By U.S. Ski Team

LAKE LOUISE, Alberta – Olympic gold medalist Lindsey Vonn of Vail returned to the top of the Lake Louise podium Sunday with a commanding super G victory over Maria Riesch of Germany. Julia Mancuso of Squaw Valley was third as six Americans finished inside the top 25.

“Today I dropped the hammer a little bit more and believed in myself,” said Vonn, who barely escaped a near-crash on Saturday. “For me the bottom line is never giving up.”

Vonn (1:20.72) crushed the field by nearly a second, just under an hour before teammate and fellow Olympic gold medalist Ted Ligety of Park City won the Audi Birds of Prey giant slalom in Beaver Creek. It was the first time since 2006 that two Americans won World Cup races on the same day.

“I was really happy with my run today, I wanted to end the weekend on a positive note and really take advantage of the opportunity,” said Vonn during a live call broadcast over the stadium speakers between giant slalom runs in Beaver Creek. “I skied with aggression and passion and had a great inspection and really nailed the line. I’m extremely happy with the win.”

Sunday’s win marked Vonn’s 14th podium and eighth win in Lake Louise over the course of six years. It was second podium finish in Lake Louise for Mancuso, who stamped an exclamation mark on the incredible skiing she produced throughout the week.

“I just went out of the gate charging. I was psyched to be on the podium,” said Mancuso. “It’s nice to have been skiing really well and consistent in the downhill, so to finish it off with a third place and my best super G result there is refreshing. I’m excited and I think it will just get better through the season.”

Stacey Cook of Mammoth, Laurenne Ross of Klamath Falls, Ore., Alice McKennis of Glenwood Springs, Colo., and Leanne Smith of Conway, N.H., all scored World Cup points, taking positions 20-23.

The next stop on the Audi FIS Alpine World Cup tour is St. Moritz, Switerzland, Dec. 9-12.

Official results, Audi Alpine FIS World Cup, Lake Louise, Dec. 5, Super G

1. Lindsey Vonn, Vail, CO, 1:20.72

2. Maria Riesch, Germany, 1:21.55

3. Julia Mancuso, Squaw Valley, CA, 1:21.61

4. Anna Fenninger, Austria, 1:21.83

5. Andrea Fischbacher, Austria, 1:22.34

–

20. Stacey Cook, Mammoth, CA, 1:23.78h

21. Laurenne Ross, Klamath Falls, OR, 1:23.79

22. Alice McKennis, Glenwood Springs, CO, 1:23.83

23. Leanne Smith, Conway, NH, 1:23.84

–

31. Chelsea Marshall, Pittsfield, VT, 1:24.51

34. Julia Ford, Plymouth, NH, 1:24.82

It’s partly cloudy in the Lake Tahoe Basin. Wind may be an issue. Heavenly first thought it would have to open with some lifts on wind hold, but was able to have them all going.

With a storm on it’s way, skiing in the morning is probably the best choice.

Here is the ski report from Curtis Fong, the Guy from Tahoe.

By U.S. Ski Team

LAKE LOUISE, Alberta – Olympic champion Lindsey Vonn of Vail made spectacular athletic recovery Saturday to finish second in downhill again at Lake Louise leading a pack of seven Americans into the top 25. Audi FIS Alpine World Cup leader Maria Riesch of Germany earned back-to-back downhill wins as Julia Mancuso of Squaw Valley posted another solid result with sixth.

On a critical left turn midway down the course Vonn’s skis released from the snow sending her sailing through the air sideways. The three-time World Cup downhill champion then landed hard on her left hip, immediately bounced up, regained her tuck and continued to charge missing the win by a mere 0.10 seconds.

“I realized I was on my hip and thought I was going into the fence and I just kept thinking ‘get back up, get back up, get back up,'” said Vonn, who attributed the save to her rigorous off season conditioning program. “Somehow I caught my edge and was able to stand back up. Once I was on my feet again I just kept thinking ‘make up time.'”

Mancuso continued to show she’s a contender landing in the top 10 in her last three World Cup downhill races.

U.S. women close out racing in Lake Louise on today.

Official Results, Audi FIS Alpine World Cup, Lake Louise, Dec. 4, 2010, Downhill

1. Maria Riesch, Germany, 1:29.60

2. Lindsey Vonn, Vail, CO, 1:29.70

3. Dominique Gisin, Switzerland, 1:30.38

4. Daniela Merghetti, Italy, 1:30.44

5. Elisabeth Goergl, Austria, 1:30.64

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6. Julia Mancuso, Squaw Valley, CA, 1:30.65

14. Chelsea Marshall, Pittsfield, VT, 1:30.99

15. Alice McKennis, Glenwood Springs, CO, 1:31.03

15. Leanne Smith, Conway, NH, 1:31.03

19. Laurenne Ross, Klamath Falls, OR, 1:31.39

25. Stacey Cook, Mammoth, CA, 1:31.53

–

42. Julia Ford, Plymouth, NH, 1:33.00

By Kathryn Reed

The rain and drizzle that have soaked much of the Lake Tahoe Basin for the past few days is expected to turn to snow today.

This will be welcome news for ski resorts that have endured rain and snow in the latest system.

Plenty of room on Upper Powderhorn at Sierra on Dec. 4. Photos/Kathryn Reed

Although the texture of the snow at Sierra-at-Tahoe on Saturday pointed to rain having fallen on the white stuff, the groomers did a great job.

A few bare spots are starting to show, but for the most part the coverage remains good. People could be heard whopping it up in the trees, though most people stayed on the runs where it is safer this time of year.

Snowboarders hike a bit to catch a jump under the Grandview chair.

“A low pressure system developing off the coast of California will impact the Sierra and Western Nevada late Sunday into Monday morning. The low will move inland bringing snow to the Sierra, with mainly rain in the western Nevada valleys,” according to the National Weather Service in Reno.

Forecasters are calling for snow levels to start about 7,000 feet before falling to 5,000 feet by Monday morning. Accumulation projections are 8 to 14 inches above 7,000 feet and 4 to 8 inches in the Lake Tahoe Basin.

Tuesday’s forecast is for mostly sun, with snow returning that night and continuing into Wednesday.

Daytime highs will be in the upper 30s to low 40s, with overnight lows in the upper 20s.

More unsettled weather in the Lake Tahoe Basin and surrounding area through Monday. Today won’t be a powder day, but another is on the horizon.

Here is the ski report from Curtis Fong, the Guy from Tahoe.

Catch Fong tonight at MontBleu in Stateline as emcee of “Wintervention” — the latest Warren Miller flick. Squaw’s Jonny Moseley is the voice again of this action-packed movie. The skiing and boarding footage is great, with the Antarctica segment riveting. What seemed like an ad for Vail Resorts was a bit over the top, though.

— Kathryn Reed

Updated Dec. 4 at 4:30pm: The commission voted 8-0 to allow bear hunting in Nevada.

By Jeff Delong, Reno Gazette-Journal

Nevada wildlife commissioners are poised to approve the first bear hunting season in state history today following an impassioned hearing Friday in Reno.

Dozens of people testified to the Nevada Board of Wildlife Commissioners, with supporters saying the state’s black bear population can safely support a hunting season. Nevada is the only Western state that prohibits bear hunting.

But the idea has many detractors, some of whom asked commissioners not to proceed with a plan they call cruel and unnecessary.

With game wardens standing to enforce order, shouts of “murderers” and “killers” were issued by some audience members after comments made by commissioners at the close of Friday’s meeting made it apparent that the idea will probably be approved when the panel reconvenes today.

No details about seasons or quotas have been determined, but early proposals called for seasonal hunting of about 20 bears, said Carl Lackey, a biologist with the Nevada Department of Wildlife.

Nevada has a core bear population of between 200 and 300, mostly clustered at Lake Tahoe and adjoining areas of the Carson Range, Lackey said. The number could be higher, counting bears living in other areas such as the Wassuk and Sweetwater ranges to the south, Lackey said.

Read the whole story

By Kathryn Reed

Poles may have been exchanged for paddles with snow on the ground, but that isn’t stopping the non-motorized boat community from gathering information from people.

A blog has been developed to seek input from paddlers about what they want Lake Tahoe to be like when it comes to having access and information. The blog will be taken down Dec. 15.

The comments will be incorporated into the Lake Tahoe Non-Motorized Boat Framework that is being developed by a working group of mostly public agencies that own lakefront property. However, homeowners are represented, as is the Lake Tahoe Water Trail Committee. (The business rep has never attended the meeting and the Washoe Tribe designee stopped going.)

Group trying to make paddling on Lake Tahoe a better experience. Photo/Kathryn Reed

“In addition to the framework that is on the blog, there is a study report that will be published that documents all the data collected,” said Sue Rae Irelan, the California Tahoe Conservancy representative on the task force.

That will come out the first quarter of 2011.

It’s intended to be a resource for agencies, but not something that any group would adopt. Part of the document is the user survey of paddlers what was done in 2008.

The information will be given to applicable agencies early in 2011 so anything that could be addressed would be before the summer season begins.

“A lot of what is in the framework is geared toward managing the beaches for beach access, looking at if parking is acceptable, looking at how people get in in the winter,” Irelan said.

Part of the education component for paddlers involves letting them know the differences between California and Nevada in regards to what is public v. private. The other component is knowing when private property can be accessed and responsibilities of being on that property.

One thing Irelan said that was discovered early on is how kayakers, canoeists and paddlboarders don’t usually use traditional boat launches. They are getting on the lake from a beach. This means needing info about aquatic invasive species and other information being distributed at non-traditional locations.

Comments about paddling on Lake Tahoe may be posted on the blog until Dec. 15 or sent to Sue Rae Irelan at sirelan@tahoe.ca.gov.

Snow villages are ready for creation at the corner of Ski Run Boulevard and Highway 50 and at the Y in South Lake Tahoe.

Any individual, family, group, business, or other organization can stake their claim and build the snow creation of their imagination. The Snow Villages will be open to public vote, and photos will be posted on Facebook.

Voting will be online during December and the winner will receive a certificate to keep and a trophy that will be passed on to the winner of the 2011-12 SnowTown ShowDown.

To register, contact Brian Des Rochers bd_etc@hotmail.com or (530) 545.2939 or JoAnn Conner ctahoewriter@hotmail.com or (530) 544.7412.

By Jeff Delong, Reno Gazette-Journal

New rules designed to keep bears and other animals away from garbage will take effect across Washoe County within a few weeks, health officials say.

Regulations adopted by the Washoe County Health District are primarily driven by mounting problems with garbage-raiding bears but are also designed to address other animals, including coyotes, raccoons and domestic dogs, said Jeanne Rucker, an environmental health supervisor for the district.

For years, Washoe County took fire from officials with the Nevada Department of Wildlife and other critics for not having a trash ordinance on the books to help deter garbage-raiding bears. In Washoe County, only Lake Tahoe’s Incline Village General Improvement District has enacted a law that prohibits giving wildlife easy access to garbage.

Lack of such a law in other parts of the county where bears are common, including Verdi, Washoe Valley, Galena, Sky Tavern and Caughlin Ranch, represented “an exasperating problem,” said Carl Lackey, a biologist and bear expert with the Nevada Department of Wildlife.

Bears gobbling protein-rich garbage — many of them much larger than normal wild bears — are an increasing problem. Many break into homes and cars and end up being killed by authorities as a result.

Read the whole story

While it was raining at lake level much of Thursday afternoon, it was snowing at the higher elevations. Many ski resorts are reporting more than 6 inches of fresh stuff on top.

Here is the ski report from Curtis Fong, the Guy from Tahoe.

Fong will be the emcee at MontBleu in Stateline Friday and Saturday nights for the showing of the latest Warren Miller movie.