Things got very busy as we hit race day but one thing I can tell you is that the first World Cup Downhill of the season was awesome!
To a person – athletes, coaches, FIS Pros, TV producers, sponsors….and Sled Dogs – the race went like clockwork. A bit more sunshine might have made things a bit better but we will leave ‘easier’ to another day.
Congratulations to Austria’s Nicole Schmidhofer, who won her first World Cup Downhill after something like 128 starts. I believe immediately after the race, her tech tucked those skis away because in Saturday’s race, she repeated as the winner. Not bad…not bad at all.
Saturday’s race was great. The sun was out for most of the field and we had a great crowd cheering in the finish area. Having a double winner makes for a pretty cool celebration for the Austrian team.
As we do every year, there is little time to celebrate the Ladies Saturday DH as we have to get ready for the SuperG. There is the move from the DH start to the SG start – Audi façade, banners, timing equipment, tent and gear. The course set switches from orange gates and panels to red & blue gates and panels. The SG set always results in the moving of a bunch of accumulated snow on Fallaway and several other spots along the course. Slipping and shovels are the order of the day (and into the evening).
The SG always starts earlier than the DH so everyone is pressed for time but the Sled Dogs and the Monkeys were equal to the task.
B.