Mother nature has not been very cooperative to any races this spring.
Yesterday's giant slalom was the final men's race of the 2010 US National Alpine Championships. The weather provided perhaps the most difficult conditions that I have ever seen. Without the endless effort of the volunteers, there was no way we could have raced.
When I got to the start an hour before the race was scheduled to begin the snow was bottomless. I was able to push my pole so deep that it was almost buried. None of the racers were very optimistic about racing. The only people determined to get the trail in good shape and have a race were the race organizers and the volunteers.
The weather had left the snow granular, like corn snow with no bottom. It had no cohesionand because of the lack of moisture chemicals like salt or urea would not work to help solidify it. During our inspection the snow making hoses were out with volunteers dousing the trial with water while spreading chemicals. It was quite the sight to see, but it was our only chance of racing.
Nearly three hours after starting to water the hill it was as good as it was going to get so we raced. The course prep pushed the first run start back from 10 am to noon, but we were racing. The conditions were beyond tough. There was fog in some sections of the course and light rain; both leading to poor visibility. I fought the whole way down and was one of the few racers who managed to move up from where they started. For the most part people were finishing in the same place where they started, but I managed to go from starting 10th to finishing 6th. It was a solid showing.
When I was in the lodge at 2:15 pm and they were still not done with the first run everyone was figuring that it would be a one run race, but they sent us out for inspection of the second run course fifteen minutes later. In the time between the first run start and the start of the second run, at 3:25 pm, the rain picked up and the fog set in on the course. When the conditions are tough, the race becomes more of a mental competition than anything else. Whoever is able to stay focused and execute their game plan stands the best chance of doing well.
Remaining focused while freezing and soaking wet was a challenge for me, but as I got into the start I followed my usual routine and was able to block out all of the elements and focus. Overcoming this hurdle was huge for me. I was able to lay down a very fast run that at the time was the fastest. It is a great feeling in tough conditions to come down
and have the fastest run. I was happy with how I skied. I had put forth my best skiing and all I could do was wait and see how others would fare.
As the last few competitors came down I was still in the lead with the three fastest guys from the first run to come. At that point I was still happy because I was guaranteed my best finish ever at the national championships, but beating one more person would mean earning a podium finish. I was able to overtake one more competitor to earn a 3rd place finish and was ecstatic.
Perhaps the best part of the day was all of the supporters that I had at the race. Whiteface is not very close to home, but it is the closest that I get and it meant so much to me to have a lot of people there cheering for me. Despite the miserable weather it is one of my best and happiest days ski racing.
The giant slalom race at US nationals was my highlight, but it was a great few days for me. I started the competition with an 8th place finish in the super g. The next day I had a very good day in poor snow conditions to move from start number 20 up to 5th place in the slalom. Those two finishes earned me a 4th place in the combined event. Capping it all
off with my giant slalom finish was a great way to finish an awesome week.
All of the competitors owe a huge thanks to the volunteer staff that made the races possible. When the conditions for racing are ideal or even normal it is easy to overlook how important the volunteers are to ski racing. Without their endless effort the past few weeks of racing would have been a wash. But thanks to their effort we were able to have
great races where good skiing paid off more than starting positions.