Copper Peak facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Copper Peak
Constructor(s)	Lauren Larsen
Location	Ironwood, Michigan, USA
Operator	Gogebic Range Ski Club
Opened	28 February 1970
Expanded	1980, 1988
Closed	1994
Size
K–point	145 m
Longest jump (unofficial / fall)	159 metres (522 ft) Werner Schuster (25 February 1989)
Hill record	158 m (518 ft) Mathias Wallner Werner Schuster (22, 23 January 1994)
Top events
World Cup	1981
Grand Prix
Copper Peak
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Location in Michigan Show map of Michigan Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Location	N. Black River Valley Parkway, Ironwood, Michigan
NRHP reference No.	73000948
Significant dates
Added to NRHP	January 4, 1973

Copper Peak is a famous ski flying hill located in Ironwood, Michigan, USA. It was designed by Lauren Larsen and built in 1969. The hill opened for competitions in 1970.

Copper Peak is special because it's the only ski flying hill in the entire Western Hemisphere. This means it's the only place in North or South America where ski jumpers can make incredibly long flights! The site is also recognized as a historic place. Today, it's a popular spot for tourists during the summer.

The History of Copper Peak

Early Mining Days

Long before ski jumpers arrived, people tried to find copper here. In 1845, the Chippewa Copper Mining Company started digging tunnels into the rock. However, they didn't find any copper and eventually closed down. Around 1900, another company, the Old Peak Company, also tried to find copper, but they weren't successful either. You can still see the old tunnel from 1845 today!

Building a Giant Ski Jump

The idea for Copper Peak started in 1968. A group from the Gogebic Range Ski Club in Ironwood, Michigan visited an engineer named Lauren Larsen. They wanted to build a huge ski jump.

Opening Day in 1970

Copper Peak officially opened in 1970. It quickly became known as the only ski flying hill in the Western Hemisphere. Ski flying is a type of ski jumping where athletes try to jump as far as possible.

The hill was designed so jumpers could fly up to 158 meters (518 ft) (about 518 feet!). The last time ski jumpers competed here was in 1994. Since then, there haven't been any official flights.

Between 1970 and 1994, Copper Peak hosted ten major competitions. The longest jumps ever made here were 158 meters (518 ft). These record-breaking jumps were set by Mathias Wallner and Werner Schuster from Austria in January 1994. The hill was made bigger in the 1980s, but it still needs updates to meet today's standards for ski flying.

Plans for the Future

People are working hard to bring ski flying back to Copper Peak! The Copper Peak Organizing Committee is raising money to fix up the hill. They want to make it ready for new competitions. Some improvements were already made in 2012.

In 2015, the International Ski Federation (FIS) announced that Copper Peak would be "reactivated." This means they plan to hold events there again. The FIS even planned a big competition called the Grand Prix Summer Series for September 2017. They also hoped to have other events in 2018.

Exciting Competitions at Copper Peak

Many amazing ski jumpers have competed at Copper Peak over the years. Here's a look at some of the past events:

Date	Competition	Winner	Second Place	Third Place
28 February – 1 March 1970	KOP	Jiří Raška	Zbyněk Hubač	Rudolf Doubek
3–4 February 1973	KOP	Jerry Martin	Tom Dargay	Minoru Wakasa
2–3 February 1974	KOP	Ron Steele	Jerry Martin	Petter Kongsli
7–9 February 1975	KOP	Jerry Martin	Jim Maki	Shunichi Akimoto
29 February 1976	KOP	Hans-Georg Aschenbach	Hans Millonig	Bernd Eckstein
2–5 March 1978	KOP	Henry Glaß	Jochen Danneberg	Claus Tuchscherer
13 February 1981	WC	Alois Lipburger	Andreas Felder	John Broman
14 February 1981	WC	Alois Lipburger	Andreas Felder	Fritz Koch
15 February 1981	WC	Competition canceled due to strong wind
25 February 1989	INT	Franz Wiegele	Werner Schuster	Wolfgang Margreiter
3–4 March 1990	INT	Stanislav Vasko	Stefan Horngacher	Franz Wiegele
22 January 1994	COC	Terje Nyhus	Werner Schuster	Matthias Wallner
23 January 1994	COC	Matthias Wallner	Werner Schuster	Frode Håre

Longest Jumps (Hill Records)

Ski jumpers at Copper Peak have set some impressive records. Here are the longest jumps made on the hill:

Date Jumper Length 1 March 1970 Zbyněk Hubač 134 m (440 ft) 3–4 February 1973 Akitsugu Konno 136 m (446 ft) 3–4 February 1973 Jerry Martin 137 m (449 ft) 3–4 February 1973 Akitsugu Konno 138 m (453 ft) 2–3 February 1974 Tom Dargay 144 m (472 ft) 2–3 February 1974 Jerry Martin 144 m (472 ft) Werner Schuster made an even longer jump of 159 m (522 ft) on February 25, 1989, but he crashed, so it's not an official record.

Date Jumper Length 7–9 February 1975 Jerry Martin 147 m (482 ft) 29 February 1976 Hans-Georg Aschenbach 154 m (505 ft) 13 February 1981 Alois Lipburger 154 m (505 ft) 3–4 February 1990 Stanislav Vasko 156 m (512 ft) 22 January 1994 Mathias Wallner 158 m (518 ft) 23 January 1994 Werner Schuster 158 m (518 ft)

About Chippewa Hill

Copper Peak is built on a hill called Chippewa Hill. This hill is about 300 feet tall and is made of a type of rock called felsite. The hill has steep slopes on its north and south sides. There's also a sharp cliff on the east side.

The giant ski-slide and tower of Copper Peak sit right on top of the hill. The tower's base is made of concrete and is set deep into the solid rock. You can still see the old mining tunnel from 1845 and other digging spots on the hill. Building the ski jump didn't affect these old mining areas.