Ski tour places spotlight on Taos County

Welcome, ski competitors. You’ve come to the right place. From Friday through Sunday (April 8-10), some of the best skiers from around the world will again meet under Lift 4 by the Phoenix in Taos Ski Valley for the World Pro Ski Tour World Championships. The competition will be broadcast on FLoLive.tv and CBS Sports Network, placing a big spotlight on Taos County, which is, needless to say, a positive thing — not just for Taos Ski Valley, Inc. but for the entire community here in Northern New Mexico.

Even better, this year will see a field of not only professional male skiers, some of whom have competed in multiple Olympics and World Cup events, but this also marks the Tour’s inclusion of pro female skiers for the first time since the 1990s. And, unlike 30 years ago, the men and women stand to make the same amount in prize money if they take home gold. They’ll also be racing the exact same lanes.

The races are set up in man-againstman, woman-against-woman races, where skiers start on adjacent runs and see who makes it to the finish line the cleanest and the fastest. Then they switch sides. This is sure to be a fun format to watch and, hopefully, will fuel some fierce competition.

The World Pro Ski Tour has always been a blast to watch in years past and an important local source of inspiration for the many young ski enthusiasts who aspire to one day compete at the professional level themselves.

We wish everyone participating in this year’s competition a safe week here at Taos Ski Valley, and we thank the organizations that have endeavored to bring this world class event back to our home mountain.

Visit skitaos.com to learn more about how to get tickets to watch the event inperson and register for the Junior Ski Tour Challenge, which gives U10, U12 and U14 and up racers the chance to run the course.