Coming to Ironwood: The World’s LARGEST FIS Winter/Summer Ski Jumping Hill

Copper Peak Revival Updates

“Today, on a clear day from Copper Peak, you can see parts of Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota and Canada. When we finish the renovations, you will see ski jumping teams from Finland, Norway, Poland, Germany, Austria, Asia, the U.S.A. and more soaring over the hill …” Bob Jacquart, president of Copper Peak, Inc.

Get ready to live on the world’s ski-jumping stage! The legendary Copper Peak in Ironwood, Michigan, is undertaking a $20 million-plus makeover that will blow the minds of international ski teams and their fans. When its renovations are complete, it will set a new record as the largest, human-made FIS-certified ski jump on the planet. But this is more than a renovation — it’s a revolution for Europe’s number one fan-favorite winter sport. Copper Peak will become the largest FIS ski jump open for global competitions and training in the winter and summer. 

This hill will not only train Olympic medalists, but it will be a stage for rewriting world records. The gutsiest athletes will soar incredibly far — farther than ever imagined possible — touching down with the grace and precision of an eagle. 

No longer a dream, this ski jumping hill to beat all ski jumping hills is coming to Ironwood. The International Ski Federation (FIS) has committed to hosting six World Cup competitions here, three in winter and three in summer, along with practice sessions throughout the summer. Ski-jumping athletes’ and fans’ eyes will be on Copper Peak again. You can watch its progress here. 

Photo credit: Copper Peak

Where is Copper Peak?

Michigan’s Upper Peninsula (U.P.) stretches over 300 miles from Ironwood to the west and Drummond Island to the east. It is bordered by Wisconsin and three of the five Great Lakes, Lake Superior, Lake Michigan and Lake Huron.
Copper Peak is near Ironwood in Gogebic County, a few minutes from the Wisconsin border. This historic artificial ski jump sits at the crest of Chippewa Hill, a copper-bearing, volcanic outcrop near the southern edge of the Porcupine Mountains. 

A surprising fact. Many people do not realize that Copper Peak is closer to four Midwest state capitals than its state capital in Lansing, Michigan! Drive times from major metropolitan areas such as Chicago, Milwaukee and Minneapolis/St. Paul is six hours or less. 

History of this legendary ski-jumping hill 

• During the Upper Peninsula’s prosperous “copper rush,” the Chippewa Copper Mining Company tunneled into the granite hill and dug four exploratory pits on the eastern and southern faces in 1845. They found copper, but not in the quantities that called for large-scale mining. So wealth-seekers focused on iron mining in the region.
• Old Peak Company made another attempt to find copper in the hill during the early 1900s, but there was still no opportunity to make a fortune. The land on Chippewa Hill sat dormant until 1968.
• The last Gogebic Range iron mine closed in 1967. It was economically devastating to the communities surrounding Ironwood. The area, known as Big Snow Country because of its hundreds of inches of annual snowfall, was ranked one of the best downhill ski destinations in the Midwest. In 1968, the Gogebic Range Ski Club hatched an idea they proposed to engineer Lauren Larsen. 
• These dreamers wanted to build the tallest artificial ski jump tower in the world — a title Copper Peak still holds today — and the only ski-flying hill in the Western Hemisphere. Larsen accepted the challenge and in 1969, with amazing construction speed, built the cantilevered, engineering marvel in a year. 
• Copper Peak is made with 300 tons of sturdy COR-TEN steel. It rises 26 stories above Chippewa Hill, with an upper observation platform that provides breathtaking panoramic views at 1,782 feet above sea level and 1,180 feet above Lake Superior. As the world’s tallest artificial ski jump, it boasts a 469-foot cantilevered inrun with a 35-degree slope. Nowhere else has ever come close to matching it.
• Copper Peak hosted 10 international ski flying events from 1970 to 1994. The official record for the longest-ever ski jump at Copper Peak was set during the last competition in 1994. Two Austrian ski jumpers — Matthias Wallner and Werner Schuster—flew for a distance of 518 feet or 158 meters. Schuster also holds the unofficial longest flight record at Copper Peak when in 1989 he flew an amazing 522 feet. The only reason he did not seal the claim was he was unable to stick the landing. 
• Besides international ski jumping competitions, Copper Peak has hosted other thrilling competitions and events, including the Copper Peak Snowmobile Hill Climb, the Copper Peak Trails Festival and in 2019, the international Red Bull 400, the steepest 400-meter race on the planet. This grueling competition challenged runners to start at the bottom of the hill and race up 26 stories to the top of the ski jump. Miles Fink-Debray and Sarah Hendrickson were the champions. 

Historical news clipping credit: Lars Larson

No longer operating as a ski-flying hill, Copper Peak reinvented itself as a year-round Adventure Ride. Open every Monday through Sunday, 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. CT (weather permitting), it provides the Midwest’s highest and most astounding panoramic view. On a clear day, the gutsiest visitors have an epic view of parts of Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Canada and Lake Superior.
For the ultimate thrill, travelers ride a chair lift to the crest of an 800-foot hilltop, then take an elevator 18 stories to the main observation deck. The most fearless ascend an additional eight stories to the ski jump’s top starting gate. But, oh the view is worth it!

New Dream. Huge Economic Opportunities.

The people living in Ironwood know it needs an economic boost. In 1920, it was home to 15,000 people, now its population has dwindled to under 5,000. The once-booming mining region relies heavily on downhill skiing at nearby resorts, snowmobiling and cross-country skiing. But this infusion of tourist dollars lasts less than half the year. Nearly snowless years like the winter of 2023-2024, are financially devastating. 

Yet, drivers along U.S. 2 can’t help but see Copper Peak’s cantilever ski jumping tower looming above the treeline. None were more passionate about raising funds to renovate Copper Peak for FIS competition than a group of business owners and government leaders who began discussions in the early 2000s. 

Representatives from FIS came to the facility in 2013 to see its competition possibilities. They talked about how the community could capitalize on the tower’s winter supremacy as an artificial ski flying hill, but with modernizations of the hill’s profile and adding a plastic matting it could even become the world’s largest ski jumping site for the FIS summer Grand Prix, other competitions and serve as a summer through winter international training facility.

“Our group saw the economic potential for Ironwood on a miniature but significantly impactful scale what hosting the 2002 Olympics has done for Park City, Utah,” said Copper Peak, Inc. President Bob Jacquart. “After FIS’s visit, our hopes and dreams for how we could revive the ski jump and Ironwood snowballed.”

In July 2015, after FIS Race Director Walter Hofer and Hans-Martin Renn, chairman of the FIS subcommittee for ski jumping hills, inspected the facility they announced “Copper Peak shall be reactivated.” The Copper Peak, Inc. board formed the Copper Peak Organizing Committee and dedicated time and resources to fostering relationships with FIS, the United States Ski Association, USA Nordic and influential Michigan legislators and decision-makers. 

At the end of March 2022, their efforts resulted in the State of Michigan giving Copper Peak a $20 million American Rescue Plan Act grant for the re-introduction of international ski jumping events.

Photo credit: Copper Peak, signing of the contracts on Sept 3, 2024

Bob Jacquart, president of Copper Peak, Inc., signs a construction contract with Engineering & Construction Innovations, Inc. (ECI), to begin phase one of Copper Peak's revitalization project. Left to right:  MI Senator Ed McBroom, Copper Peak president Bob Jacquart, standing behind, Jim Durkee Copper Peak vice-president, then CEO of Engineering, Construction Innovations (ECI) Robb Johnson and lastly MI Representative Greg Markkanen.

September 3, 2024, was a momentous day for the project when Jacquart and Minnesota-based Engineering & Construction Innovations, Inc. President Robb Johnson signed a construction contract to begin phase one of Copper Peak’s renovations. 

“Sandro Pertile, director of Ski Jumping for the International Ski Federation traveled from Italy to be present at the signing,” said Jacquart. “He spoke about how the revitalization of Copper Peak will impact our area, and how ski jumpers will watch its progress with great interest. Ironwood will rightfully be on the global stage again.”

Jacquart said the economic impact will be felt across the Great Lakes region. He estimates the Ironwood area will see a $190 million boost to its economy within five years of reopening the ski jump hill. There will also be job opportunities and community business growth during the two construction phases. 

Upper Peninsula Travel and Recreation Executive Director Tom Nemacheck reinforced this optimism when he said the average international travel stay is 18 days. This will increase airline flights to Chicago, Minneapolis, and Milwaukee, as well as hotel stays in nearby resort towns across the Upper Peninsula and in northern Wisconsin and Minnesota. Restaurants, retail stores, recreational attractions and outfitters will benefit, too, as international teams and upwards of 20,000 international and national spectators attend events and training.

Phase One Begins in 2025

The first phase will re-contour the landing hill to modern FIS ski-jumping standards. They will pour a new concrete slab at a 37-degree angle, an amazing engineering feat, that Copper Peak will refrigerate in winter and cover with a plastic mat that becomes a water slide for summer ski-jumping competitions and training. EIS will install steps and railings on both sides of the competition hill. Protection of local wildlife and sustainability is a priority and Copper Peak will collect snowmelt in the spring and rain to water the ski jump in the summer. 

The second phase will include improving the tower with steel reinforcements, installing a faster elevator, relocating the judging tower and adding a warming room with a restroom to accommodate 20 people. The goal is to complete the project within two to three years, based in part on raising additional funds to finish it. 

Visitors are welcome to watch the progress in person or online.

Jacquart said that they will accommodate visitors wanting to watch both phases of the construction. A live camera will also be viewable online at the Copper Peak website. 

“Until construction starts next spring, come take the Adventure Ride and go mountain biking on our trails,” said Jacquart. “We want you to be part of this historical moment in the U.P. and the world.”