DEER VALLEY OPENS WITH SEMI-CELEBRITIES
The annual Deer Valley celebrity ski race will take place on the resort's opening weekend, December 8-9; again with a fundraising benefit for Waterkeeper Alliance, an environmental group working to clean up waterways all over the world.
The race course will be well covered; the resort has been blowing snow and two storms have dumped a few feet of freshies over all the Utah resorts.
As usual, the made-for-TV event features Olympic medalists Steve Mahre and Tommy Moe, among others, plus a bunch of B-list celebs. The Kennedy family's next generation will also be racing; Robert Kennedy, Jr. is Waterkeeper Alliance's head honcho. Others from the Kennedy clan include Chris, Kerry, Maxwell, Rory and Sheila.
But the to-die-for event is not open to the public. That's the lunch under the heated tent to which only racers, celebrities and press are invited. The large round tables are big enough to allow sit-down table hopping, and TV cameras usually hone in on Moe and Mahre. The lunch, served buffet style, offers DV's gourmet specialties such as turkey chili and carved roast beef, plus salads and pastries. The huge tent offers the 'stars' privacy from spectators.
Phil Mahre may not make it this year; he is racing for points at FIS races to qualify for the U. S. National Championships in spring. But the elimination format often ended up pitting Phil against twin brother Steve, and everything was all in fun until they stood behind the start gate. It's always enjoyable to watch Phil's ferocious expression as the horse gate start opens and he begins tearing down the course, totally determined to win. And if he does not, either because of the age-centered handicap or because some champ fresh off the ski team is racing against him, watchers can glimpse his ferocious look of disappointment in the nanosecond before he wipes it off his face and smiles for the cameras.
One of the prime moments of the event is the podium meet-and-greet. Baby boomer fans who remember Moe and other Olympic racers in their glory days line up to introduce their children, to ask for autographs, to tell their memories of watching the winning race and how they cheered. The pseudo-celebs are mostly ignored, as fans surround the racers.
The traditional pro-am race is Saturday, Dec. 8th, at 1:00 p.m., finals start Sunday at noon. The event will be shown on CBS Dec. 16 at 5:00 p.m. EST. Adventure Sports Weekly will have the results in next week's issue.
For more info, email: bskinner@ussa.org