For only the sixth time since 2010, World Cup DH racing will be hosted in the United States. Whiteface Mountain, just outside Lake Placid, New York, will host the event this weekend.
However, as excitement and anticipation grew in the weeks leading up to the race, the event encountered a significant issue. The DH track, designed by five-time World Cup champion Aaron Gwin, was built by two different trail-building companies without the proper permitting.
A bit of Background on World Cup DH Racing in the U.S.
Since 2010, the United States has hosted World Cup DH races only five times. Windham, NY, hosted in 2010, 2011, and 2015, and Snowshoe held events from 2019 to 2023.
The lack of DH racing prompted many to advocate for bringing World Cup DH back to the U.S. With that in mind, the future looked promising for what would happen at Whiteface Mountain, just outside Lake Placid, NY.
However, first, let’s clarify the key players and their corresponding acronyms. World Cup racing is governed by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), overseeing international cycling events. The UCI partners with Warner Bros. Discovery Sports Events (WBD Sports) for coverage of all their mountain bike events.
Two other significant organizations are the Olympic Regional Development Authority (ORDA), which manages Whiteface Mountain. The other is the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), which, given its name, you can likely infer its purpose.
As reported by the Adirondack Explorer, which first broke the news, ORDA contracted with WBD Sports and the UCI. The three-year contract brought World Cup racing to Whiteface for 2024, 2025, and 2026. While World Cup DH racing wouldn’t take place in 2024, the venue was set for 2025 and 2026 at Whiteface.
A Timeline of Relevant Events
Adirondack Explorer
On September 22, 2025, ORDA received a Notice of Violation letter from the DEC. This letter, first published in the Adirondack Explorer, establishes the incident timeline leading up to the reception of the notice.
- On January 29, 2025, ORDA staff submitted the proposed World Cup DH track with a State Land Consultation Form to the Adirondack Park Agency. This form determined if the race track would violate any provisions within the established park master plan.
- A response dated February 13 stated that the proposed track was within the bounds of the park’s recreation use plan. The Adirondack Park Agency informed the ORDA “that the temporary use of existing ski, mountain bike, and hiking trails for a downhill mountain bike racecourse would not require an amendment.”
- On August 11, ORDA received the necessary stormwater permits required in New York.
- A public comment period took place between August 20 to September 3, 2025.
- Five days after the comment period ended, on September 8, 2025, DEC staff asked for more specific planning information from the ORDA. This request aimed to determine whether the original work plan could be finalized or if revisions were needed.
- In response, on September 12, the ORDA informed DEC that certain aspects of the project may have been omitted from the draft work plan. They were also told that the project was nearly complete.
- On September 15, ORDA told DEC that over 30 trees had been cut.
- These revelations prompted a DEC site visit on September 18.
Here’s What Happened
It is worth noting that Whiteface is already designated as an ‘intensive use area‘ for outdoor recreation, with mountain bike trails included in the pre-approved management plan. There is also a lot of money at stake just to host the event, as ORDA reportedly agreed to a contract with Warner Bros. Discovery Sports Events Limited which partners with the UCI to pay $420,000 per year for three years for the rights to host the World Cup.
The main issue seems to be that the ORDA didn’t wait for the proper permits and didn’t disclose the full extent of the World Cup DH track. Here’s part of what was proposed:
“The 2025 UCI Downhill World Cup mountain bike course will be established on existing mountain biking and hiking trails. The proposed course is within the footprint of existing improvements at Whiteface IUA. No new trail construction is proposed. All trails have been approved in previous unit management plan amendments. All construction of technical features will be done within the footprint of existing trails. Features that may interfere with the wintertime use of the facility will be removed. No tree cutting is proposed.”
First, the project appears to extend beyond the boundaries that the ORDA stated it would. According to the work draft plan submitted for public review, “no new trail construction is proposed,” claiming the track would be within established trail footprints. They also claim that any features would also be built within the footprint of existing trails.
Granted, without knowing the trails and corridors the DH track was apparently built on before construction, it would be challenging to know the extent of the build. Gwin’s newly released top-to-bottom run of the fresh track gives us a good look at the trail (which looks amazing).
Trees reportedly were also cut down, something specifically “not proposed” in the draft.
The other obvious issue is that ORDA apparently moved forward with construction without obtaining official approval. In an interview with the Adirondack Explorer, ORDA executives attributed the mistake to poor communication. “We were anticipating the work plan approval. We shouldn’t have gotten ahead of it.”
Issues with the Original Trail Builder
Interestingly, the World Cup DH track at Whiteface also encountered issues during its actual construction. Jermey Witek, owner of Global Action Sports Solutions, originally won the bid to build the track. In June, a YouTube video featured Witek and Gwin walking what would eventually become the course at Whiteface and discussing the track. Months later, Witek and crew would walk away from the project.
Witek told the Adirondack Explorer that he “got out of the project because I was uncomfortable with the working environment there.”
While Witek didn’t discuss the apparent conflict with the ORDA further, he also mentioned a few other disagreements. One was a timeline that he felt was too short to build a World Cup-level DH track. Another was “pressures not per my agreement.” Whether or not any of these issues were connected to knowingly building without a permit is unknown at this time.
To complete the project, ORDA hired Backslop Trail Building, who had previously built the 2024 UCI XC race course at nearby Mount Van Hoevenberg.
World Cup DH-Level Consequences? Maybe
So, is the Whiteface World Cup DH race suspended pending an investigation? In a word: no.
The race festivities will kick off this Friday. However, the EDC is requiring ORDA to submit a plan by November 7, 2025, to address the following:
- Documentation of all work completed for the UCI Mountain Bike World Series downhill racecourse at Whiteface, including the final build.
- Development of a restoration plan that will bring all trails that exceed either the existing mountain bike guidance or the approved constitutional ski trails into conformance with applicable standards.
- Appointment of a staff position to focus on work with DEC and APA staff on future facility development plans and projects, and ensure compliance with legal requirements.
- Mapping of all the constitutionally permitted ski trails at ORDA-managed ski facilities on the Forest Preserve or Town-owned lands using GIS, including these maps as reference for DEC and APA review in relation to all future work plans, and share this digital data in a format specified by DEC and APA.
- Continued work with DEC to finalize an updated MOU, which will address areas of critical communication and project development.
While the race is fortunately still on for this weekend, it is unclear how these events will affect the 2026 World Cup DH race. BikeRumor reached out to Aaron Gwin and the ORDA for comment. Neither has responded before publication, but we will keep you updated if we hear from them. Hopefully this doesn’t impact Gwin’s ability to design tracks in the future, because you have to admit, this looks like it will be an extremely fun course – both to watch, and to ride.
How to watch Lake Placid WC DH Racing at Whiteface
The World Cup racing at Whiteface in Lake Placid, NY, is scheduled to start tomorrow, Oct. 3rd, with Short Track racing, followed by women’s and men’s Junior and Elite DH racing on Oct. 4th. The elite racing starts at 12:30 pm EST for women, and 2:00 pm EST for the men. As usual in the age of the WHOOP UCI Mountain Bike World Series, you can catch the racing live on HBO Max with a subscription, or on their YouTube channel here in the U.S.
