Believe it or not, small but very mighty Wild Mountain MN got snow toward the end of last week, so they fired up the guns and opened this past Sunday. Yes, it’s just a rope tow, and yes, it’s a bit of a mess, but damn, check out the photo above — ain’t nobody crying about it! They got lift served skiing and boarding and super kudos to the folks in Taylors Falls for getting this going; far as we know first in the midwest. They’re gonna try and remain open…Germany’s Viktoria Rebensburg blistered the glacier in Soelden this weekend, topping the World Cup season opener GS podium. Vickie was joined by France’s Tessa Worley and Italy’s Manuela Moelgg, no surprises there. Mikaela Shiffrin had a great first run but got a bit twisty in run #2, finished a respectable fifth. Two notables coming back from injury came away with all their body parts intact but no points; Lara Gut DNFd the first run and Lindsey Vonn wasn’t quick enough to qualify for the second. Regardless, it was great to see them on snow — particularly Gut, who wasn’t expected to compete. Winds and weather wreaked havoc on Sunday, and the men’s GS was subsequently cancelled. Next weekend the white circus rolls into Levi, Finland for a pair of slalom events…Speaking of World Cup technical event, Killington VT is on the schedule Thanksgiving weekend. Well the temps haven’t been great, but Big K is on their game and here’s a live shot from 11:00 AM EDT today:

…and last bit of news from World Cup land, the great Bode Miller finally says “I am done. I had a long career as a ski racer but I’m no longer craving for it.” And with that, his retirement is now confirmed. Miller sez he was holding out because he wanted to have further impact on how things get done on the circuit, but no longer. Miller is a two-time overall World Champ, with multiple Olympic medals and World Championships medals. His 33 wins in five different disciplines ranks him among the top ten male racers of all time. The official statement from Federation International de Ski sums it up best:
Thanks Bode for everything you did for alpine skiing, you were one of those charismatic athletes that definetly helped growing our sport. We will miss you on the World Cup Tour and wish you all the best for the future.