also a double gold medalist in the speed events at the2009 World Championships,taking thedownhillandsuper-G.Vonn has 82 World Cup victories, the second most for female ski racer in the sport's history.
Both were coached by Erich Sailer,[4][5]an energetic octogenarian fromAustriawho has been Buck Hill's racing coach since 1969. Sailer was inducted into theNational Ski Hall of Famein 2006.[6]
Pro racing
[edit]The ski area hosted the pro skiing tour in early February 1973 as part of theSaint Paul Winter Carnival.It was raced in a head-to-head parallel format in elimination brackets for both giant slalom and slalom. Two-time defending season championSpider Sabichwon the slalom on Sunday at theMcDonald'sCup at Buck Hill.[7]That year's season champion, Olympic triple gold medalistJean-Claude Killy,[8]won the Saturday giant slalom and was the fastest qualifier in the slalom, but did not place.[7]Killy and Sabich earned $2,500 each for their wins.[9]
Hugo Nindl of Austria won both pro events at Buck Hill in January 1974. He bested Sabich in the slalom final,[10]and went on to win the season title.[11]
Winter activities
[edit]In popular culture
[edit]Minneapolis bandThe Replacementswrote a song called "Buck Hill", with lyrics consisting entirely of the words "Buck Hill" shouted repeatedly.
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^"Historical Climate Data".Archived fromthe originalon 2014-04-19.
- ^Rob Story (2008)."Believing in Buck Hill".SKInet. Archived fromthe originalon 2012-09-09.Retrieved2008-11-05.
- ^Dakota County Historical Society (2005)."Historic Sites: Burnsville".Archived fromthe originalon December 30, 2003.RetrievedSeptember 8,2007.
- ^abDampf, Andrew (January 10, 2005)."Koznick caps successful week for U.S. ski team".Post and Courier.Charleston, SC. Associated Press. p. 7C.
- ^abBaum, Bob (February 10, 2006)."Kildow leads U.S. women's team with speed, charm".Ludington (MI) Daily News.Associated Press. p. 3, Winter Olympics.
- ^"Erich Sailer's Contribution to Ski Coaching in the U.S."austrianinformation.org.
- ^ab"Spider Sabich takes slalom competition".Lodi (CA) News-Sentinel.UPI. February 5, 1973. p. 11.
- ^"Killy pro champion".Montreal Gazette.April 9, 1973. p. 18.
- ^"Colorado skier whips Austrian".Victoria (TX) Advocate.Associated Press. February 5, 1973. p. 2B.
- ^"Nindl sweeps Buck Hill meet".Milwaukee Sentinel.Associated Press. January 21, 1974. p. 7, part 2.
- ^"Top pro Hugo Nindl wins in final slalom".Montreal Gazette.Associated Press. April 4, 1974. p. 23.
