WCSN Blogs

The World Cup Finals were a little uneventful, with the exception of Bode clinching the overall title. I think the Downhill being cancelled knocked the wind out of everyone’s sails. The Super-G had some tough snow conditions and The Head skis seemed to cause problems for one of the few times this season. Bode never found his groove and had difficulty with the grip and feel on his skis. Watching the SG globe evaporate out of Cuche’s hands was surprising as he has skied hard all season, even in traininig runs. I have never seen him back off like that in 12 years. I doubt I will ever see it again.In the Giant Slalom Bode put a solid run together on the 21 GS skis, which had a slight modification to prevent the ski from bending in reverse camber. Not sure we will be patenting this particular idea but we will continue to move in the same direction. Bode won the first run, which he’s had the speed to do all season. It was more a matter of finding appropriate tactics and putting a run down without too many mistakes. The second run started off a bit ragged as Bode was skiing too straight and missing the groove created by the previous 29 skiers. He was still in the hunt but bashed his hand on the base of a gate, knocking him off balance, and then his inside ski hooked up and his knee struck him in the chin. He said it disoriented him and that before he could react he was out.

The following morning Bode could not even hold his pole and I think he may have broken something. He was bummed but decided he would not be able to ski the way he wanted since he was incapable of planting his pole. It was unfortunate as Bode worked extremely hard in SL and put himself in a good place to compete in the last 2 slaloms. It’s always frustrating when injuries prevent someone from competing.

All in all it was a ground-breaking season and we both learned a lot. There were unique challenges and advantages to being on our own. We had an awesome crew and I could not have asked for a better group of people to work with. I would like to thank all our fans and supporters — and even the doubters — who helped provide inspiration.

For me, the season was defined by a number of missed opportunities and some out-of-this-world performances by Bode. He clearly proved that he is the best overall skier in the world.

Bode worked hard the whole year. He held himself more accountable to in- and out-of-season conditioning, better nutrition, more efficient hydration and a season without a drop of booze. He is absolutely one of the best athletes I have encountered in my life. His unique and fresh approach to competition, sport and life has taught me a lot. I am extremely proud to have had a small part in his journey for the past 12 seasons. I know he will have many more inspirational performances and continue to shock fans and competitors with his abilities. Team America has been a really cool experiment and there is potential for us to make it even better. I look forward to what the future brings for Bode. I hope he finds peace of mind, joy and fulfillment in life and sport. Cheers to you CEO, you are a legend. Peace to all. I hope the blogs at least informed and entertained a few of you. Johno

The good the bad and the ugly should be our motto currently.

The downhill training run was canceled at 10:30 in the morning and there was no creative thinking, schedule readjustment or Herculean effort put into pulling off the downhill. Unfortunately, It was a made for TV event and just what the sport needed to propel it to another level in the public’s eye. Two titans clashing with the faster man walking with the globe for one last race. I am sure Bode would have been up for the challenge and has shown he is unstoppable when he has run without a major mistake. Super Bummer as I know how much the DH title meant to him and even more just the chance to compete for the title in one last race at a venue he has mastered more than once.

Onward, and I hope FIS and the organizers learn from this and at the very least add reserve days to the WC finals. If they cannot accommodate the athletes with this, then I believe the finals should not include speed events. Spring is a dicey time to be attempting to pull off top-notch speed races especially when the WC finals only has one training run for the DH.

The U.S. team showed a nice gesture by giving me the SG set. I set yesterday in complete mashed potatoes. It was very difficult to guess how hard the snow would be today and how fast the speeds would be. I had the peanut gallery following me as the girls ran an abbreviated version of the same course with a lower start so the coaches were sure to give me their 2 cents. I wanted to set a skier’s course for Bode knowing that he turns like no other. I liked the way the course turned out and had the conditions really been icy, I believe Bode would have shown who was boss.

As it turned out, the snow conditions were difficult with grippy sections, corn snow and a small peely layer. Bode was feeling good physically and fired up, but it did not all come together and he said his skis felt awful…grabbing, hooking and then breaking away. He never found his groove or rhythm. On the bottom he skied well but by this time he was quite uninspired and cruised. He ended up 11th Cuche was 14 and Benni 4th. Not exactly what I had in mind but the good part of the story is it was enough to clinch the overall title…What is up DOG? Cuche skied like a p*ssy, Reichelt hammered and then another Swiss athlete Albrect beat Cuche, so it bumped him to 2nd for the SG title….oops. I even heard the Swiss coaches told Cuche to cruise….oops again.

It was actually quite an uneventful day, but I have to say I am happy that I am not pulling my hair out for the last event, hoping he does what he needs to win the globe. There will be more to come…for now we are having a bonfire and bbq at the Bus. Should be a laugh.

Cheers,
Johno

A little down time, some tennis and follow up sessions with Dr. Obwaller has put Bode in a good place to push hard in training both on and off the snow for the final push of the season. We trained Wednesday Morning in Hinterreit both SL and GS. Bode has been testing a couple of new GS models that Rippler constructed. They are quite different from his current race ski which is stiff as oak 4×4 but has continued to prove faster than other alternatives. On this day the softer ski showed promise and he felt as though it was really solid under foot but still maneuverable. In SL We tested a ski with slightly more side cut and 2 others with material cut out of the tip to make the tip torsionally softer. Bode had a good training session with a lot of high quality runs on a decent snow surface. We will still need to due further testing but the new skis are moving in the right direction. Bode talks often of a ski with good balance between torsion and longitudinal flex. He wants a ski that can he can manipulate radius in relation to how he pressures it and a ski that can rail or steer if necessary. Lots of variables but ultimately the clock is the best indicator and it must be tested on different terrain, different course sets and different snow conditions.The following day we decided to mix it up a bit and train in Saalbach.

It has good breakovers and variable terrain. The snow was not quite as hard as we would have preferred but it was good training on a different venue.

Once again Bode tested his current race ski against 2 new models. The 21 and the 28. Both similar in construction but one has extra cross fibers in the build up. Both skis had sections where they were close to the “Drake” as he calls his race ski. He named the ski after the eldest son of his service man Robi so he would take good care of them. He looked more athletic on the softer skis and they appear to be faster when steered because of the softer tip and tail. The drake is an amazing ski when on a rail but pushes a lot of snow when steered so in sections where he has to steer the ski is slow.

After 4 full length runs we headed back to Hinterreit for a few more runs on different snow and Bode only took the 21. This in itself was encouraging because he so infrequently trains more than one run on a pair of skis. He pushed hard to see what he was capable of on the ski and thought it had potential. In the afternoon we had a fine sporting session of soccer and volleyball.

We had talked about going to Kranjska Gora after dryland and free ski on the race hill the next day but Bode felt it would be more beneficial to stay another night in Hinterreit and train in the morning.

Friday morning we trained sl with the Japanese boys and one Swiss young gun. Snow surface was not as good as the previous day but it was decent.

Bode broke almost all his good slalom skis in the prior session on Wednesday so Robi had to make a dash back to the factory and put the screws to the boys to fire up the presses again. He stayed up all night getting the new boards ready. Crunch time and everyone is pushing hard. Bode was impressed with the ski with more sidecut and talked about preferring a stiffer construction similar to his current race ski the K9. Bode thought about running a few runs of GS but the conditions did not warrant further volume so we pedaled our way over to Kranjska Gora.

Race day GS: Conditions are warm but they have done a good job prepping the hill. It appears as though it will hold up decently. Bode starts 12 and the +6 degrees Celsius has left a thin layer of peely snow on the surface of soft ice. Bode decides to race on the 21 as the course set is tight and turny. 52 gates and nothing set more than 26 meters. Bode hammers the top of the course, brings a little shape to the delay at the bottom of the pitch like we talked about and gets into a little soft snow.

The snow peels away and he is on his side. He bounces back up but loses a bunch of speed right before the flats. From here on he is pinning and puts some great sections together but also has some tactical errors so the run is full of recoveries. He ends up 21st. I was not sure it would hold in the top 30 but course conditions further deteriorated and the light got flat.

The second run bode is running 11th and they have opted to throw salt with the warm temperatures. The surface hold up better but it is tough conditions with the cross ruts from 1st run.

Bode rips the top again and skis the mini flat very fast. He did later tell me that in one of his contorted recoveries he tweaked his back. Into the middle of the course he ends up going extremely straight and shinning off a few gates…he keeps it rolling but not ideal. Through the bottom of the course he has a few mistakes but skis hard and puts down an overall solid run. He was 4th on the second run and it was enough to salvage an 11th out of the day. Benni was 4th and Cuche was 6th so neither pulled huge points on the day.

Ted Shred had a great day with a 3rd the first run and he scrapped and scrambled his way down the 2nd run with mad intensity which was enough to bring home his first GS victory of the season….Bravo. This result also puts Ted in the red bib leading the GS standings heading into the finals.

It was a great race to watch and there was some awesome skiing out a number of dudes.

Erik Schlopy had some really solid sections as well. I am sure he was a bit disappointed but he once again proved what a great technician he is. The challenge for him will be putting the pieces together for 2 complete runs.

We opted out of SL training because of Bode’s tweaked back. Instead he spent the afternoon with Doc getting the machine back to form.

On the morning of the SL, Bode is hurting and contemplating pulling the pin. His right side of his back is all stoved up but he comes up on the hill and gingerly warms up. After a bunch of core exercises, stretching and a few mellow turns he decides it is not worth the risk. I think it is the right choice as we have a HUGE week coming up and we need him to be in top form for Bormio. Bode gets treated one more time by the doc and opts to ride in the motor home back to St Johanne where he will see the doc again tonight. Tomorrow he will either ride with Chance or get driven in the Motor home where he can lay low and care for his back.

The rest of our crew will head for Bormio today. I need to get up on the race hill and start planning the SG set. The US team has been really cool and given me the SG set because they do not have athletes other than Ted racing in the Final SG.

I am looking forward to an extremely important week. I am confident Bode will be back to top form with some rest and further care from the Doc.

Thank you all for your positive thoughts and support. We will all be working hard to put our ducks in a row. Think Positively, Think Fast and stay tuned it will be exciting. Johno

Long travels from Canada as we had a ski space party in Vancouver the night before travel so we departed from Whistler at 2am for our 7am flight to Oslo via Denver and Munich. This followed by a 3 hour drive to Kvitfjell made for quite a haul. The day after arrival I put Bode through a tolerance workout on the bike and leg press machine. He is strong and despite a few bumps, bruises and small ailments is getting his body back to a place where it is firing on all cylinders.

The next morning we trained SG with some other teams and Heinz had three different bevels which Bode was testing. After our adventures in Whistler it was obvious we had to mellow out the way the new aggressive SG ski initiated the turn. The snow was a little inconsistent for testing but Bode was able to sort out that the ski with .8 base bevel was better than the machine ground ski he had used in Canada.

The first and only training run caught a lot of guys off guard as 1/2 the field missed gates. Track preparation was ok but there was places where there was lots of soft snow on the low line. If a racer got caught in the sluff it was difficult to make adjustments. Bode ran on the Stiffer ski and got a feel for the flow and line.

Val D’Isere make up race and the weather looks pretty good. It was cold over night and scattered clouds by race time. Bode was really nervous about a few sections of the course after only having one training run. He later told me he worked through that with sheer aggression. Bode skied ok. He had some mistakes on the top and places where he looked anxious and unsettled on his skis but he hustled. He was not particularly content with the way he skied and figured there was a good chance his lead would not hold. Cuche made a big mistake on the top and ended up 6th. Werner Heel put down a really solid run and was .1 behind Bode at the last split but ripped the bottom flats for the win. It was a missed opportunity to win for us but overall a big day because we narrowed the standings of the DH title to 25 points behind Cuche.

We had a fun session of soccer with the Fins in the parking garage that afternoon as the weather rolled in with high winds and snow. Saturday morning and there is 5 inches of new snow and drifts. At jury inspection it is evident there is lots of work to make the hill race ready. The organizers pushed the start back to noon and worked like mad to prep the track.

Bode was focused and confident at inspection. We watched a bunch of video the previous night and he knew where he had to make adjustments. He was calm and did not feel as nervous. Bode and Heinz had spoken about skiing on the Kitzbuhel skis which are softer but run fast in new snow. Bode knew they would be fast but opted for the stiffer ski which he prefers in the turns.

Cuche, Kroell and Heel all ran in front of Bode. Cuche had a mistake up top which cost him a few tenths and both Kroell and Heel put down solid runs. Bode ripped the top left foot cooridor on a tighter line to stay out of the sluff and he pulled it off. Off the first jump Bode hit the line and was a bit more patient than the previous day which allowed him to get better direction at the gate entering the flats. He carried good speed onto the flats. The Russi jump this year was huge and we measured a few of the boys going over 80 meters in the air. This is the biggest jump we have seen all year. Bode rode off the jump and soared. He was tight in the air and touched down with a grunt only to immediately grab bull. He skied well through the middle of the course and looked more subtle on his skis than the day before. At the Big S Bode once again displayed a touch more patience and ripped the technical section.

Entering the Daytona turn Bode did a great job of moving with the terrain and handling the forces of the compression which was giving a lot of guys fits. Bode won this section and piped the next big left footer at the top of the final pitch. He went off the last jump with a little too much direction right so he carried a bit more distance than the ideal line. This combined with perhaps a little wind influence and not riding as flat a ski as possible lost a bit of ground on the bottom split. None the less a really solid run and .40 ahead of his competition. Despite a few mistakes Bode was stoked with the way he skied. Right on… the Downhill title is now within reach…5 points separate Bode and Cuche. It is on! The battle in Bormio for the title. I have to feel like Bode is in the drivers seat but I know it will be an epic battle.

SG race day and the weather looks good, track looks good and the course is a ripper. In places it is as fast as the DH. We all considered the option of racing on his dh skis but Bode decided on his new SG’s. The course was so straight that a lot of guys over skied it. Bode skied hard but was not happy with the way his ski reacted. He loves the platform the ski provides but does not feel it has the optimal balance like his dh ski.

Bode was still in the hunt to win the race even though he had so so sections. He won the daytona and big left footer section at the top of the last pitch but skied the last section a bit conservatively off the last jump and ended up going too straight for a few gates. Once again he was leading at the last split but lost enough time on the bottom to give the victory this time to Streitberger. Bode was not content with his skiing but all in all it was a great weekend and we left Norway in a good place physically and mentally. It was a rough weekend for Marco and Steven with crashes and mistakes but both showed sections of really good skiing so this is encouraging heading into the finals. Virgil and his crew were helpful to us over the weekend and I thank them.

On a sad note, the Lanzinger crash was awful and reminds us of how dangerous this sport can be. I know it was a very serious injury and there are complications with circulation so our prayers are with him and the Austrian team. While I am on the bummer train I would also like to mention the loss of Paul Robbins was sad as he truly was a passionate fan and supporter of the sport and US Skiing. His energy, enthusiasm and silly hat will be missed by all.

Yesterday we arrived at our friend Gidi’s Hotel in Kirchberg and are finally reunited with our lovely bus. Nice to have our home on wheels back again. We played tennis and Bode had a good lift on the eccentric machine before going to Dr. Obwaller to get tuned up with nerve stimulation. The weather sucks right now as it is warm and rainy over most of Europe and the South is getting lots of snow. We will do our best to sort out some decent training environments so we can fine tune for Kranska Gora. 2 more weeks of focus and keeping our ducks in a row. **Check out pictures above**

Think fast,

Cheers, Johno

Just a little rehash of last week and what the boys were up to. Forest did a great job of getting good training set up for Bode before the SL race in Croatia. They trained SG in Saalbach the day after Garmisch and then headed back to Maria Alm to train SL, GS and SG on the hard ice. Bode was able to try some new ski models and get some good training volume. The boys then decided to go to Kransjka Gora for the Europa Cup SL as a training tool and opportunity to get on the race hill since we are going there in March for a WC sl and GS. Bode tried 2 different skis for the SL race and decided to race Croatia on a ski similar to Garmisch but with the rear plate moved back slightly. The day after the Europa Cup They stayed and trained GS on the race hill. Good to train on the hill but it was very difficult early in the morning with brutal flat light.

Croatia was a short day as Bode made a mistake right before the bottom and failed to qualify for the 2nd run. He was skiing well but the mistake was enough to take him out of the game…Boo.

Back to North America and in his travels, Bode got sick again. He showed up the night before the SG after a couple of days of puking his brains out.

The morning of the race Bode got a warm up run on the new model of SG skis and felt much better. Unfortunately, the warm up hill was much different snow conditions than the race hill and his warm up did not give him good perspective for the race hill. He had made an adjustment to his boot set up in Hinterreit the following week because it was so icey. His more aggressive alignment worked better training on the ice but did not really stick out on the soft snow of the training hill in Whistler. The snow on the race hill was extremely grippy and his adjusted set up was way too aggressive.

Bode was not able to align himself over the ski comfortably as the ski constantly was pulling under him. He consequently ended up pinching the line and skiing too direct for most of the run until it caught up to him and he skied out. If you have ever had too much edge on aggressive snow it is a terrible feeling. You have to ski with your center of mass right over your feet and you often feel the sewing machine leg as it wobbles from too much grip.

The lack of result was disappointing because Bode is such a natural at this event but even more so was the over sight of having the boots set up for hard ice. Bode can not afford to make these type of errors and we all have to do a better job of staying on top of the details. Now is the time when we have to run a tight ship and control the few variables that we can.

Yesterday we trained GS on the top of the SG hill and got the boots back to where they belong for these snow conditions. Bode also tested a new and different GS model size 191 with a stiff constuction under foot and a softer tip and tail. He decided to go with his “Drake” which he has raced most of his GS’s on. Hats off to Lindsay Vonn and Julia who both had a good day in the Downhill and Lindsay wrapped up the downhill title. Right on.

GS race day and the weather is warm. Pitch is in good shape but there is a question as to how well the track will hold up. Early guys are able to put down fast times as the snow holds up but it starts to break down and in the middle of the course there is a soft layer on top which is a bit peely.

Bode ran 13th the first run and was a bit grindy through the middle but skied well on the bottom. He said the snow was just peely enough that he could not push on the ski the way he wanted. Bode was 10th after the first run and I figured it would be an interesting 2nd run because of the conditions. On the second run Bode won the top split and skied quite well through the middle but backed off and skied quite conservatively on the bottom. Most likely because a lot of guys were going out 4 gates from the finish. Bode moved up to 7th which was ok but nothing special. He showed sections of really fast skiing but was not able to put all the pieces together. I am still encouraged as he still has some physical issues from his crashes in Chamonix and he beat himself up a bit in the SG as well. All this coupled with another bout of illness has kept him from being at the very top of his game. Onward to Norway for 2 DH’s , and a SG where I am sure he can show his stuff. Think fast and stay tuned…it will be a rock fight to the end. Johno PS: pics of Gasser Rodel factory, GS in Whistler Benni, Reichelt,and Bode. Buckwheat’s self tatoos, training in Maria Alm.

After our journey and follies in France we headed back to Innsbruck for a couple of days of rest and recovery. Bode got food poisoning from some old Sushi and we were not able to train until Wednesday in Hinterreit. We had a good day on bullet proof snow training both SL and GS. Bode tested a new GS construction which he feels is still not as fast as his “Drakes” but I think could still be competetive and perhaps more forgiving.

Onward to the land of Weissworsts in Garmisch for a slalom. There was free skiing on the hill on Friday morning and the hill was very hard and well prepared. This was a nice treat after all the recent sl’s we have had with mediocre preparation. SL free skiing is an interesting event to watch as you see all the different approaches. Some guys ski controlled, others start making sl turns and end up making SG turns by the bottom and some of the best ski the hill with rhythm changes, combinations and delays all without even a gate on the hill. Bode tested two different plate mount set-ups and stuck with what worked best in France.

Race day and the hill is even a bit slicker. The course is tight and stacked with 66 turns and 11 combinations. The course holds up well through the early runners and there is only one major rhythm change going on to the last flat. Bode runs 18th. He begins a bit ragged and makes a couple of recoveries on the top pitch. Through the middle he finds his groove a bit and hustles well. Towards the bottom, he starts to rip and heads into the rhythm change with a lot of freight. Unfortunately, it did not pan out and he hooked the last gate out of the combo. Short day for Team America. Bode later told us he felt as though he needed to take the risk on the bottom even though he was aware of the rhythm change because he felt so slow and grindy on the top of the course. The truth is everyone was grinding a bit and it was not a feel good course. Bode is skiing well enough to be top 10 on any given day but he has to believe. He was pissed and I know he will be pushing hard in Zagreb. One day of SG training in Saalbach after the race then a few days of training in Austria and he will be ready. Bode finished the day off with a heavy eccentric lift and then a treatment by our friend Dr. Obwaller who has been extremely beneficial with Body and nerve work. I am heading home so I leave the reins in the capable hands of FO. I will meet them all in Whistler on the 19th. Think fast, JOhno

After the combined in Chamonix I drove to Val D’isere to scope out the sl training and the rest of the crew went up the Aigi du Midi which is this crazy tram that leaves from town and climbs 5000+ vertical feet up Mount Blanc. Incredible views of the area and a beautiful day to enjoy it.Forest, Mike, Chance, Jake and a few friends all skied down the 12 miles back to Chamonix with a guide keeping them out of crevasses. My day was not quite as eventful checking out the new course in Val D’Isere and sl training options but still important. I decided it was worth going back to Chamonix for one more night and training on the Planard where we knew the snow conditions would be better. We had a really good training session and as usual played with a few equipment variations. It was a valuable session even though Bode was still battered and bruised from his falls. Bode was also able to get a session on our eccentric machine which was positive.

Onward to Val D’Isere and the new Bellvarde course which is on the front of the mountain where the 1992 Olympic course was run. The new course is considerably different but still a few of the same sections. The weather is decent and course prep is a bit behind schedule as they are injecting the course the day before we train. On the first training day the track is quite rough and the snow a bit inconsistent….hard and grippy in some places and very soft in others. Bode cruises much of the course to feel it out and finds it extremely tiring and rough. The Olympic course had a winning time of 1:50.37 and this course is running 2:13.00. It is an unusual DH course as it goes from extremely fast sections to very slow and huge turns which are necessary to control speed on the steep pitches.

The first day was a bit extreme so the coaches got together with the jury and gave them our perspective. The consensus was that some areas could still be set faster and it would run better and still be safe. The following day they had made minor changes and it did run run with a little more flow. Day 2 training and Bode planned on running a pair of stiffer skis with Bindings mounted forward to help eliminate the flapping of the tip in the rough conditions. His run was a bit erratic and he was not able to feel what he thought the binding placement would achieve. Later we discovered that Heinz who prepares skis for Bode and Hans Olson of Sweden had mistakenly put Hans on that particular ski and Bode was on the ski from the previous day which he did not like in those conditions.

The final day of training and many racers are skipping out to save themselves for race day. Bode chooses to train and due to the weather the start is moved down to the combined start. We got the set up right this day and he was jazzed about the way it responded in the rough chop and big turns. Prior to the run we had spoken about skiing the bottom of the course hard to get a feel for it at speed because the first two training runs he stood up and cruised. Bode hammered the whole run and put the screws to the field for the last training run.

DH Race day and I awoke to the sound of snow blowers and plows. All the windows of our bus were covered with snow and it was obvious it would be major challenge to pull off the race. The downhill slope is so steep and winds in and around avalanche shoots so they have to pull all the a nets, blast the hill and then start the process of removing snow from the track. It only snowed about 8 inches up top but the wind was ripping and there were huge drifts. By 9am the jury had cancelled the race. It was a bummer because we knew it would not be pushed back a day due to sponsor $’s and television rights. The hill also suits Bode well. Hopefully we will be able to race a make up downhill in Norway.

Super-combined race day and skies are clear but there is a stiff wind. The race crews have done an amazing job of clearing the snow fall but there will still be a ton of work as the wind keeps drifting soft snow on the race line. Bode will race on the last training set up which consisted of the forward mount skies and his old race boot. Some area of the course are smoother than 2 days prior and some have added terrain with windrows from cats and other elements.

Out of the start there is a stout tail wind and Bode skis the first big left footer a bit conservative due to the added speed into the section. I am sure he could have skied it faster but it pays off as lots of guys pay because they attempt to ski it like their last training run where there was no wind. After the big lefty there is a road and then a difficult turn onto a steep pitch where speeds jack up quickly. Exiting the pitch there is a long rattley traverse on the left foot and then a huge round house 180 degree right footer. Finding the line and timing here is critical. Bode skied off the road fairly well but then got tossed a round more than he expected on a low line on the left foot traverse. He was still able to hit his entry point of the long round house and executed this well.

From this point down the course is technical and demanding. This is where Showtime stepped it up and pulled a bunch of time on the field. He skied through the rough sections on a rail and tactically gave himself the room to execute the turns well. The wind died down momentarily and he was perhaps a bit lucky there but overall is was a really solid dh run and a very good run on the bottom of the course. He had a comfortable margin of lead heading into the slalom of 1.36 seconds.

The warm up hill for the slalom had been injected a few days ago and the snow was good so Bode warmed up a few runs. Unfortunately, the slalom piste for the race was not hard snow and even though they had injected it several days earlier, all the new snow and focus on the downhill track left it looking and feeling freshly groomed. We decided to use the race set up from Chamonix as it is a bit more forgiving with variable snow. Had the hill been injected like the training hill we would have gone a different direction.

Tough snow conditions…almost chaulky and a very tight course set at 10 meters the whole way to make minimum gate number of 52. We all knew it would be a rock fight and Bode would have to ski the grooves and hustle like crazy because the course deteriorated quite a bit.

Bode skied conservatively which is something I do not see often but he also skied smart for the conditions and it was enough to win the combined and the combined crystal globe. His analogy of the run had me laughing for some time. He said it felt like a young adult just learning to drive who has one foot on the gas and one on the brake lurching around every corner. It was definitely not the way he wanted to ski the slalom.

I am glad he put down such a screamer in the downhill. I know he looks forward to skiing slalom hard and looking for speed all the time. This was not the day for it but Garmisch will be. We are off to train for a few days and test some new GS skis. I know Bode loves the process and striving for athletic excellence but winning is cool too. His excellent DH run allowed him to ski slalom without a lot of risk and bring home the Bacon. I am proud of him.

Think fast and stay tuned,
Johno