Las Leñas

Las Leñas
View of the valley
Location	Mendoza, Cuyo, Argentina
Coordinates	35.146888°S 70.081139°W / -35.146888; -70.081139
Vertical	1,190 m (3,900 ft)
Top elevation	3,430 m (11,250 ft)
Base elevation	2,240 m (7,350 ft)
Skiable area	17,500 hectares (43,000 acres)
Runs	40  Green - 15%  Blue - 45%  Red - 35%  Black - 5%
Longest run	7 km (4.3 mi)
Lift system	14
Lift capacity	9,500/hour
Snowmaking	30 cannons
Website	Las Leñas

Las Leñas is a ski resort in Argentina, located in the western part of Mendoza Province. It has reliable powder snow and climate for extreme and off-piste skiing. Construction of the ski center began January 1983, and by July 1983, it opened with a 300 bed hotel. The ski area has a good diversity of slopes ranging from very easy to extreme, including a good range of off-piste areas apt for extreme skiing. The skiable area base starts at an altitude of 2,240 m (7,350 feet) above mean sea level and goes up to 3,430 m (11,253 ft) for a total drop of 1,190 m (3,904 ft). The skiable surface amounts to 2.3 km² (1 sq mi), with 27 runs and a maximum non-stop skiable distance of 7 km (4 mi) (not including off run alternatives). The total ski area reachable by land is the largest in South America. It currently houses Piscis Hotel, the highest casino by elevation in the world.

The skiing season usually lasts from mid June to mid October; however, recent seasons have ended as early as mid-September. The center is also open during the southern hemisphere summer for mountain activities including mountain biking, horse riding, climbing and other activities.

The ski center includes a ski and snowboard school for all ages and childcare facilities. Specific workshops are also offered at the school to profit from the huge expanses of off-piste runs offered by the area.

The accommodations available on-site include hotels (mostly up-scale), apartment hotels and sleep houses. There is a small shopping center that includes a bank, ski-related shops, chocolate shops, souvenir shops, and a supermarket. Coffee houses, restaurants, and night clubs complete the town's commercial center.

Far away from large cities, the center is seldom crowded except during weekends, making the lines on the lifts usually shorter than in other ski centers of Argentina.

Las Leñas hosted men's downhill events for the 1986 and 1987 Alpine Skiing World Cup, women's downhill and super-G events in 1990 and the only Winter Pan American Games in 1990.

Geographic location

Las Leñas is located 1,200 km (750 mi) from Buenos Aires, and can be reached by car, bus or airplane. Aeroplanes make use of the Comodoro D. Ricardo Salomón Airport close to Malargüe, some 95 km from Las Leñas, and the Suboficial Aytes Germano Airport near San Rafael (regular domestic flights) where buses make the connection with Las Leñas.

The road to Las Leñas is paved and seldom blocked by snow, although bad weather or poor surface conditions can sometimes lead to its being temporarily closed by the Gendarmería (border guards). Vehicles are required to use snow chains unless they are equipped with appropriate tires for snow and ice.

Elevation

• Base: 2,240 m (7,350 feet)
• Mid-mountain: 2,835 m (9,301 feet)
• Top: 3,430 m (11,250 feet)
• Vertical drop: 1,230 m (4,040 feet)

Climate

According to the Köppen climate classification, Las Leñas has a warm-summer mediterranean continental climate (Dsb), as 4 months have an average temperature above 10 °C (50 °F) and at least one month (in its case 3, being June, July, and August) has an average temperature below 0 °C (32 °F). This (continental) climate type is highly atypical of South America and the Southern Hemisphere at large, only found in a handful of other stations like Puente del Inca. Summers are moderate and very dry, while winters are very snowy.

International events

Winter Pan American Games

In 1987 members of the Pan American Sports Organization (PASO) determined that the first Winter Pan American Games should take place in Las Leñas, Argentina in 1989 and be held every four years thereafter, but the lack of snow forced the inaugural Games to be postponed until 1990. The first Winter Pan American Games were held from September 16 to 22, with 97 athletes from eight nations participating: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Mexico and United States. The Games consisted of six events for only one sport, Alpine skiing, with three disciplines: Slalom, giant slalom and super-G.

Rank	Nation	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
1	United States (USA)	4	2	5	11
2	Canada (CAN)	2	4	1	7
3	Argentina (ARG)	0	0	0	0
	Bolivia (BOL)	0	0	0	0
	Brazil (BRA)	0	0	0	0
	Chile (CHI)	0	0	0	0
	Colombia (COL)	0	0	0	0
	Mexico (MEX)	0	0	0	0
Totals (8 entries)		6	6	6	18

Alpine Skiing World Cup

On August 16 and 18, 1985 Las Leñas became the first Argentine ski resort to host an event for the International Ski Federation's Alpine Skiing World Cup. The first two men's downhill races of the 1985-86 season were held in Mendoza and the results were as follows:

Place	Name	Country	Total Points	1	2
1	Karl Alpiger	Switzerland	50	25	25
2	Markus Wasmeier	West Germany	25	10	15
3	Helmut Höflehner	Austria	24	15	9
4	Doug Lewis	United States	21	20	1
5	Bruno Kernen	Switzerland	13	8	5
6	Daniel Mahrer	Switzerland	11	-	11
	Franck Piccard	France	11	11	-
8	Rudolf Huber	Austria	10	-	10
	Peter Müller	Switzerland	10	(12)	20
9	Gerhard Pfaffenbichler	Austria	8	-	8
10	Stefan Niederseer	Austria	6	-	6
11	Pirmin Zurbriggen	Switzerland	7	7	-
	Todd Brooker	Canada	7	3	4
13	Atle Skårdal	Norway	5	5	-
14	Giorgio Piantanida	Italy	3	-	3
15	Harti Weirather	Austria	2	-	2
16	Werner Marti	Switzerland	1	1	-
17	Anton Steiner	Austria	(2)	(2)	-
18	Peter Wirnsberger	Austria	(3)	(9)	(12)
19	Franz Heinzer	Switzerland	(4)	(4)	-
20	Marc Girardelli	Luxembourg	(13)	(6)	(7)

The following year Las Leñas held again the first two men's downhill races of the 1986-87 season, this time on August 15 and 16, 1986. The results were as follows:

Place	Name	Country	Total Points	1	2
1	Peter Müller	Switzerland	40	25	15
2	Leonhard Stock	Austria	31	11	20
3	Franz Heinzer	Switzerland	30	15	15
4	Marc Girardelli	Luxembourg	18	12	6
5	Peter Wirnsberger	Austria	16	8	8
6	Pirmin Zurbriggen	Switzerland	15	(10)	25
7	Karl Alpiger	Switzerland	10	20	(10)
8	Sepp Wildgruber	West Germany	9	9	-
	Igor Cigolla	Italy	9	2	7
10	Erwin Resch	Austria	5	5	-
	Helmut Höflehner	Austria	5	-	5
	Markus Wasmeier	West Germany	5	(6)	11
13	Atle Skårdal	Norway	4	4	-
	Anton Steiner	Austria	4	-	4
15	Danilo Sbardellotto	Italy	3	3	-
	Alberto Ghidoni	Italy	3	-	3
17	Gustav Oehrli	Switzerland	1	1	-
	Stefan Niederseer	Austria	1	(1)	2
19	Daniel Mahrer	Switzerland	(16)	(7)	(9)

The Alpine Skiing World Cup was once again held in Las Leñas for the 1989-90 season. This time the events that took place in Argentina were the women's downhill (race 1), on August 8, and women's super-G (race 2), on August 9. Once again both races started the season. The results were as follows:

Place	Name	Country	Total Points	1	2
1	Michaela Gerg	West Germany	31	25	6
2	Anita Wachter	Austria	25	-	25
3	Michela Figini	Switzerland	22	12	10
	Petra Kronberger	Austria	22	7	15
	Cathy Chedal	France	22	2	20
6	Regine Mösenlechner	West Germany	21	9	12
7	Heidi Zeller	Switzerland	20	20	-
	Veronika Wallinger	Austria	20	15	5
9	Carole Merle	France	14	10	4
	Karin Dedler	West Germany	14	6	8
11	Catherine Quittet	France	12	-	12
12	Maria Walliser	Switzerland	11	11	-
13	Deborah Compagnoni	Italy	9	-	9
14	Barbara Sadleder	Austria	8	8	-
15	Edith Thys	United States	7	-	7
16	Sabine Ginther	Austria	5	5	-
17	Stefanie Schuster	Austria	4	4	-
	Claudine Emonet	France	4	4	-
18	Vreni Schneider	Switzerland	3	-	3
19	Heidi Zurbriggen	Switzerland	2	-	2
20	Lucie Laroche	Canada	1	-	1
	Kristi Terzian	United States	1	-	1

See also

• Cerro Catedral
• Cerro Castor
• Chapelco
• List of ski areas and resorts in South America