Top Five Fridays: March 13, 2026
Racing, Rockslides, and more! All in this weeks Top Five Fridays! Image: Lie McGrath wins Kranjska Gora slalom by 0.01 as podium separated by just 0.04
Hello, and welcome to Top Five Fridays, the March 13, 2026 Edition! There must be something in the air here on Friday the 13th as we totally forgot that our esteemedr colleague Matt McGinnis who normally writes these articles is coaching a Freeride competition at Whistler! As a result, it’s going to be a bit truncated, but as always, we’re here to do our best to bring you all the latest in ski news!
#1: FIS Recap:
This past Sunday, the men traveled to Kranjska Gora Sun for a slalom and GS race and deposited two and three skiers into the points respectively. In the slalom, Benjamin Ritchie finished 19th while teammate Jett Seymour was right on his heels in 20th. This is Ritchie’s third consecutive World Cup points finish, so a strong end to the season for the talented racer. In the GS, the US top finisher was River Radamus at 20th with Ryder Sarchett in 26th and Bridgler Gile just behind in 27th.
The US women headed to Val di Fassa for speed events featuring a technical Super G race and landed four skiers in the top 30. While the big story for the US was a rare start by Mikaela Shiffrin, the bigger one was a 17th finish for Keely Cashman. Shiffrin was the next US finisher at 23rd with Mary Bocock right behind her in 24th. Breezy Johnson barely made the points with a 30th place result. In the Downhill, American Breezy Johnson had more success with a 4th place finish while Jacqueline Wiles earned 15th, Isabella Wright 20th, Allison Mollin 21st, and Haley Cutler in 28th.
Looking ahead, the top 25 racers in each discipline will face off in World Cup Finals in two weeks, so time is running out to gain points and qualify for the Finals race.
#2: Whistler Blackcomb Rockslide!:
A Photo circulating on the subreddit r/whistler depicting the rockslide -Image: Whistler Blackcomb reports rock slide near Whistler's Peak Chair
A scary sight came out of Whistler the other morning, with reports of a pretty large rock slide on Whistler Peak. The resort confirmed the slide in the vicinity of Whistler Peak early in the morning on March 12th. Fortunately, the resort was closed and nobody was in the area at the time so there are no reported injuries. Looking at the pictures, the slide is quite close to Whistler Peak and the Peak Express chair will remain closed until further notice. The ever-changing topography combined with the freeze/thaw cycle likely contributed to the event.
#3: Alterra’s CEO Jared Smith to step down at the end of the 2025-26 ski season:
In what appears to be a surprising departure, Alterra CEO Jarred Smith will resign the post that he has held since August of 2022. Smith served as the company’s President in 2021 but jumped to CEO shortly thereafter. During his tenure, Smith drove acquisitions of Arapahoe Basin, Mike Wiegele Helicopter Skiing, Schweitzer, Snow Valley, and Ski Butlers. Ikon Pass also grew by adding partners all over the world and include many capital projects in those areas. There is no replacement for Smith as of yet, but the Executive Comittee of Alterra’s Board will serve as the Office of the CEO. Over the next year, Smill will remain a resource for the Office of the CEO as Alterra will search for a replacement.
#4: Black Mountain, NH Ownership Story Continues:
It’s not really a “Saga” but it’s getting close with our friends at Black Mountain in New Hampshire. After years of slow business and near closure before 2024, Black Mountain was purchased by Colorado-based Entabeni Systems and Indy Pass in October of that year. At that time, the plan was to turn the mountain over to a community-owned co-op, but that has changed as of recently. CEO Erik Mogensen, who by all accounts has done a great job in revitalizing the ski area, says that Black Mountain will “become a laboratory and incubator for finding ways to make skiing more affordable and keep it independent.” This has been a very data-driven move in drilling down to the priorities and aspects that matter most to skiers and how they combine with resort operations, specifically aging infrastructure and rising costs. In addition to being a big employer already in the Jackson area, the Entabeni and Indy HQ will also move to the area bringing upwards of 30 more jobs.