History: Spider on the Snowmass NASTAR course, 1970

Vladmir “Spider” Sabich, the grandson of Croatian immigrants, learned to ski in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Nicknamed “Spider” as an infant for his gangly arms and legs, he raced for University of Colorado for Bob Beattie in 1962, made the U.S. National Team and competed in the 1968 Winter Olympics (5th in slalom). He then skied on the newly formed World Cup circuit in 1969-70 with four podium finishes and then joined the pro circuit in 1971 until his untimely death in 1976. He appeared in several promotional films, including “Snowmass Dream” and “Aspen Dream,” and acted as Snowmass’ pro skier in the early 1970s. Sabich is pictured here in the early 1970s running the new NASTAR Course in Snowmass-at-Aspen.