Cancelled!!!

This morning we woke up to 12 inches of beautiful powder. Ten years ago I would have hopped out of bed and been the first in the lift line. But times have changed and today I drove to the slopes before openning to check the status of the race. The decision had already been made (and it was the right one). The athletes were on the hill tearing down the netting as this was the final day of the series.

Cancelled... the word we all hate to hear. Cancelled ski races just disappear -- there just isn't room on the calendar and enough flexibility in ski area operations to reschedule them. Cancellations are a bitter pill for everyone in ski racing:
-- The athletes are always ready to go. They've been preparing for months. Each race is an opportunity. Their mental preparation is in full swing the evening prior and by race morning their focus is narrowing. Cancelations are an emotional letdown.
-- The coaches are probably the most conflicted by cancellations. They likewise go through months of preparation. They are fully invested in their athletes. They, more than anyone, have a broader view of the opportunities each race presents. However, they are also deeply protective of their athletes' welfare and watch closely to ensure the right decisions are made.
-- The Race Committee and Organizers work months preparing to host major events. 95% of the workers are volunteers who have put in the sweat equity to create a viable and safe venue. They are great people and take pride in their work. Most of them either have, or had, ski racers in their family.
-- The parents foot the bill. Besides liking to watch the races and see their kids succeed, they've paid some pretty big bucks to get their kid to the events. For instance, one region charged $900 per athlete for this three race event (not including transportation). If one race falls out, the family perceives to have "lost" a $300 investment. But the fixed costs don't change -- that's just the way this sport works and it's actually fair. This is a winter sport and there is associated risk to each race investment.

In the end, the difficult decision to cancel a race is made by the Jury, headed by the Technical Delegate. I could write a full blog describing this person's job and responsibilities. Suffice to say, he/she is the final authority at any race and has overall responsibility for protecting our athletes, the workers and the public. The TD also has a full understanding of all impacts this has on each cohort, but he/she makes the decision that best serves the athletes and the sport. Special people.

The Team had reserved the rooms through tonight, which was a good move. If the race had gone off the boys would be thankful for a hot shower and a bed after tearing down all of the "B" netting (see explanation below). Last year Scott and I drove late after this race and the netting drill and we were miserable. So anyway, the boys had a full day off. I have no idea what they did, although I heard a Canadian vs US hockey game was on tap. They played one two days ago and the Canadians killed them. Scott loves skating and is really getting into hockey (minus fistfights, thank you).

For my part, I had a condo waiting in Panorama. I'll go see my Ski Patrol buddies, pick up my lift tickets, and ski around a while. I want to look at the snow conditions. Looking forward to the next race series.

Oh yeah. "B" Netting. If you watch TV and see the triple walls of red netting lining the course, that's "A" and "B" netting. Traditionally the athletes and coaches dismantle and roll all the "B" netting at the end of an event. It's awkward, difficult and time consuming, but part of the deal.

More downhills

Have I said before that there are no great young downhillers? Yes I have. It takes so long to perfect the line and truly learn/internalize these courses. Scott almost had a career day -- but he didn't.

Now don't get me wrong. He skied well enough to finish 20 of 99, score FIS and NORAM points, beat the entire US "D" Team and alot of the rest of the team team. However, he didn't win. All week long (and for that matter, last year) Scott has been perplexed by one turn called "Fall Away." This turn requires one to dive towards the protective fence going about 70 mph, stand on the left ski and loop back across the hill and over a knoll and and commit to a right foot turn on a sidehill. The move from the fence to the knoll is a "blind" move. He's given up time there every day, but today he was dead on. I had him ahead of the field 2/3 of the way down the course. I was getting ready for the awards ceremony. However it wasn't to be. He came into the turn at the base of the hill and pressured as he had the first four days, except this time he was going about 20 mph faster and before he realized the problem (1/100th of a second) he was looping wide and the race was over.

It took Scott a good 20 minutes to be sociable in the finish arena. He was obviously reliving the 1/100th of a second over and over. He just called me and told me he's alternately pumped and disappointed in the result, but he now knows he can beat all these guys. Now there's something to build upon!

The Suit

Since we're at a speed week, it probably makes sense to explain speed suits in more detail. The need for speed suits is apparent -- this is a game of fractions of seconds and wind resistance is an important factor.

When the first speed suits were introduced in the late 1960's, there were no quality or safety controls. Naturally things got out of hand in a hurry, and soon folks were wearing suits so slick that a person actually accelerated if they sat on the ground. Fortunately the FIS got a handle on this and there's now a standard for suits. Every suit worn in a FIS sanctioned event must go through a "plomb" test to determine how much pressure is required to push a measure of air through the fabric. This prevents fabrics from being so slick as to be dangerous.

How big is the advantage a speed suit gives? It's significant! As a rule of thumb the difference between a speed suit or regular attire over a 1 minute long GS course is about 1.5 seconds. So everyone searches for ways to make suits faster within the parameters set by FIS. Last year the US had "slippery suits" made especially for the Olympics. These suits supposedly gave a significant advantage over the average stuff. This year the "gig is up" and everyone has access to these suits. Scott is pictured above in this year's US Team suit.

But wait, there's more to this. Scott has two different types of suits, padded and unpadded. Athletes never wear pads for Downhill. They sometimes wear pads for Super G and always wear pads for Giant Slalom and Slalom. However, we've learned that the suits with sewn in pads are not as slick as those without, so athletes now wear "stealth" pads under the unpadded suits in Super G and Giant Slalom.

OK, enough of that stuff. Today was the first Downhill race of the NORAM season. Scott skied well, except for missing his line in one critical spot. It cost him lots of time so he settled for 12th place of 99 in this elite field. He lowered his FIS points, picked up a nice sum of NORAM Cup points, beat the entire "D" Team, plus earned the Juniors (age 19 and under) bronze medal. His goal tomorrow is to take the whole thing... we'll see.

Speed!!!

Lake Louise is the site of the opening World Cup downhills in North America each year. First the men come through town, then the ladies, and finally, as long as all the preparations have been made, the NORAM circuit bats clean-up... literally. The final day we get to tear down all of the "B" netting!

We live for speed weeks. Although Scott is a four event athlete, speed is truly his forte. He loves the wind in his face and flying off bumps at 80+ mph. We both enjoy the pace. Days are simpler than at technical events. Lengthy inspections, lots of mental preparation, only one run per day, then afternoons of preparing skis for the next race. Everything just seems more layed back. Of course for some people these are stressful weeks, but Scott's so comfortable with speed that this is more like a week at the amusement park.

He's skied well thus far in the two training runs. Yeah training runs. The rules require that any competitor completes at least one timed run through the exact course which will be used on race day. They normally schedule two days in case weather intervenes, but this year he got to run both days. Scott's skis are running well. He was fastest through the traps yesterday and today he handily won the final glide split. Tactically there have been some issues. Yesterday he missed his line on a big fall away turn and took a scenic tour enroute to the next gate. It cost him a bunch of time and he finished 39th. Today he fixed that problem and finished 13th... in the hunt. A win or podium here is well within reach if he puts it all together.

As I mentioned earlier, mental preparation is a big part of this event. At 80-90 mph there's little time for indecision. Athletes must have the course memorized to the most minute detail. Being a foot off line in some segments might put one into the fence. At a minimum, it will cost precious tenths of a second in a game of hundredths. As a coach, I focus on being positive, sticking to a regimen and helping the athletes create tools for remembering their line. But the most important thing after tactics is doing whatever is takes to help each athlete get into the proper frame of mind for the race.

The Spirit of Ski Racing

It's late, I'm tired and I'm a little fed-up. That said we're in beautiful Lake Louise, Alberta for a week of Downhills and Super G. What could be better. Rather than labor through the mechanics of ski racing today, I thought we'd do something a little more light hearted.

We're staying at the Hostel in Lake Louise – not the Ritz, but its restaurant is one of the best kept secrets in this town. Staying at the Hostel also brings us in contact with a variety of international travelers. Last night Joy met a Japanese guy, here for the races, which appeared to be subsisting on a jar of peanut butter. She invited him to join us for dinner tonight.

Takeo Ubukata is a ski technician from Tokyo, the only skier in his family, and a passionate ski racer. He’s 34 and living the dream. He hardly speaks English so it took hours to obtain his story. He says that in Japan it’s impossible to become a downhill racer because the slopes are all so crowded, so they only train slalom on narrow lanes. He decided he had to race downhill, so saved his money, bought some old downhill skis, and headed over here. How he got on a NORAM start list I’ll never know.

While inspecting for the first training run today he was very scared. He wasn’t sure he wanted to run the course. While side slipping down the icy pitch, one of his ski edges ripped out from his ski. When he got to the bottom he decided he’d come this far so he’d better give it a shot. So he switched his skis to the opposite feet so the ripped edge was on the outside and headed to the start. As he told his story in broken English and hand gestures, his excitement was palpable. He triumphantly finished 89th of 99 competitors.

But it’s not over... He’s found some used Super G’s for sale in Banff, so will go there tomorrow to pick them up. He says he can’t afford two sets of skis, has had enough of going 85 MPH, and will just do the Super G’s here and at Panorama next week. So we've adopted him, will feed him again, and will set-up his race skis for the Super G races. You gotta love this guy!

So what's the Point?

So whats the point? What good is it to hear that someone “improved his points” if you don’t get the point? So today I'm offering a tutorial on the US and international points ranking systems. I hope you'll find this interesting, since this is the fairest ranking system I've seen in any sport. BCS, look to your laurels…

When do points come into play? Youth Ski League racers (12 and under) race in their region, searching largely for individual medals. There are no “standings” per se, and even if there were, those standings would offer little benefit. However, once a racer reaches “Junior” status, (age 13) it’s all about standings and points. Medals mean little or nothing unless they’re earned at a major championship... rankings are what count. There are two very similar point systems, one for USSA (US athletes) and one for FIS (international). US athletes are only ranked in the USSA points list at age 13 and 14. From age 15 through adulthood, our athletes are rated on both lists.

Why are points important? Many races are over solicited, so the entries are accepted based upon points standings (lower points are better). Also, the start order is based upon points, with the lower point athletes starting sooner. Obviously, the sooner one starts, the better the course conditions, and the greater the likelihood of finishing well. But most importantly, points are like the SAT of skiing. Spots on the US Team and top NCAA teams are offered based upon points and world rankings.

How are points earned? Points are earned using an intricate formula; here's how it works: The five lowest pointholders out of the top ten entrants are totalled and added to the five lowest pointholders of the top ten finishers. The sum is divided by ten, then a specific factor is added. This yields what is called the point penalty for that particular race. Once the penalty for the race is computed, each finisher receives the penalty plus race points based upon his finish order, the length of the course, and how far behind he was. For instance, if the penalty for a race was 30 points and I won that race, I would leave with a point result of 30. Let’s say you finished in 9th place, 1.2 seconds behind me, you might get penalty points of 30 plus race points of 7 for a 37 point result. Our results are then entered in the USSA and FIS data bases and averaged with our previous best points finish for the type of event. So, if I earned a 30 today in slalom and my previous best slalom result was a 38, my new points profile for that event would become 34.

Why aren’t medals important? Because I could seek races with weak fields and win every race. So what? My points (and world rankings) would never improve. Instead, racers seek events where the competition is better than them. That way the point penalty is lower and if they ski well they can improve their own point profile. Every racer starts his career with 990 points as a profile for each event. Racers on the World Cup have points in the single digits. It’s a long road to the top, but it is eminently fair.

Scott's FIS points in all events are around 40. Last year as a J2 in FIS elite races he was frequently amongst the early starters. But to get better he has to face tougher fields. So now he's in races with single digit athletes at NORAM level races. Since they're at the front of the start order, they're on the smooth, perfectly prepared, course. Scott and his fellow aspirants are starting way back in the 70's and 80's. So not only are they facing very fast athletes, but they are suffering a handicap from the course conditions. But it's all fair. I'll take this over the French ice skating judge any old day!

The Ladder

Sometimes it might sound as though Scott has made steady, uninterrupted, progress up the ladder of ski racing success. He has done well and is on a great trajectory, but the rungs on this ladder are getting further and further apart. Sometimes one has to leap for the next rung, get a fingerhold, and pull up. Sometimes one loses his grip. Scott has lost his grip three days in a row -- let me explain.

He's been training hard for weeks and feels ready for a breakthrough. In training he's running even with and often beating athletes with half his FIS point rank. He's primed for success. One problem though, this sport gets tougher at each interval and the only way to reach the top is to claw through seemingly unfair odds. When Scott runs even with the 20 point racers, they're all on roughly the same snow. Their first run is on smooth snow, and as the day wears on and ruts form, they all face the same ruts.

In races like the ones Scott's been in this week, the field is mighty "deep." The World Cup and Europa Cup guys, already infinately better than Scott, get to start in the top 30, on a relatively smooth course. The 20 point guys he trains with get to start in the 40's and 50's, and Scott is starting anywhere from position 70 to 90. But it's fair... every one of those guys ahead of him faced the same challenge and battled through. That's the ladder Scott now faces. He's handling it well mentally and just needs to keep grinding it out. I'm sure he will.