Even skiers & riders who usually couldn’t care less about the Olympics shouldn’t miss out on the excitement surrounding the games in Vancouver and Whistler this year. Turin, Salt Lake City, and Nagano were all great venues – but never before have the games come to a place that so truly embodies skiing. Whistler Canada is a skiers’ town, and for the next two weeks it is on the world stage.

Assuming you are like us and need a little refresher on which skiing events are which, we have put together a quick guide to what’s what so you can know what you are talking about when non-skiing friends test you with questions over the next two weeks. If you need to know more about Whistler, check out our comprehensive Whistler Visitors’ Guide. Find the Olympics TV schedule at NBC.com.

Alpine Skiing

This one is exactly what it sounds like – seconds or minutes of blistering speed, as competitors maneuver around gates and through a course as quickly as possible. Why watch? It’s fast, exciting, and there’s always a good chance of a major crash. The alpine events will be held at Whistler Creekside.

• Downhill is the longest and fastest of the five unique alpine events. It’s an easy one to understand – as long as athletes hit each gate on a single course, they are judged purely on speed.
• Super-G is similar to downhill but on a shorter course. The turns are tighter and skiers need to be a lot more precise to hit each gate. Again, speed is all it’s about.
• Slalom is the shortest course, requiring the tightest turns. It consists of two separate runs which don’t necessarily occur right in succession (the rules dictate only that they happen on the same day.) The times are added together, fastest wins.
• Giant Slalom is similar to slalom – two runs on two courses in one day with the times totaled. The GS course is longer and wider than the slalom course.
• Super Combined is what it sounds like – one downhill run, then one run on a short slalom course. The times are summed and the fastest wins.

Ski Jumping

While alpine skiing is obvious, ski jumping is more of an unknown. It’s worth watching, because it’s something you may not get another chance to see live until the next olympics. The objective, as you may have guessed, is mainly distance, but points are also assigned for style. The olympic course is designated as a “large hill” competition, where skiers can be expected to jump 390 – 430 feet. The ski jumping track is at the Whistler Canada Olympic Park.

Freestyle

A medal discipline since only 1992, freestyle skiing is one of the most popular events at any winter games. Freestyle consists of three events – aerials, moguls, and ski cross. Freestyle events are scheduled to take place – weather permitting – at Cypress Mountain, just outside of downtown Vancouver.

• Aerials are an unusual olympic event in how unstructured they are. Skiers choose their inrun location (where they take off from) depending on the features they want to hit, and are judged objectively on the quality of their takeoff, the height they gain, form, and balance upon landing. There are two rounds in the aerials competition, with the first “qualification” round consisting of two jumps. Skiers with the most points move forward.
• Moguls are just what they sound like – skiers choose from four different lines as quickly as possible. There are two parts along the course where skiers are required to perform two different jumps. In the final round, two sets of judges assign points based on the skiers’ jumps and their turns / technical ability in skiing bumps. Highest score wins.
• Ski Cross is new to the olympics, and it looks like it could be a lot of fun to watch. Think of it as a massive alpine obstacle course, where skiers start in groups of four and fight their way to the finish line – fastest time wins.