By Mary Clayton, Revelstoke Ski Club
The Revelstoke Ski Club racers were on the road again over the past week with the FIS racers in Schweitzer Basin, Idaho from Jan 8 – 13 and the U16 racers at Red Mountain from Jan 15 – 18.
Fresh from a training camp in Panorama, the FIS group hit Schweitzer ready for four days of slalom and GS races. This is a new venue for Revelstoke racers, and the skiers report the terrain and snow was very good.
The races started very strongly, with Emily Unterberger placing sixth in the first slalom. In the two GS races, Jamie Park came in fifth and fourth.
“We are in the beginning of the season and looking forward to the next two weeks of great training,” said Coach Gregor Druzina. “All the athletes had some good sections and runs they were satisfied with. We are working on bringing the skills and confidence they show in training, to race day.”
Our U16 group comprises two racers — Alexis Welch and Bergen Schmidt. Together with Coach Mike Wilken they travelled to Rossland to take part in the second of the BC Alpine Open series of races. This is a province-wide, three-event race series for U16 and older, so the field is quite deep, with FIS racers and provincial team members competing.
Despite less-than optimal racing conditions, Bergen was in the top 30 with a 23rd place finish on Saturday. Alexis placed 41st, while fighting off illness.