spring 2012 www.ussa.org What Skis Will Be Fast Next Season? Race skis for World and Europa Cup racers will tions—specifically, could these new, larger mum required. Meanwhile has be different for 2012/13. Ski racing’s governing radius skis be faster? This question, with re- been racing very successfully on a 29m ski body, the FIS, under the apparition of safety spect to radius, has been floating around when he could be legally on a 27m ski. have increased the minimum radius of GS, SG, the for some time. Back in 2007, While controversy continues to surround and DH skis. when won the overall the FIS decision to increase the radius on Although this radius change does not and GS titles, he was skiing on a GS ski that GS skis, Ted Ligety, at the World Cup finals affect Masters’ skis, it does raise several ques- actually had larger radius than the mini- in March 2012, skied the new larger-radius

that made radius an issue and eventually a arc in the snow. Tighter with less skidding strategy for racing. In 1996, using a produc- around the gates creates a shorter path with tion model K2 Four, the young Bode won seemingly less friction, and because of this, (35m) the Junior Olympic GS and SG titles. After- they are usually regarded as faster. This par- skis to the wards a third place in the U.S. SL earned tially explains why racers “like” the smaller fastest second him a berth on the U.S. Ski Team. Racers radius ski… it can run. Even though it starting following Bode’s lead and the skis’ carve a tighter arc. was only one run and he radius got smaller and smaller… until the was skiing with a perfect Continued FIS saw otherwise. course, one has to wonder, how can on page 8 these “new larger-radius” skis be so fast? Carving Radius When a ski is tipped up or edged, the tighter radius on the ski will When viewed from the top, the ski has an assist the ski racer in carving a tighter hourglass shape. The curve on each side of the ski can be thought of as part of a circle. The ra- dius of this circle is the radius of the ski. All race skis have Ted Ligety at , , a steep race hill that this hourglass sees a lot of stivoting. Photomontage by Ron LeMaster. shape and it is the amount of radius that has been the These companies support Masters Ski Racing… topic of concern. It was proba- bly an 18- year old

…and we support them. News & Info of the Alpine Masters Page 2

some things that are beyond our control: we can’t make it snow, we Racing for the Future can’t stop from buying stuff from Fuxi, and we can’t get snow- by Steve Slivinski, Masters National Chairman boarders to pull up their pants. However, there are plenty of other actions we can take to reenergize this sport we love. With the help It was a dark and stormy night. Unfortunately, we of Walt Evans, of USSA Sports Development, your national didn’t seem to have enough dark and stormy nights committee formed a working group to formulate some new initia- in some parts of the country this winter. Skiing is tives to help us move forward. The group is headed by our resident one of the only sports dependent on what some raconteur Bill McCollom, and consists of Lisa Densmore, Nadine wimpy people call bad weather. Ski racers, however, Price, Ryan Fuller, and Thunder Jalili. They will be presenting pro- are passionate about their sport—some say de- posals to Bill Skinner, Walt Evans and myself this spring. If any of mented—but we persevered under adversity, and you dedicated racers have any inspired ideas either inside or out- had some epic Masters racing this winter. The season culminated in side the box, please share them with us. In reality, the best asset we two awesome competitions with back-to-back national, and then have to promote and sell Masters racing is you, our racers. Tap into international FIS races at Park City and Mammoth Mountain, that fanatical energy you have for the sport, and share your enthu- respectively. siasm with dedicated beer leaguers, wild and crazy Nastarites, or This year’s national committee meeting at Park City was fo- just somebody who has been chewed out by the Ski Patrol for cused on the future of Masters racing, and how can we grow it. We going too fast. Have a great summer. Remember, staying in shape is all recognize that Masters ski racing, and ski racing in general, has 365-day proposition, so park that golf cart a little farther away from had a smaller and smaller portion of the public’s eye. There are the green. As always, keep your ski tips pointed downhill.

information easier. Masters Membership News We had near-record attendance at the Eastern Championship, by Bill Skinner, USSA Masters Manager Nationals and Criterium. It was decided that when Nationals are in the west, we’ll drop the Western Championship event. The East- 2012 was a challenging snow year in most regions ern Championships, which are very popular, will continue. For the of the county. Unfortunately, our overall Masters coming season reserve these dates. membership was down. We had close to 400 past years members that did not rejoin us. But fortu- Major events for 2013: nately, we picked up 259 first-time Masters—which Feb. 8–10 still resulted in a loss of 141 members. Some of the Eastern Region Championships Killington, VT SG/GS/SL new member recruits were a result of sending our Feb. 28–Mar. 3 fall newsletter and an invitation to join us to NASTAR platinum FIS Master Cup, Mammoth, CA SG/SG/SL/SL and gold medalists. Pass the word on the enjoyment and chal- lenges of Masters racing and get our membership growing again. Mar. 18–23 Our National Committee Meeting was held during our Na- Skier’s Edge National Championships, Big Sky, Montana, tionals in Park City. Walt Evans, head of USSA Sport Development DH/SG/GS/SL attended. There was a real emphasis on strategies to increase Mas- ters race attendance, which has struggled this year across most of Have a great summer! the country on the local level. A working group has been formed to address these issues and the cause. Bill McCollom, Nadine Price, Thunder Jalili, Lisa Densmore, Ryan Fuller and Steve Slivinski volunteered to lead the effort. Our National minutes can be view in the Masters section of ussa.org. Web site: I apologize for a lapse in our web site early in the winter. Access to membership renewal and information changed when USSA updated the total site. We are working to get back on the dashboard and make access to Masters

Eastern again claims the Division Cup! They may not of had much of a snow year but the 26-member Eastern team put it to the rest of the country’s racers. Leading every day, they held it together and flew home with the Cup. This year, the SC event counted toward the overall title, to the enjoyment of all. News & Info of the Alpine Masters Page 3

ANOTHER GREAT RACE YEAR!

SPRING 2012

Steve Nyman, TJ Lanning and Ted Ligety at the Center of Excellence Womens GS at Mammoth Mountain Park City Mountain Resort Edge Masters team doubled their medal established a great environment for winning from the 2011 season earning 2 Nationals this year. The open house at Gold, 4 Silver and 6 Bronze medals. the Center of Excellence was the perfect start with an exclusive tour through one The Skier’s Edge Company has been of the best training facilities in the World. the Title Sponsor for Masters racing Once again the Skier’s Edge Masters for eight consecutive seasons. Skier’s team dominated with 18 Gold, 16 Silver and 15 Bronze medals! resource when on -snow training isn’t Mammoth Mountain welcomed Masters open house at the Center of Excellence. Masters World Criterium with open arms, providing ef cient courses and but my Skier’s Edge is. I couldn’t have committed to helping racers achieve a hard working race department. The made my comeback without countless their goals. We continue to improve our weather was evidence of ‘spring- interval sessions, single leg, double leg products so you have the perfect training skiing” with a powder-day thrown into and core on my Skier’s Edge machine.” tool to reach the podium, year after year. the week. 330 racers from all over the World participated in this exciting SBSBI4DIMFQFSt64""MQJOFSki Congratulations to all who participated event. Racers from Argentina, , Team Member, 2010 Olympian, in this year’s Masters events, it truly was , Canada, the Czech Republic, 3-TJNF64National Champion an outstanding year! Finland, , , , Japan, New Zealand, , , Russia, 800.225.9669 ext.669 , Switzerland, United kingdom, Edge is proud to be involved with this and the gathered to wonderful community of ski enthusiasts www.SkiersEdge.com/669 compete in GS, SL, and SG. The Skier’s from all around the world. We are fully

To get training tips, sign up for our eNewsletter! Racing at Your Best!™ Plus, get special Master’s Discounts! Sign up at SkiersEdge.com/669 Expect Extraordinary!™ News & Info of the Alpine Masters Page 4 Return of FIS Masters World Criterium to US Soil by Bob Davis

This past Mar. 27–31, swept the women’s class 11 category; Mam- beth Booka Smith and Deb Lewis all of Far 2012, over 300 Masters moth locals Marietta Frinell and Sandy West Division; Bob Skinner, Keith Thomp- racers of all ages and Hogan of Far West who swept women’s son, Craig Norton, Beth Sarazine, Dana nationalities were Alexandrescu, John Bloomberg, Rauli Kar- thrilled to come to jalainen, Jonathan Jessup and Carl Full- California’s Mam- man all of InterMountain Division; Tim moth Mountain for Hill, Knut Olberg, and Willi Schmidt, all the FIS World Cri- of Pacific Northwest Division; Broc terium. It has been six years since the Thompson, Steve Perrins, Michael Walsh, Masters Criterium has been held in and Jennifer Kaufman, all of Rocky . U.S. entrants num- Mountain Division; Alphonse Sevigny, bered around 175, while 150 more Kathy Hurdcarrillo, Stephen Foley, Paul were from all over the globe. Coun- FIS World Champions Balthasar Meissl, Rich, and Mark George, all of Eastern Di- tries represented were: Austria, Mike Walsh and Broc Thompson. vision; Lisa Densmore of Northern Divi- France, Norway, Czech Republic, sion; Lilla Gidlow of Central Division; Sweden, Canada, Germany, Italy, Hol- and Barbara Bryant, Richard Cesatti and land, New Zealand, Switzerland, Finland, classes 10 and 9 respectively; and Pepi Rowland Lohman. Russia, Great Britain, Japan, Croatia, and Neubauer of Eastern Division who won Pierre Jeangirard and the course crews Poland. the SG in men’s class B and was also the worked very hard keeping the runs in ex- The USA proudly claimed 90 total Fastest Man of the Day. cellent shape in spite of a wide variety of medals in top-level international competi- More American medal winners in- weather conditions. tion. U.S. medal highlights included: cluded: Mike Shklovski, Ara Papazian, An- Next season, Mammoth Mountain is Duffy Dodge of Eastern Division who nette Mirviss, Ingrid Braun, Mihai Filimon, on the FIS Masters Cup calendar for Feb. swept the 85+ men’s category; Virginia Chris Adams, Marcie Pettigrew, Linda 28–Mar. 3, 2013. Reed of Inter-Mountain Division who Crowell, Jim Dugan, Gaet DeMattei, Eliza-

Molecule F National Speed Series

Keenan, Densmore, Karjalainen are the top more, this is the first time winning the sea- belt buckles were handed out to class win- speedsters in National Speed son award for the ladies. An easterner ners at the final SG at the Park City Na- Series. come west to the heartland of speed ven- tionals. With continued sponsor support, The NSS is going on eight years of gather- ues, she traveled to Schweitzer, Big Sky and the Series should continue into 2013. ing the top speed specialists for a season- Park City to amass enough to take the title long series of the best SG and DH venues for the first time. in the country. Luke Keenan wrote an article in our Overall Molecule F Trophy standings Keenan and Karjalainen have won the fall newsletter outlining the strategies and A/B – MEN (AGE 20–59) Molecule trophy in the past. For Lisa Dens- logistics choice speed venues, then fol- 1 Keenan, Luke (M01, PN) 184 lowed his own ad- 2 Don Johnson (M06, RM) 88 vice with this 3 Robert Cravens (M05, PN) 77 2011 Speed Series winners third overall title, Luke, Lisa and Rauli make waves smoking runner C – ALL WOMEN in the world of speed. up Don Johnson. 1 Lisa Densmore (W06, NO) 95 Rauli Kara- 2 Jennifer Kaufman (W03, RM) 75 jalainen amassed 3(t) Dana Alexandrescu (W03, IM) 50 the most points 3(t) Jessie McAleer (W04, EA) 50 in Group D (men over 60 years of D – MEN (AGE 60–90) age) and re- 1 Rauli Karajalainen (M09,IM) 170 turned to the 2 Wiebe Gortmaker (M09, RM) 144 leader status, fol- 3 Pepi Neubauer (M09, EA) 125 lowed by Wiebe Gortmaker. The cherished Complete season results may be found at Molecule custom http://ussamasters.org/2012/nss News & Info of the Alpine Masters Page 5 The Battle of the Sixes by Bill McCollum

We are sharing this article with SkiRacing.com, the go-to site for ski racing news.

Class 6 racers up the competitive spirit at cable side-slipping. After putting up first- the championships, Class 13 (85-plus) the 2012 Skier’s Edge Masters National run leads in the SG, Alexandrescu and Duffy Dodge from St. Johnsbury, VT, set- Championships Neubauer crushed their respective fields, ting the early pace. Another octogenarian The Skier’s Edge Masters National Cham- leaving Intermountain Class 5 Chris Easterner, Alphonse Sevigny, upped the pionships is always a big deal, but the Katzenberger and Class 7 New Yorker Bob ante, which held until Class 11 Rocky 2012 edition was even bigger. Sited at the Andree in the runner-up positions. Mountain doctor Charlie Hauser chopped hottest of hotbeds of Masters ski racing, off another six seconds. Park City, , the 2012 Champs featured March 20, A/B SC This lead didn’t last long as Anna approximately 800 starts, five deluxe par- After a cold and clear night, the snow set Droege, the elegant and ageless Class 10 ties (with all the fixings), 100 podium pre- up into hard packed powder for the A/B racer from Sun Valley, nipped him by a sentations, and an infinite number of (men 59 and younger) SC, and the open- second. Another veteran Sun Valley resi- experiences for the 250 racers who made ing SG was a bullet. “Someone setting this dent from the ranks of Class 10, Keith the trip. The event also fostered ski racing course was feeling their testosterone this Thompson, dropped another second off friendships. Some were new in the mak- morning,” said Walt Evans, the event’s Droege’s time, which held up until Mon- ing, and others, such as those in Class 6 technical director. But with the race on the tana Class 5 racer Lisa Densmore crossed (ages 50–54), have spanned decades. relatively benign Payday trail, speed was the line with a two-second advantage. Fi- Most of Class 6 started racing as Class one of the few ways to increase difficulty. nally, local Class 3 racer Dana Alexan- 1s and 2s, and they’ve been butting heads In the battle of the 6s, Dennis Wil- drescu put down a time that would ever since. Some have missed an occa- helmsen took the lead after the SG, put- emphatically remain on top of the leader sional championship due to injuries or ting down the fastest run of the morning. board, and would only be topped by Pepi family contingencies, but they were there In a display of class depth, 13 of his class- Neubauer — and even then by only a few in force at Park City this year to comprise mates were stuffed into the next three sec- tenths. not only the largest class at the event, but onds. Wilhelmsen, a wide-bodied rancher, “It was a good day for me,” said also one of the most competitive. builder and jack-of-all trades from the Alexandrescu, a software developer with “As we move up a class, we drop a few mountains of Trout Creek, Mont., admit- USSA, who came to the U.S. from Roma- and pick up a few,” said Willy Scroggins ted that mass mattered. “I might not be nia when she was 17. “Because the hill is from Mount Hood, OR. “We never get a the prettiest on the hill,” he said, “but I so flat, you have to be clean all the way. break. But that’s all right. We’ve known somehow manage to carry speed.” One mistake and you’re finished.” She each other for years and years, and the ca- Rich Slabinski, who works with a ought to know, since she trains several maraderie is unbelievable.” satellite communications company in Salt times a week on this hill under the lights Lake City, lurked in second after the SG. after work. March 19, C/D SC “Slabby” typically leaves little to chance After moving a few gates onto a On the first day of competition, Class 6 with speed events. “Wax and aerodynamics straighter line, a thorough redressing of had the day off from racing while the C/D were important,” said Slabinski, who the course, and a last-minute flurry of flu- groups (60-plus men and all women) didn’t seem particularly impaired by his oro overlays to the bases, the A/Bs were raced the SC. Racers coming to the moun- artificial knee. “I skied well with no ready. After USSA Masters manager Bill tain that morning were wary of even get- mistakes.” Skinner had taken the early lead and a win ting out of the car. More than a foot of And let’s face it: The big boys, such as in the 7s, the 6s kept lowering his time. Fi- new snow blanketed the mountain, the Wilhelmsen and Slabinski, can also light nally, it was Slabinski who put up the wind was howling, and snow squalls lim- up a slalom course. In this case Slabinski fastest time among the 6s. Willy Scroggins ited visibility to a few feet. Athletes soon nosed out Wilhelmsen by a scant 0.02 sec- still can’t bend his knee much beyond 90 discovered, however, that the races were onds to take the win, leaving Bobby Skin- degrees after breaking his femur and mul- not only happening, but there also were ner in third. “I knew it was close, but I tiple ribs last year in a car accident, but he no changes to the original timetable. couldn’t do the math in my head, so had hung on to second, with Bobby Skinner Legions of course workers slipped the to check the scoreboard,” said Slabinski, collecting his second bronze of the series. course as the snow gradually dissipated, who then pointed out that the fastest man The only racer to top Slabinski was and by start time, visibility was rapidly im- of the day, after a jaw-dropping run of Matt Savage, a Class 1 racer from Mam- proving. Class 9 ace Pepi Neubauer set the slalom, was actually Tim Hill, the Class 5 moth Mountain. Savage coaches on the pace for the men in the fast, smooth SG wiz from PNSA. weekends, but his “real” job is with North portion of the combined, while exception- Sails, where he is a materials engineer. “It’s ally fast runs from Dana Alexandrescu March 21, SG difficult to separate yourself from the field (Class 3) and Jenny Badger (Class 2) led Another cold night kept the snow fast and on this hill,” said Savage. “Usually I look the women’s field. dry, but the temperatures started climbing for places to carry speed. Here I was seek- Many racers were skeptical that the in the afternoon under a cloudless sky. A ing to generate speed.” As for the subtleties one-run SL could be run in such soft con- few more turns were added to the SG of waxing, Savage said, “I’m just a wax- ditions, but once again, the Park City race course, but it still presented plenty of your-skis kind of guy, but I’m staying with crew worked magic by providing the C’s speed and challenge. The C/Ds took to the the Swix rep, and he’s taking good care of and D’s with separate courses and impec- course first with the most senior racer of me.” Continued on page 6 News & Info of the Alpine Masters Page 6

The Battle of the Sixes (continued from pg 5)

March 22, A/B SL; C/D GS Tyler Chandler, started second-to-last of- couldn’t stand it any longer; I just had to Another cold, clear night left the rapidly- fered proof of how effective the course come down and see all the guys,” said Roy, receding snow cover hard in the morning, crews were in keeping the slalom skiable. who upended Bob Andree for the first time as the C/Ds remained on Payday for their The lanky 23-year-old Chandler, who ex- in the series. GS, and the A/Bs moved over to the lower udes the innocence of Opie Taylor, was Neubauer was particularly pleased portion of the World Cup venue, CBs. talked into coming to the races by the with his win in Class 9, as it marked his For the C/Ds, the cold night even pro- Masters racers he coaches at Sun Valley. 100th Masters victory, and his first win in duced what some of the Westerners called They even helped with the expenses. “They the series over Alexandrescu, who has a “ice,” but that did not deter the usual sus- are so helpful and supportive,” said Chan- good start on accumulating at least as pects from dominating their respective dler. As for the course? “Oh, it was rough,” many gold medals. classes. Anna Droege exploited her gliding he said. “It was a bobsled on the first pitch Bobby Skinner had the hot hand this skills to perfection in getting by best friend with holes all through the bottom. I was time around for Class 6, marking the third and rival Nancy Auseklis in Class 10. Barb just holding on — it was great fun.” different gold medalist in the four races. Settel and Nadine Price racked up wins for As for the ongoing rivalry between “There was no catching Bobby today,” said the East. Easterner-turned-Montanan Tim Hill and Toby Chapman in Classes 3 Sarkis. “He just skied too well on his home Densmore put down the third-fastest time and 5, this round went to Tim Hill by one- hill.” Slabinski made a strong second-run of the day to take control of Class 6, and tenth; the pair finished second and third bid to overtake Sarkis for the silver, but Alexandrescu looked like a 20-year-old overall. came up 0.13 seconds shy of the mark. World Cup athlete in taking the women’s Like many in his class, Sarkis has race by four seconds. March 23, A/B GS; C/D SL; Banquet skied with this group since he was in his Once again, Neubauer was the only With temperatures staying above freezing 20s and even earlier in one case. “I grew male to come out in front of Alexandrescu that night and another day of bright sun, up with Mike Falk and we used to travel with a win in the 9s, while Bob Andree the race venues were in full meltdown together as J4s around New York,” said continued his romp through the 7s with a mode for the final day. That necessitated Sarkis. “It’s fun that we’re still going at it seven-second margin of victory. moving the A/B GS from CBs to Payday, 40 years later. But I love competing at this Things weren’t going as swimmingly where the group would share space with level of competition and it only makes us over on the A/B SL venue. The eastward- the C/D SL. The salt was flying on both all better.” facing hill had turned to mush. It was a courses, and the three-ring circus atmos- A spirited banquet put the exclama- rough ride with bathtub ruts forming on phere provided great viewing for fans. tion mark on an outstanding national the steep top portion of the course, and The C/Ds certainly got the better end championship. Most were headed home holes appearing at the bottom. Wilhelm- of the deal, as the courses stayed smooth with goggle tans and stories, while those sen showed some agility in winning both throughout the day. In a few of the tighter with gas remaining in the tank were runs in Class 6. “In that first run, I felt like races, Mammoth’s Deb Lewis snuck by Na- headed to Mammoth Mountain for the In- a rag doll,” laughed Wilhelmsen. “But they dine Price to pick up her second win. East- ternational FIS Criterion. But the future did a great job. Now I have to do some se- erner Steve Foley earned his first medal of was put on hold on this night. No one was rious healing for tomorrow’s GS.” the series with a gold-medal performance, quite prepared to say goodbye to Park City, Mike Falk, a Park City local originally as did Intermountain’s John Bloomberg their friends, or the 2012 ski racing season. from New York, squeezed by another New and Victor Roy. Yorker, Greg Sarkis, to round out the Roy, a longtime standout in Masters Al and Paul’s Big Adventure podium. racing, had been watching the races online In a ritual that has spanned the past seven The fact that the eventual race winner, from his home base at Snowbasin. “I just years, four days before the start of the na- tional championships, 81-year-olds Al Se- vigny and Paul Rich packed up Rich’s aging Chrysler Pacific in New Hampshire and headed west. Just like Thelma and Louise, they were bound for Utah—only their story had a happy ending. Sevigny swept the Class 12 gold medals, while Rich collected two silvers and two bronze medals. When asked how he managed to stay so spry after all these years, Sevigny said: “You know, I didn’t start skiing until I was 50 years old. So I’m like a good car that’s been parked in the garage for a long time.” Sevigny was last seen with a group of snowboarders dancing to a grunge band in the base area village. He couldn’t have stayed too long, however, because he still had to join Rich to pack up the car for the trip to Mammoth Mountain for the Inter- national Criterion races. News & Info of the Alpine Masters Page 7 2012 Masters National DH Championships

The 2012 Masters National Downhill and it showed! The top 3 skiers start- Championships were held once again Luke Keenan, ing with your 2012 national DH at Ski Cooper in Summit county Col- Franz Fuchsberger, champion were Franz Fuchsberger orado. This year had a smaller field and Richard Briggs. (M06, RM), Luke Keenan (M01, PN), with only 43 competitors. Though this and Richard Briggs (M06, RM). They was most likely due to western region- were only separated by .12 Seconds! als, nationals, and worlds each taking I’m pretty sure Fuxi would like to give an entire week to complete. I always a shout out to Colorado waxing extra- hear a few complaints about the lack of ordinaire Bill Tomcich, (M04, RM) pitch and difficulty at Ski Cooper. who nabbed a top 10 of his own after However for what it lacks in pitch and preparing both his and Fuxi’s ex- difficulty it makes up for in insanely tremely fast skis. He had snow condi- close racing. Another bonus to racing tions and temps dialed all weekend on moderate to easy terrain is the qual- for the ski prep which is always crucial ity of the racing. No one jumps out in DH. I once heard waxing is only 3% with a 2 or 3 second win. Nobody is of the race, well in a 60 second race holding back or stepping on brake that’s 1.8 seconds! pedal. All the competitors had their Report by Luke Keenan. foot on the gas the whole way down

2012 Skier’s Edge National Championships Park City, Utah The 2013 Spyder National Masters team is 2013 Spyder Masters National Team selected from the top finisher in each age class at the 2012 national championships, based on total world cup points in the 3- event SC-SG-GS-SL combined. Women Men NOTES Class Competitor Competitor M11 (75–79): tie on 85 points between 13 David Duffy Dodge (EA, x-1-1-x) John Bloomberg (IM, 1-3-2-1) and com- 12 Virginia Reed (IM, 1-1-1-1) Alphonse Sevigny (EA, 1-1-1-1) bined winner Charlie Hauser (RM, 2-1-1- 11 Marietta Frinell (FW, 1-1-1-1) Charlie Hauser (RM, 2-1-1-3) 3). Both racers are still tied after applying the best-finish tiebreaker criteria (1-1-2-3). 10 Anna Droege (IM, 2-1-1-2) Keith Thompson (IM, 1-1-1-5) Spyder team selection goes to Charlie 9 Marcie Pettigrew (FW, 2-2-1-1) Pepi Neubauer (EA, 1-1-1-1) Hauser based on the best (lowest) race- 8 Barbara Settel (EA, 1-2-1-2) Robert Andree (EA, 1-1-1-2) points total in the 4 events (Hauser 42.63 7 Nadine Price (EA, 2-1-1-2) Bill Skinner (IM, 1-1-3-2) over Bloomberg 51.73). 6 Lisa Densmore (N, 1-1-1-1) Rick Slabinski (IM, 1-1-3-4) W10 (70–74): tie on 90 points between 5 Chris Katzenberger (IM, 1-1-1-1) Timothy Hill (PN, 1-2-1-1) Nancy Auseklis (IM, 1-2-2-1) and com- 4 Dasha Kadulova (IM, 1-1-1-1) Thunder Jalili (IM, 2-1-1-2) bined winner Anna Droege (IM, 2-1-1-2). Both racers are still tied after applying the 3 Dana Alexandrescu (IM, 1-1-1-1) Craig Norton (IM, 2-3-1-2) best-finish tiebreaker criteria (1-1-2-2). 2 Jenny Badger (IM, 1-1-1-1) James Thoman (EA, 1-2-1-1) Spyder team selection goes to Anna Droege 1 Emily Davies (IM, x-x-1-1) Matt Savage (FW, 1-1-2-2) based on the best (lowest) race points total in the 4 events (Droege 27.03 over Auseklis 42.37). Spyder team selection goes to Marcie Petti- 2-1) and Barbara Settel (EA, 1-2-1-2). Both W9 (65-69): tie on 90 points between grew based on the best (lowest) race points racers are still tied after applying the best- Sarah Lemire (IM, 1-1-2-2) and combined total in the 4 events (Pettigrew 44.89 over finish tiebreaker criteria (1-1-2-2). Spyder winner Marcie Pettigrew (FW, 2-2-1-1). Lemire 49.08). team selection goes to Barbara Settel based Both racers are still tied after applying the W8 (60–64): tie on 90 points between com- on the best (lowest) race points total in the best-finish tiebreaker criteria (1-1-2-2). bined winner Rosemary Moschel (IM, 2-1- 4 events (Settel 17.95 over Moschel 38.87). What U.S. Ski Team’s Ted Ligety, 2011 World Cup GS Skis Champion, demonstrates flexed, tensed, and equal ankle angles while winning the first GS of the 2011–2012 season in Sölden, Austria.

Continued from page 1 Will Be For example, to carve a 17m arc, the current men’s 27m ski needs 50 degrees of edge , Redirect and Stivot while the new 35m ski needs 60 degrees of Skis performing a right turn start out edge angle to make the same turn! With larger radius skis, pointing to the left. So for the first half expect to see more So it would seem to be a “no brainer”: athletic moves of the turn, the skis are actually pick the smaller radius ski, and carve a tight like Ted Ligety pointed the opposite direction they arc for a tighter turn. But let’s revisit the here in Sölden will end up going! This makes the curi- goal of ski racing—and that is not necessar- last year. ous mind wonder about coaching ily to carve arcs but to achieve the fastest clichés like “early pressure.” This is time. where the ski is edged and pressured above the fall-line in an attempt to Disadvantages of Carving make an arc-to-arc carve. If the pres- A carved turn is where the tail of the ski fol- sure is truly early, and we know that lows the tip in the same path. We have all pressure can create friction, and fric- seen that groove left in the snow by a clean- tion is slow… is this a good condition carving ski. We sigh, drool, and beg the for going fast? Sometimes we become gods to allow our tracks look like that. Ted Ligety bending both a prisoner to these platitudes and as- While a picture of beauty, this trenched-out skis. With 35m skis, Ted will sume that they are the goal. While direct more weight to the groove may not be all that fast! As it turns early pressure is a vital criterion for outside ski in order to bend out, the deeper the groove, the more snow it to get the same arc. arc-to-arc carves, is early pressure the that had to be excavated, and like the snow- key to the fastest time? plow in your driveway revving up to push Carving is only one way to initiate the heavy snow, it takes energy. And utiliz- a ski turn, and skiing arc-to-arc is defi- ing that energy slows the ski down. nitely an exciting and fun way to ski. While most of us are trying to pressure Although it may not always be the the tip of the ski, the World Cup elite have fastest. For the last half-dozen years, not only mastered this elusive skill but World Cup racers on steep sections taken it a step farther and learned to not have utilized a ski reorientation method over-pressure it. Yes, they get the tip into that consists of hucking the skis sideways to the snow—and then once a groove is estab- start the turn. The neologism “stivot” lished for the rest of the ski to follow, they cause it will be farther away from the skier’s evolved from “steer” and “pivot”; critical as- back off. Establish the groove and then let center-of-mass. Even when pressured, this pects of this innovative turn entry tech- the rest of the ski take over. With a larger ra- tip with less width on the longer, narrower nique. dius ski, this will be more challenging. The ski will not grab or want to slice into the While the extreme rotary actions of ability to pressure fore and move aft will be snow with the same aggression as the stivoting is easy to observe, the less percepti- more problematic with this reduced tip shorter, wider ski. ble “redirect” at the top of the turn is the profile…and length. There may be a silver lining to this traditional method to reorient the ski, albeit longer length. With more ski surface area rotated to a lesser degree. This slight rota- Length there will be less pressure directed in to the tional guidance of the ski prior to edge and In 2012/13 the elite women’s skis will be snow, resulting in less friction. While pressure increases the likelihood that the ski no shorter than 188cm, up from 180cm, needed to turn, the reduced pressure does will “hook-up” or hold the resultant turn. A and men’s skis add another 10cm, up from result in less energy dissipation and there- turn that is re- directed or stivoted is only last year’s 185cm. With this longer length, fore faster skis. The 1970s logic of “the fast when the ski racer has the edging skills the tip will be more difficult to pressure be- longer the ski, the better” is still valid. to minimize the friction between the ski Bottom Line There are positives and negatives to a ski controlling pressure with the inside ski. with any size radius. Don’t get World Cup envy and assume just because Ted and the gang are skiing a larger radius ski it will be good for you. Sasha Rearick, the U.S. Ski Team Men’s Head Coach summed it up well when he said, “fundamentals-wise, some things are going to be more impor- tant than others on the new skis.” If you have good edging skills, as in ability to go sideways, the larger radius may be faster for you. This is especially true if you can do this on steeper terrain and will find yourself racing on steep terrain. If you are weight- challenged, the shorter ski might be a better choice.

and the snow. The key then is not so much sired radius, willFast? put themselves into “awk- Ted Ligety in the radius or length of the tool, but how ward body positions,” which can limit their the jockey is able to interface the ski with control. This will be exacerbated by the lack the snow. of tip profile and encourage the ski racer to Stivots were not invented by astute find the radius “while leaning ,” according coaches, but by athletes that had supreme to Ted… obviously which can lead to bal- edging and pressure control skills (in spite ance and, ultimately, control issues. of the coaches scratching their heads and Since side-cut will not be available, the attempting to discourage this strange side- elite ski racer will need to rely more on the ways sliding behavior). Bottom line: prac- ski’s flex characteristics. More weight will tice sideslipping and edging-type drills need to be directed toward the outside ski (check out SkillsQuest from USSA). in an attempt to bend it into reverse cam- ber. This will reduce the foot-to-foot pres- Control sure control strategy that is prevalent with The increased sidecut may have its greatest the smaller radius skis. Pressuring the ski issue with just controlling the ski. While will become a bigger issue with the new, the longer length makes it easier to cross less-sidecut skis. One wonders if the heavier tips, Ted Ligety points out that the racer, in skier will have an advantage with these an attempt to get the ski to achieve a de- 35m skis?

Marcel Hirscher

With the new larger radius skis it will be more difficult for the inside ski to take over if the outside ski fails.

By Ron Kipp Photos: Getty Images Ron Kipp is the USSA Julia Mancuso on a soft ski. Alpine Sport Education Without as much sidecut, the new Manager. He has worked skis will need to be easier to flex to with the U.S. and achieve the desired radius of turn. Norwegian Ski Teams. News & Info of the Alpine Masters Page 10 Division News

New Masters USSA to make sure everything ran who trounced the men’s field and walked Nadine Price, chair smoothly and according to Hoyle! away with the overall in his only appear- www.nemasters.org Our mid-December season opener at ance of the season. We look forward to vis- After a really challenging au- Killington was a huge success. In our sec- iting again next year. The ever-popular tumn of recovery from the ond joint venture with ASRA, a ski racing Janeway Cup GS Race at Stratton, a venera- devastating flood unleashed organization with races in Vermont and ble tradition of many years, was hotly con- by Irene, of rebuilding homes, roads, venues a little west and south, we held two tested. A couple of Stratton coaches came bridges, base lodges and ski area parking GS races on the limited amount of snow out to do battle but overcoming a first-run lots, northern New England was finally that the mountain’s incredibly talented deficit, Ben Green vaulted from third to ready for a great winter season! And an groomers had managed to turn into a race the top spot for the overall. With his fifth early snow storm at the end of October track. And the Saturday evening party at place overall finish, fast and ageless New presaged just that. And then we waited, Mountain Meadows Lodge was a real Yorker Pepi Neubauer handily took the and waited, and waited, for more snow. crowd pleaser. Unfortunately, we lost the men’s Janeway Cup, awarded to the fastest But when it was cold, it was dry. When it following weekend’s races at Cochran’s, man and woman over 40. With her sixth warmed up, it precipitated. Fortunately the area owned and operated by the leg- place overall finish, Katie George convinc- there was enough cold for most areas to endary family of the same name, but they ingly bested the women’s field for the make enough snow to have something did still have a role in our season as we overall. With the defection to Northern of that more or less passed for a ski season, awarded quarts of their maple syrup to all last year’s women’s winner, Lisa Dens- although most would probably call it a who podiumed at the Eastern Regionals! more, there was a tough battle for the skating season. It was the winter We lost only one other race to the cruel women’s Janeway. Lori O’Brien, in a very that wasn’t. Interestingly, weather and we had full season of rac- welcome return to rac- Mother Nature has decided she ing. Attendance was up at some of our ing after a long, long wasn’t going to give up the “still more popular races and held fairly recovery from injury, winter” season and decided to steady at most of the others. The few laid down an excellent prove she has a really twisted disappointing turnouts seemed to first run, and Julia Hor- sense of humor by producing correlate directly with particularly gan, skiing exception- the biggest snow storm of the ally well all season, year here in central Vermont in had a terrific second mid April. So for those who run. But with two solid didn’t completely give up and runs, a very grateful put away the skis after the week Nadine Price managed of summer in the middle of to seize the women’s March, there is now some re- Cup. ally good skiing out there and An eleventh-hour a chance to ski some of those scheduling snafu re- Lisa Densmore trails that weren’t open all quired some serious doing that scrambling and fancy year! But I digress, it wasn’t a dominating thing. great year for powder hounds, footwork by the sched- but it was pretty good if you uling committee to like pond ice. The ice kept the move the Loon Moun- trails skiable (I use the term tain GS to Crotched loosely!) and we managed to Mountain in southern pull off most of our races. hideous weather conditions. New Hampshire. As it turned out, the We started our pre-season once again January took us to some traditional change of venue was very appropriate. with a booth at the Boston Ski Expo, made venues, one new one, and an old favorite After the loss of the beloved Harold possible in part with the help of USSA. It we haven’t visited for too long. We had to Wescott, we elected to dedicate that race as was, as it has been in each of the five years settle for two SL’s at Middlebury as the al- a memorial to him. Crotched was the site we have had a booth, very worthwhile and ways-thrilling upper pitch of the GS was of Harold’s first Master’s victory and his we are working on ways to turn it into an barely negotiable, thanks once again to all son Will, and his son, were both able to at- even bigger asset. It is still surprising how the liquid snow we endured all season tend and forerun. It was a great day and a few people, and all of them skiers, know long. Our first-ever visit to Blackwater, fitting tribute to Harold. It also marked much about us. We are on a mission to home to the strong ski program of Proctor our first coordination with a college circuit change that! Academy, turned out to be one of our which is looking for more races to do. We New to New England Masters this sea- most popular SL’s. It was followed by a re- were joined by about 20 college racers. It son were the husband and wife dynamic turn, after a long hiatus, to Sunapee, a worked out very well and we laid some duo of Kip and Lucy Blake as race admin- truly great GS hill and one of our most ground work for future collaboration. istrators. In a true trial by fire, they were popular races in years past. This season’s February’s schedule included a double thrown right into the thick of things and first Rockport Mortgage Corporation GS GS weekend at Ragged, always one of our did an absolutely awesome job of running race didn’t disappoint. The venue attracted most popular weekends. The B-fence was a our races and working with the venues and a great field, including Ben Drummond little narrow at one point due to the lack News & Info of the Alpine Masters Page 11 Division News

of snow but the finish corral was full of group of Easterns headed to Park City for smiles and more than one racer was over- Nationals. At first it looked like shades of Bob Davis racing heard expressing the desire to do it again! the New England winter with lots of SG at the Worlds. This year’s Regionals, a bit earlier than brown and even a torrential downpour the usual, were held at Killington in early Feb- night before the C/D SG. But the Eastern- ruary. The events included two SG’s, a GS, ers persevered and reclaimed the Divisions an SL and a couple of fabulous parties. Cup that they had so proudly earned last Highlights of the parties included visits by year. And with it, another whole year of two of New England Masters’ grand bragging rights!! dames, Anne Nordhoy and Wendy Hill. As always, our series is made possible Both have been fighting back from injuries and enhanced by our sponsors. Our GS se- with complications but are on the mend. ries has been generously sponsored by It was terrific to see them both and we He needed a mere 30 points more than Rockport Mortgage Corporation. We wish hope to see more of them again in the fu- Ben Green to capture the title. Adam put to thank them most sincerely. Our endur- ture. up a good fight but when the dust settled, ing gratitude goes to Artech, for its gener- Okemo Mountain hosted our Finals Ben was on top. Proving that last year’s ous and continued support. And we thank the second weekend of March. The sched- knee surgery was only a minor set back, Skier’s Edge, Booster Strap, Swix, ule included two SG’s, a SL, a GS, a ban- Ben also won the SG title, the SL title and SkiChair.com, Denby and EasyOn for their quet and a final awards party. The weather the overall men’s Sise Cup. continued support. When you have need threatened all week leading up to the races The women’s Speed Series title went or use for any of the products or services and continued to be a cause for nail biting to the faster-and-fitter-than-ever Lisa Mar- our sponsors provide, we hope you will throughout the weekend. But for once, ion in a hard-fought battle that was de- visit them first. Mother Nature cut us just enough slack to cided at Finals. Katie George, who just pull off all the races, though it did mean keeps getting faster, easily captured the SL starting an hour early on Sunday after los- title, winning all but one of the races she Alaska ing an hour to the change to daylight sav- entered in the process. In the GS Series, By Gary Randall ings, a net of two less hours of sleep after a she won every GS she started and handily www.alyeskaskiclub.org really fun banquet on Saturday night. took the GS Series. And with a perfect I know for most of the Mas- There were some bleary eyes, but no com- score of 900, she walked away with her ters around the country the plaints. Sunday turned out to be an impor- first women’s Sise Cup. ski season is just winding tant day for a couple of folks. Though The Tobin Award for outstanding con- down, but here in Alaska we still have an most of the battles were settled by Satur- tribution to Eastern Masters ski racing was over 200-inch base. So we will be skiing day, the men’s overall Rockport Mortgage awarded to Pepi Neubauer. A former Aus- through May and maybe into July. We had Corporation GS title was on the line. trian team member, Pepi has been partici- a great season for snow, but not the best Adam Weiss, skiing better than ever, had pating in Masters ski racing for many for training. Our power skills have im- been gaining momentum all season long. years. A consummate competitor, he is a proved with 4 to 5 days out of seven with strong supporter of the sport, and of New face shots. England and Eastern Masters racing in par- Alyeska Masters this year sent 10 com- ticular. He has volunteered in many capac- petitors to Nationals and a good time was ities, recruiting members and especially had by all. Park City did a great job of sponsors. He has given generously of his pulling off the races under difficult condi- time and his service has been invaluable to tions. Next year, we are hoping to send a Eastern Masters. least fifteen to Nationals and improve our The George Anderson Spirit of Mas- USSA membership by 15%. This is a goal I John Bloomberg ters Award was established four years have set, and with the help of the existing waxes poetic. ago to honor and remember George, members I think we can make the goal or one of our best-loved members. It exceed it. is awarded each year to the Our Annual Masters banquet and NEMS competitor who exem- awards is Apr. 13, with beer and wine pro- plifies the spirit of Masters ski vided by our sponsor, the Odem Corp. racing. This year, in an emo- This banquet wraps up the year with fun tional presentation, the videos of great falls and tumbles and vari- award was given to one ous awards for our members and sponsors. of George’s dearest I hope all my Masters friends and friends, Patti Lane. competitors have a fun, safe summer. After all the Hope to see some of you at the Summer racing was done in Fun Nationals! the East, a small but committed News & Info of the Alpine Masters Page 12 Division News

Beth Sarazine leaves her own pigtail in the dust. that competed in Masters Nationals and Northern Masters Worlds this year! Results from Northern Masters those events can be found on the USSA Toby Chapman, website. Results from the regular RMM sea- Chairman son can be found on our website at The 2012 race season www.rmmskiracing.org. was successful once Our Sponsor a Race Day program again, thanks to our continues to support our racing habit and neighboring divi- a big thanks to everyone that participated sions, PNSA and Intermountain. With this year including: Kevin Ward, Mark PNSA and Intermountain’s help, Northern Granger, Laura Weninger, Bruce Wienke, was able to have a full schedule of races. John Davis, The Treat Family, Lori Hamil- Thank you! ton, Jonathan Wolf, Chuck Tower, Rolf Highlights of this year’s Regionals at Funk, The “Minnesota Connection” (Char- Big Sky included Toby Chapman and Lisa lie Hauser, Bob Benson, Lila Gidlow, Win- Densmore winning their way onto the fried Raabe, Tom Patterson, Jerry Western Regional Team. Lisa and Toby Sorenson), The “Old Guys” (Bob Benson, Rocky Mountain dominated at Regionals, with Lisa winning Charlier Hauser, Lee Kaufman, Bruce Jennifer L. Kaufman, Vice President the SG and SC overall, and Toby winning Wienke), Peter Monson, Jeanette & Scott the GS and SL overall. Other notables at and Division Chair Saylor, Steve Furtner, Bruce Whitesal and www.rmmskiracing.org Regionals were Ralph Lemke getting 3rd in the Tengdin Family. We sponsored 100% class 11 SG and SL, Brad Leonard earning Despite a difficult snow year, Rocky Moun- of this season’s races thanks to this 3rd in class 11 GS, Roger Lemke 2nd in tain Division wrapped up a successful year tremendous support from our member- both class 4 GS and SG, Ken Bailey 3rd in of racing with the DJ Tengdin Memorial ship! class 6 SL, and Jack Ballard earning 3rd in Tri-Combi event on March 31. This fabu- We also thank our corporate sponsors the class 5 SG. lous day of racing was sponsored by the including: Greenlight Collaboration, FUXI Nationals highlights included Lisa Tengdin family in honor of DJ and in- Ski Racing, SKS, A Racers Edge, and Saucer Densmore winning the SG, SC, SL, and GS volves three race runs (Fast GS, GS and SL) Wax. We could not do this without your in class 6, Dennis Wilhelmsen winning the as well as costumes, contests, prizes, food generous support and prize donations. class 6 SL, and Toby Chapman winning and a lot of fun. Congratulations to all our As many of you know, we will be the class 3 SC and SL. Additionally, Lisa winners, particularly Franz Fuchsberger going through a board transition now that Densmore finished 3rd overall in the and Lauren MacMath for outstanding per- the season is over. Graham Smith will be ladies’ SC, 2nd in the SG, 3rd overall in formance in the overall men’s and taking over as President and Wiebe Gort- the GS, and made the U.S. Masters Spyder women’s fields and to everyone that maker is joining the board as VP. We antic- Team. Dennis Wilhelmsen finished 3rd worked hard to make the day very special. ipate additional communication regarding overall in the SC and Toby Chapman fin- We expect this tradition to continue into the new board composition once Graham ished 3rd overall in the SL. the future so if you missed it this year, has had a chance to get in the saddle! Hopefully, Northern can have even a make plans to check it out next season! Thank you to everyone for a great sea- bigger contingent of racers next years at Check out pics from the event. son and we look forward to seeing you on Nationals! We also congratulate all of our racers the slopes next year! Gate training opportunities for North- ern racers are available around the division Summer fun at the Summer Fun Nationals. with Lookout Pass, Big Sky, and Red Lodge all having masters programs. Contact Toby Chapman for details: 406-370-8052. Look forward to seeing you all next season or at Summer Nationals.

Far West By Mark Mirviss www.FarWestMasters.org Far West racers were challenged by weather, as were all of the other divisions this season. We did manage to host a very well-attended FIS Masters Criterium at Mammoth. This event featured racers from 31 countries including Japan, and most of Europe. While there were some weather challenges, everyone enjoyed the cama- raderie and had a good time. News & Info of the Alpine Masters Page 13 Division News

Far West also did very well at the Na- great volunteers who help make our pro- against their kids who forerun the masters tionals, hosted by Park City. We finished gram the best in the nation. course. second overall among all of the divisions SEASON-LONG CHAMPIONS BY CLASS represented. As I write this article, we are Ladies less than a week away from concluding our PNSA Class 12 Janet Vincent season with a season finale series consist- By Ann Ozuna Class 10 Carolyn Phillips ing of a DH, two SG’s, a GS, an SL, and our www.PNSAmasters.org Class 9 Ann Ozuna final race of the year, a fundraising dual SL PNSA Masters wrapped up Class 8 Jeannie Hummel for our scholarship fund. another race-filled season Class 7 Sonook Morrison We would also like to invite all of our under the sun at the PNSA Class 6 Linda Shallow and other divisional rivals and friends to com- Championships in Bend, Oregon over Lauri Reutimann pete next year in an FIS Masters Race, ten- Easter weekend with SG, GS and SL races Class 5 Sarah Peshkin tatively scheduled Feb. 28–Mar. 3. hosted by the Mt. Bachelor Ski Education Class 4 Jennifer Aspass Have a great summer, and see you in Foundation. This year we offered 14 race Class 3 Lori Frucci the fall. weekends at locations ranging from almost Class 2 Melissa Dettmer California (Willamette Pass, Oregon) to Class 1 Katherine Haese the Seattle area’s Snoqualmie and Stevens Intermountain Passes, all the way east to Lookout Pass on Men Masters—It’s a wrap! the Idaho/Montana Border. We were Class 13 Kristian Berg By Amy Lanzel, chair snowed out of the SG races at Stevens Pass Class 12 Odd Vaarvik www.intermountain- and the GS/SL races of the Schweitzer se- Class 11 Willi Schmidt masters.org ries as the Pacific Northwest got more Class 10 Rich Robertson Wow, what a year for snow than the rest of the country—usually Class 9 Knut Olberg Intermountain Mas- on a race day. Can you visualize a cat stuck Class 8 Larry Konstacky ters. One of our best in 32 inches of new powder in the middle Class 7 Brad Scott ever actually. Even though the weather did of a run which ran an SG the previous Class 6 Dave Kornish not cooperate as much as we would have day? Needless to say, the racers got some Class 5 Tim Aid liked, it was still a fabulous year for the of the best powder skiing of the year in- Class 4 David Schreitmueller folks in this division. The race schedule in- stead of racing! Class 3 Tad Dobson cluded a great variety of races and at some This year’s “Road Warrior” award goes Class 2 Tad Zavadski and Matt Torrie of our favorite resorts—and all within 6 to Larry Konstacky of Seattle, who, along Class 1 Luke Keenan hours of the home base, Park City. We had with his non-racing wife, made every race some real standout racers in our group single weekend. Former winner Brad Scott The 2011/2012 season brought a change in who pushed the envelope and captured tried to give him a run for the title, but how PNSA Masters register for and pay for not only national titles but also FIS World missed an event when his daughter got ski racing, as PNSA joined other divisions Criterium medals. This is an excellent trib- married. using www.skiracereg.com. We finally have ute to the hard work and dedication of the The Division welcomed a number of just about everyone registered in the sys- coaches at our various training programs new racers this year, who came out to tem so they can sign up for races in ad- in Park City, Snowbasin and Sun Valley. try racing vance and pay by credit card without any This summer we encourage everyone when the extra processing fees for the racer or the or- to get out and move as much as possible. race series ganizer. Racers can even see in advance Like Bode Miller said “races are won de- came to their who else is attending. Good news is that pending on what you do in the off sea- home areas. we won’t have to sign up again next year; son.” The Intermountain Masters folks are We look for- just sign in and pick races to attend when fortunate to live in a beautiful place that ward to seeing the schedule is posted for next year. makes getting in shape and staying there them on the easy to do. I’d like to quote Jake Milenhall course in com- who did some great research on the aging ing years. Sev- athlete. “People who are fit at age 40 and eral areas have continue to exercise show a lesser decrease programs where in many of the physiological functions re- the parents of lated to fitness than do those who seldom Junior and Mitey exercise. A trained 60-year-old, for exam- Mite racers are ple, may have the same level of CR fitness encouraged to as a sedentary 20-year-old. In short, regu- join local train- lar exercise can help add life to your years ing and race and years to your life.” So enjoy the summer and stay active. We have another wonderful ski season just around the corner. Special thanks to all the Chris Maxwell (PN) smokes the field in Western region SG. News & Info of the Alpine Masters Page 14 Division News

Central which recognize different levels of abili- completely new Temps gained this year). Ryan Fuller, chair ties, regardless of age or gender. We also We will continue to use Facebook and www.midwestmas- continue to award our racers based on tra- more boots-on-the-ground marketing by ters.org ditional age classes. placing posters and flyers in shops and at What a season! We’ve We are also in our 3rd season using the local ski hills, and working hard to re- had many challenges SkiRaceReg and are very happy with the cruit locals near the ski areas we hold this year, with both system. We have com- events. the weather and a loss pleted many other efforts We are putting efforts of a surprisingly large percentage of our related to organizing the into growing our division, members due to injury. Despite these chal- “back office” over the last via recruitment, local expo- lenges, Midwest Masters has ended the few years, and look for- sure, college racers, and so- year meeting our financial goals, and only ward to focusing on our cial networking. Facebook is had to modify one event due to weather Mmembers even more in a very low-cost method for difficulties. the future. Katy Martin, marketing and we plan to Unlike many divisions, Central takes our program director for use it to the greatest degree on much of the responsibility for not only 2012, played an important we can next season including marketing for our races and managing di- part in taking on the on- more video and photo posts. visional membership, but also running the site Race Registration du- We would also like to target events. Central owns its own equipment ties and we happy that she local woman racers, NASTAR and trailer, has a dedicated race director intends to continue work- members, parents of local J1 ing with us again next sea- USSA racers and USSA and race crew, and provides its own offi- Ryan and Mitch cials and jury members at all events. All we son. coaches to remind them ask of the venue is a start and finish timer We are losing partici- about Midwest Masters and and the use of the timing system. Our re- pants at a far greater rate that we are gain- the great racing we provide. sults system is independent of the timing ing them; most notably, we lost 32 full Our preliminary plan is to go back to system used by the hill. members year-over-year (41 were lost but the basics and hold fewer, but larger, We are now in our 5th season using only 9 were offset with new members). Al- events. We also intend to hold the first our own divisional points system, which though membership is down, utilization is USSA-sanctioned “City Event” as a dual GS mimics FIS point calculations, complete not down to the same degree—we only race elimination-style race complete with with race points and penalties. We gener- lost 4% in starts versus a loss of 14% in cattle gates. This race would be scored ate updated seed lists weekly after each members; this helps to explain why our fi- both within the NASTAR system and event. It is working quite well and is the nancial position has remained stable. within USSA Masters. What will really basis for our ability class awards each year, Although we haven’t closed our finan- make these events “bigger” is that we in- cial books yet, we fully expect to see the tend to focus more on our members dur- average cost per ing these events with more awards, more race for our recognition for great performances, and . , members to stay more recognition of new members. COMPLETED CAREERS the same or drop We plan to continue to expand on the from the approx- social aspect to our races. This year, we or- imate $15 mark ganized two different post-race events in 2011 due to which were received well. We intend to ex- finding other ef- pand this to most all events next year. ficiencies to Thank you to all of our loyal mem- make up for lost bers for another successful season! We revenue. hope that you are finding that Midwest Our contact Masters is improving every year. We would list has grown, also like to thank our outgoing Board and our outreach Members: Ken McAdam, Marty Fox, Pat and marketing Hiller, and Casey Weiss for their invaluable efforts have been service. We’d also like to thank our outgo- Gene Timmons Harold Westcott relatively success- ing Race Director, Mike Auge, for his excel- Gene gave it all to Masters A longtime Masters legend, ful as we have lent service over the past several seasons. racing, including a stint as Harold passed away doing seen many more Keep your eyes out for the Midwest Mas- Masters national chairman what he loved most, while new faces this ters Fast Times Newsletter over the sum- and multiple-time Nationals competing in DH at Ski year than in past mer for lots of updates on our plans for champion. Cooper, Colorado. seasons (as wit- next season. It won’t be long before we see nessed by the 26 you on the hill once again!

We miss you guys. News & Info of the Alpine Masters Page 15 24th Masters Summer Fun Nationals July 20–22, 2012 • www.SummerFunNationals.com

fun with the Fastest Family Award and time and place to be to get the scoop on Junior classes. Family members must also next season’s gear as well as try it out at hold current USSA licenses (2013). the Summer Fun Nationals. Halfway be- Masters Summer Fun Nationals is tween last season and next, it is the per- right in the middle of ski race Mecca. Mt fect time to remind those old muscles Join The Fun! This is year #24 at the annual Hood is action central for the ski industry what to do on skis. Sign up for a few days Summer Fun Nationals at Mt Hood, Ore- during the summer. Race camps and ski of race camp (www.skiracing.com) prior gon. In addition to Masters classes, we in- reps with all next season’s gear gather to the race then race on the weekend. vite racers to bring your family to join the here from all over the world. This is THE Summer Heaven for a ski racer!

This year, we dedicate the races to 20-year Summer Fun Nationals veteran Jim Estes (1931–2012).

Friday, July 20 Racer welcome • Check-in Saturday, July 21 • BBQ • Awards Sunday, July 22 Register Here! Slalom • Daily & special awards

2012 USSA Masters Summer Fun Nationals • Timberline/Palmer Glacier, Oregon • July 20–22, 2012 DNS refund requests must be in writing. Name USSA # Address City, State, Zip Phone: Day ( ) Evening E-mail Birth Date / / Class: Sex: ■ Men ■ Women

Events Cost Enclosed T-shirt Size:

Full Weekend: GS, SL, BBQ $129 ______■ XS ■ S ■ M For More Info www.SummerFunNationals.com Sat only/GS, BBQ $89 ______■ L ■ XL [email protected] (541) 490-5888 Sun only/SL $59 ______Entries/check payable to: Late Fee if received after 7/14 $20 ______Masters Summer Fun Race Guest BBQ $35 ______3624 Lois Dr., Hood River, OR 97031 TOTAL PAID $ ______P.O. Box 100 Non profit Park City Utah U.S. Postage 84060 PAID 4753

Franz Fuchsberger, 2012 national DH champion

The VISION of the USSA Alpine The MISSION of the USSA Alpine Masters is to make this vision a reality by dev eloping, Masters is to provide adult skiers with a promoting, organizing and coordinating the highest level of alpine ski racing throughout lifelong opportunity to enjoy the chal- snow country in the United States and internationally, and to fulfill our passion for and love lenges and rewards of alpine ski racing. of nature, the outdoors, mountains, freedom, self-challenge and accomplishment.

USSA Masters Contacts ......

National Masters Chairman Eastern/New England: Nadine Price Rocky Mountain: Graham Smith Steve Slivinski tel: 802.746.8850 tel: 719.510.0747 tel: 208.726.3442 email: [email protected] email: [email protected] email: [email protected] Eastern/New York: Jack Eisenschmid USSA Masters Manager tel: 585.288.4554 2013 Major Events Bill Skinner email: [email protected] Skier’s Edge Masters Nationals P.O. Box 100 Eastern/Southern: Horst Locher Big Sky, MT, Mar. 18–23 Park City, UT 84060 tel: 540.856.2121 tel: 435.647.2633 DH/SG/GS/SL fax: 540.856.8567 fax: 435.649.3613 email: [email protected] email: [email protected] Eastern Region Championships Killington, VT, Feb. 8–10 Far West: Mark Mirviss SC/SG/GS/SL DIVISION CHAIRPERSONS tel: 530.583.6971 email: [email protected] Alaska: Gary Randall FIS Masters Cup tel: 907.243.4259 Intermountain: Amy Lanzel Mammoth, CA, Feb. 28–Mar. 3 email: [email protected] tel: 435.649.5751 SG/SG/SL/SL email: [email protected] Central: Ryan Fuller tel: 612.501.3268 Northern: Toby Chapman email: [email protected] tel: 406.541.0866 email: [email protected] Eastern: Bill McCollom tel: 802.234.9561 Pacific Northwest: Ann Ozuna email: [email protected] tel: 509.455.7944 email: [email protected]