Turning Point III

Super-G Fall

The big run was only an hour away.  I was taking laps on Eagle inspecting my course for the next run.  The course seemed like a great set but there was one slight problem.  First of all I had the jitters and second, the weather was getting very hot and was melting the snow making it very soft and this could cause some big ruts.  This started to get into my head and I kept thinking more and more about what would happen if I were to fall.  I decided to take my mind away from my run by taking some runs on my own just free skiing; this seemed to do the trick because my mind was cleared and my confidence was back.

Only minutes before the run I am taking off my warm up pants and jacket getting ready to jump into the start gate.  I am in the pit getting the snow clicked off the bottom of my boots so my ski doesn’t eject while I am going down the hill.  All that I am thinking to myself is,”I am going to win, I am going to win.”  I was more nervous than all of my other runs which worried me but I shook it off and skied down to the start.  Ten more racers ahead of me getting ready for their chance at the win and I looked at them all deciding their fate.  Three racers ahead of me didn't finish it worried me and my coach also gave me the heads up that the snow was really soft and easy to loose edging on.  All of my observations were getting into my head and taking my mind off of what I actually was supposed to do.

I got into the gate my mind was wandering, I was thinking all of the wrong thoughts at the absolute wrong time.  “Racer Ready?” said the gate keeper, “3… 2… 1… GO!”  I pushed out of the gate as hard as I could trying to build up as much speed as possible for the first gate.  I was around 5 or 6 gates in and the snow under my ski gave and I leaned in; my butt was on the ground and I was sliding out of the course to wrap up my first loss for that race.  I was very disappointed and was hitting my poles on the ground on the side of the run.  Well you can’t win em all can ya.