Officially the last day of our preparation period is finished. I would say we had a productive summer of training both on and off the snow but the last three weeks has been frustrating due to nagging injuries and limited time on snow or in the gym to finalize preparation for Sunday.

Summer training is an area to gain perspective on one’s own skiing and that of others but you have to be careful because summer training has different snow conditions, temperatures, pressures and expectations than competition. I always find the beginning of the season exciting because there are so many question marks. You know who skied fast last year and you know who skied fast with you in the summer but this is different. There will be young, eager new faces throwing themselves down the hill with reckless abandon and old wily vets tactically maneuvering the piste. There will be old faces on new equipment manufacturers and new untested products debuting on the slopes.

Conditions are excellent for the race tomorrow and weather looks favorable. Bode was able to narrow down a few skis for the race and make a decision about a boot modification. Most importantly, he was able to train with intensity and his back held up. Bode has not had the race prep we would all prefer but this is part of the game. He has before shown that he can perform with limited prep before a race. He won Park City GS one week after knee surgery and without skiing for 11 days.

Sunday defines where he is currently. I believe his past success on this hill, his experience, raw talent and perhaps most his ability to reach deep and inspire exceptional performance will make him a favorite regardless of his setbacks in the last few weeks. Stay tuned…the heat is being turned up. Johno

This entry was posted on Saturday, October 27th, 2007 at 9:58 am and is filed under johnomcbride. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.