Spider Sabich

Vladimir Peter Sabich Jr.(January 10, 1945 – March 21, 1976) was an Americanalpine ski racer, a member of theU.S. Ski Teamon theWorld Cupcircuit in the late 1960s. He competed at the1968 Winter Olympicsand was the pro ski racing champion in 1971 and 1972. Sabich was killed by gunshot under controversial circumstances involvingClaudine Longetin 1976.
The grandson ofCroatianimmigrants, Sabich was the second child of Vladimir (1915–2001) and Frances Sabich (1911–2003). His lifelongnickname"Spider" was given by his father as a result of thin arms and legs at aprematurebirth.Spider's father was an officer of theCalifornia Highway Patroland had volunteered in World War II as aB-25pilot in theAir Force; he was held as an internee inSiberiaby theSovietsfor a year after his plane was shot-up over northern Japan and forced down nearVladivostok. After the war, Vlad was atest pilotand then returned to his job with the CHP inSacramento, and in 1950 he was transferred toKyburzonHighway 50, southwest ofLake Tahoe.
The three Sabich children (Mary, Spider, and Steve) learned to ski at Edelweissski area,  about a dozen miles (20 km) up the highway, a mile pastTwin Bridges. They attended a one-room school in Kyburz, Silver Fork Elementary, and went to class in the summer and skied during the winter, frequently arriving in their father's patrol car.
Spider and Steve werealtar boysat theCatholicchurch across the highway from the ski area (Chapel of Our Lady of the Sierras) and would often strap on their skis immediately followingMass. Their ski coach was Lutz Aynedter, a downhill champion from the 1940s who emigrated from Germany to California after the war.  He taught the Sabich boys European-style ski racing, and Spider and Steve became junior stars among the fearless young racers of Edelweiss, who became known as the "Highway 50 Boys."  The Edelweiss ski area closed in the early 1960s after a poor snow year; the location is now calledCamp Sacramento.
Despite their outdated equipment, Spider and Steve established themselves as top junior ski racers in northern California in the early 1960s. After graduation fromEl Dorado High SchoolinPlacerville, both were offered skiingscholarshipsto theUniversity of ColoradoinBoulder, one of the dominant collegiate programs of the era. Head coachBob Beattiewas also the coach of theU.S. Ski Team, and the national team was heavy with CU skiers. While at Colorado, Spider majored inaeronautical engineeringand was selected to the national team.  Steve's career was ended by a knee injury while at CU.
Sabich skied on theWorld Cupcircuit for its first four seasons, and finished fifth in theslalomin the thick fog at the1968 Winter Olympicsat age 22. His sole World Cup victory came two months later in April, a slalom atHeavenly Valleyat South Lake Tahoe, just east of his hometown of Kyburz.He finished eighth in the slalom standings for the1968season and was the U.S. downhill champion.
Sabich reached the World Cuppodium(top three) three more times in the slalom in 1969.  He finished seventh in the1969season standings for the slalom and 11th overall, but fell out of the top ten in the slalom the following year.
Sabich had 18 top ten finishes in Olympic and World Cup competition: two indownhill, three ingiant slalom, and 13 in slalom.
Points were only awarded for top ten finishes (seescoring system).
From1948through1980, theWinter Olympicswere also theWorld Championshipsfor alpine skiing.At the World Championships from 1954 through 1980, the combined was a "paper race" using the results of the three events (DH, GS, SL).
Sabich turned professional after the1970season, following his friendBilly Kidd, who joined the pro tour in mid-February 1970 and won the first title.  Pro ski racing was conducted in a dual slalom (and giant slalom) format, with racers going head-to-head in elimination heats.  It was staged primarily in the United States, rather than Europe, and was headed by his former coach,Bob Beattie.
The attractive and charismatic Sabich helped popularizeskiingin the U.S. in the late 1960s and early 1970s; he was the suspected inspiration (along withKidd) for the1969filmDownhill Racer, starringRobert Redford(although Sabich was much more light-hearted than Redford's Dave Chappellet).Sabich won the pro championship in 1971 and 1972.  The prize money was modest (he took home $21,189 as champion in 1971),but handsome endorsements for the era followed, which pushed his annual income well over $100,000.  This allowed him to move from his collegiate (andWorld Cup) base ofBoulderto theski resortofAspenin 1971.
With his brother's help, Sabich built a house in 1971 in the gated Starwood area northwest of Aspen, near the home of singerJohn Denver. (Sabich's chalet was originally built for $90,000; its estimated value was $250,000 in 1976 and $3 million by the mid-1990s.)A lifelong appreciator ofaviation, Sabich earned his pilot's license and owned a twin-enginePiper Aztecthat he flew to his pro skiing events inNorth America.
While chasingJean-Claude Killyfor the 1973 pro title, Sabich incurred a back injury (compressed vertebra)on the final weekend of the season atAspen Highlands. In the semifinals of the giant slalom, he hurtled over the second jump at 50 mph (80 km/h) and caught his arm on a gate, and somersaulted onto the back of his neck in an explosion of snow and skis.  He struggled to stand up, but was too stunned to walk and was hospitalized.  Sabich was out of the next day's slalom, and Killy won the season title in his first (and only full season) on the pro tour.Sabich finished third on the money list, at $36,500.
Unfortunately, injuries curtailed Sabich's success over the next three seasons, and his last victory on the pro circuit was in early January 1974 atMount Snow,Vermont.A few months later he hurt his knee inSun Valley, and finished fifth on the money list in 1974 at $25,100,with Killy sitting out the season.Sabich had knee surgery in August, and was featured on the cover ofGQmagazine in November as "pro skiing's richest racer," holding his tri-colorK2skis,but sat out the 1975 season.He returned to the circuit in 1976 but qualified for only two races, with just $800 in earnings.
Late in the afternoon on Sunday, March 21, 1976, Sabich returned from a training session at Aspen Highlands and a brief visit with Bob Beattie, whom he planned to meet for dinner.While preparing to shower, he was shot in the bathroom of his Starwood home by his live-in girlfriend, singer-actressClaudine Longet.  The two had met at a pro-celebrity event four years earlier in 1972 inBear Valley, California.  She claimed the gun accidentally discharged as he was showing her how it worked.  Sabich was hit by a single gunshot in theabdomenand lost a significant amount of blood before anambulancearrived.  He died on the way to Aspen Valley Hospital with Longet at his side, shortly after 5:00p.m.Sabich was 31 years and 2 months old.
Longet, 34, was arrested and charged with the shooting. At the trial, Longet repeated the claim that the gun had accidentally discharged when Sabich was showing her how to use it.
ThePitkin CountySheriffs who made the arrest made two procedural errors that aided Longet's defense: without warrants, they took a blood sample from her and confiscated her diary. According to prosecutors, the sample showed the presence of a trace amount ofcocainein her blood, and her diary reportedly contradicted her claim that her relationship with Sabich had not soured. In addition, the gun (which had a defective safety and an overly lubricated firing mechanism)was mishandled by non-weapons experts.  As they were unable to cite any of the disallowed material, prosecutors did use the autopsy report to suggest that when Sabich was struck, he was bent over, facing away, and at least 6 feet (1.8 m) away from Longet,which would be inconsistent with the position and relative distance of someone demonstrating the operation of a firearm.
The jury convicted her of a lesser charge—misdemeanorcriminal negligence—and sentenced her to pay a small fine and spend 30 days in jail.The judge allowed Longet to choose the days she served, believing that this arrangement would allow her to spend the most time with her children, and she decided to work off most of her sentence on weekends. (Critical reaction to the verdict and sentencing was exacerbated when she subsequently vacationed with her defense attorney, Ron Austin, who was married at the time; Longet and Austin later married and still live in Aspen.)
After the criminal trial, Sabich's parents filed a civillawsuitagainst Longet in May 1977.The case was eventually resolved out of court in September 1979,with the provision that Longet never tell nor write about her story.
Sabich is buried in northern California at Westwood Hills Memorial Park inPlacerville, where he attended high school. His hometown of Kyburz, 25 miles (40 km) east and upstream, did not have a cemetery in 1976. Kidd delivered the eulogy at the brief service, with former coach Beattie and former teammates as pallbearers.The presence of Longet and her supporters, including ex-husbandAndy Williamsand their children, at Sabich's memorial service in Aspen two days later was awkward for the Sabich family.
Sabich is buried next to his older sister, Mary Frances Sabich, aphysicianwho died ofbrain cancerin 1988 at the age of 45. Younger brother Steve died ofmelanomain 2004 at age 57, shortly after the deaths of their parents.
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