Lauberhorn (downhill ski course)
As Switzerland is and always was military neutral, downhill competitions were held even during World War II.
It is part of the Lauberhornrennen, the oldest active alpine ski competition in the world and the course is very famous after extraordinary scenery with Eiger, Mönch und Jungfrau mountains in Bernese Alps.
"Simple" start with a low gradient and hardly any turning requires great acceleration and gliding skills.
It turns into a long right-hand bend that leads over a narrow passage between rocks and safety nets to the Russisprung.
The long right-hand bend gets its name from the view of the Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau peaks towering monumentally above the slope.
– After a tight S-curve to reduce the speed, comes the most famous part of the descent, the spectacular jump over the Hundschopf.
The short fall space and the slope that immediately turns to the left make the area even more difficult.
– The sharply turning curve at the left-sloping transition into the Alpweg is named after the Crazy Canucks, a place where Dave Irwin and Ken Read crashed in 1976.
On the hill and in the temporary bars and VIP zones set up there, over 10,000 visitors watch the race - only here they have a direct view of the famous key points of Hundschopf, Minsch-Kante and Canadian Corner.
The section is built as a just three meter wide connecting piece between the upper and lower parts of the run in the middle of the steep slope in the Hasenbachtal and must therefore be secured with safety nets on the left.
If you have an exit speed that is too low (at least 70 km/h is required), you risk losing more time on the following gliding sections.
– The racer takes a small jump to reach a steep slope, but it is too short to pick up speed again if it has been lost in the Kernen-S. 1,770 m a.s.l.
The tunnel is only 9 meters wide, although the accessible area is significantly narrower due to the vaulted ceiling, the snow and the safety padding.
Mental conduct also plays a role, as the driver has time to reflect on his previous race on the long, rather flat section.
In 2013, Johan Clarey reached the highest ever top speed in Alpine Ski World Cup on the descent at 161.9 km/h.
The upper part of the steep slope is slightly flatter than the lower one - the terrain transition can be "pushed" like a wave or jumped like an edge.
After the 'crescendo' in the Haneggschuss, you have to switch to a fine feeling of pressure and speed in the flat left-hand bend."
It got its name in 1954 after the three Austrians Toni Sailer, Anderl Molterer and Walter Schuster fell here.
The technically difficult, heavily turning, often icy and unsettled right-left combination at the end of the long descent demands a lot of strength from the racers and often decides the outcome of the race.
Previously, many riders had fallen here, including Peter Müller, Silvano Beltrametti, Adrien Duvillard and Bode Miller - who slid across the finish line as the winner.
[31] Later over the years other classic longterm organizers joined the now named Club5+: Alta Badia, Cortina, Kranjska Gora, Maribor, Lake Louise, Schladming, Adelboden, Kvitfjell, St.Moritz and Åre.
