Bode Miller announces forthcoming ski academy in Colorado

By Published On: December 17th, 2021Comments Off on Bode Miller announces forthcoming ski academy in Colorado

GRANBY, Colo. — Bode Miller is building a ski academy in Colorado. The 44-year-old American ski racing icon is partnering with the new operators of Granby Ranch Ski Resort, a small ski area in Granby, Colo., to build an academic learning and on-snow training facility.

“When Bode joined me on a visit to Granby Ranch, he said, this is perfect. It’s a perfect training venue and a perfect spot for an academy. It’s not Vail. It’s not Whistler. It’s going to take on kids who want a great education and with an exceptional academic offering and also athletic development,” says Andy Wirth of Granby Ranch.

Offering a full spectrum high school academic program for boarding students as well as day school, the Bode Miller Ski Academy Foundation will operate as a registered 501c3 nonprofit entity, offering alpine, freestyle, Nordic and adaptive snow sports programs for 125 to 165 ninth-12th-grade athletes. 

Reflecting on his own academy experience at Carrabassett Valley Academy, Miller, who was onsite at Granby Ranch Friday, pointed out that it served as a crucial springboard for his development, and not just on the race course.

“It shaped me into who I was,” Miller said during a press conference on Friday. “It was the foundation to becoming successful on the World Cup circuit, but also the foundation for being a human being, capable of understanding other people, managing life. I felt we needed to reset the bar. There’s no knock against the academies. There’s a number of great academies across the country, but it’s really hard for them to evolve and change. They’re inherently somewhat stagnant. I think we have the opportunity now to reset that bar using modern technologies and modern thought processes around education and developing athletes’ character and grit.”

Inclusivity is a theme for the forthcoming academy. Representatives say scholarships and financial aid will be available for students from every financial background. 

“I was scholarshipped in,” Miller said of Carrabassett Valley. “I wouldn’t have been able to go if not for generous people in my small town of Franconia.”

Designed by Denver-based architect and author Don Ruggles, who wrote the book, Beauty, Neuroscience & Architecture, the ski academy will resemble a historic Austrian chalet with ski-in, ski-out access, several floors, outside terraces and an interior encompassing 60,000 to 85,000 square feet. The structure will be comprised of a public dining area and retail space on the lower level and classrooms, gymnasiums and development facilities on the upper floors as well as a separate dormitory to house roughly 30 boarding students. 

“We will be creating many small environments within the building that nurture and support health and well-being,” Ruggles says. “The design is based on a neurological processings that humans have innately, with various patterns that nurture curiosity, learning and development. It’s a ski academy, so we need to make a comfortable, barrier-free environment for the students whether they’re disabled or not, to get out of the dorm, onto their skis and out onto the slopes. Bode will take it from there.”

Wirth anticipates that construction of the Bode Miller Ski Academy at Granby Ranch will come at a price tag ranging between $25 and $30 million. He says the “optimistic” opening date is 2025-26 for the academic year.  

Granby Ranch, which has also undergone $4 million in improvements, including enhanced snowmaking, will host the opening weekend of the 2021-22 World Pro Ski Tour, men’s parallel slalom action Saturday and Sunday on the ski area’s West Mountain, also the location of the forthcoming Bode Miller Academy alpine training facility.

Watch the full press conference below:

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About the Author: Shauna Farnell

A Colorado native, Shauna Farnell is a former editor at Ski Racing and former media correspondent for the International Ski Federation. Now a full-time freelance writer, her favorite subjects include adventure sports, travel, lifestyle and the human experience. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, ESPN, Lonely Planet and 5280 among other national and international publications.