TOP FIVE FRIDAYS: OCTOBER 14, 2022
Lead Image: Last week, the Freeride World Tour released the official calendar and event details for their 2023 season. We’ll tell you all about it below! Image: Freeride World Tour on Facebook
#1: Mikaela Shiffrin Has High Hopes for the Season Ahead, Including More Speed Events:
As the start of the 2022-2023 FIS season draws near, Mikaela Shiffrin has started making the media rounds. As such, we’ve learned more about her hopes and dreams for the year ahead, amongst which is the desire to compete in more speed races. Image: Mikaela Shiffrin on Facebook
Hello, and welcome to Top Five Fridays, the October 14, 2022 edition! As we creep ever closer to the start of another ski season, we figured we’d start the week off in much the same way that we do every week in the middle of winter: with ski racing news! This week, Mikaela Shiffrin made the media rounds ahead of the season, giving us a glimpse into her mindset in regards to her approach for the upcoming FIS World Cup circuit. As you’ll recall, last year had its ups and downs for Mikaela, as a disappointing Olympic showing gave way to considerable success on the FIS circuit, where she secured her fourth World Cup crystal globe, given to the overall winner. Along with that first place finish, Mikaela also earned the silver medal in the final slalom standings, bronze in super-G, and just missed the podium with a fourth place finish in the giant slalom. In addition to last year’s results, the other figure to keep in mind as we enter this season is the number of wins that separate Mikaela Shiffrin, Lindsey Vonn, and Ingemar Stenmark in the record books. Entering this season, Mikaela has 74 World Cup victories to her name, while Lindsey Vonn leads all women with 82 wins and Ingemar Stenmark holds the highmark with 86 all time wins. Last year, Shiffrin took home 7 first place finishes in what could be considered her first year back to full form after a traumatic two years in which the loss of her father, grandmother, and Covid combined to limit her participation in racing. In the 2018-2019 season, her last full season prior to the series of tragic events, Shiffrin claimed a ridiculous 20 first place finishes. At the start of the 2019-2020 season, prior to her father’s passing, Shiffrin kept a similar pace. Keeping that in mind, the questions that everyone is asking is, “will Shiffrin be able to dominate the competition as she did in 2018-2019, ultimately becoming the winningest ski racer of all time?”
While the verdict is out in regards to that question, we can confirm via Mikaela’s own words that she appears to be back in full competitive form. In an article released by the Associated Press (AP) this week, we learned that Mikaela has been training hard for a season in which she may compete in more races than ever before. In a call with the AP this week, Shiffrin is quoted as saying, “I’m probably not going to do all of them. But I would like to focus a bit more on some of the super-G races and, for sure, all the slaloms and the GS.” In their article, the AP does us the courtesy of running the numbers, informing us that in the year ahead there are 11 slalom races, 10 giant slaloms, and 9 super-G races on the calendar, for a total of 30 events. Additionally, Shiffrin hopes to fit in a few downhill races as well, saying, “we pick and choose which downhill is possible,” suggesting that if a downhill race fits into her training and race schedule, she’s interested in competing. In previous seasons, Shiffrin has never competed in more than 26 races, meaning that if all goes to plan, she would only need to compete in a combined 5 super-G and downhill races to match her career high, or 6 to surpass it.
Now of course there is that proverb, “the best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry,” which suggests that oftentimes things don’t go according to plan. In this case, it might be easy to assume that once the season kicks off, the schedule might cause Mikaela to reconsider and focus solely on her specialties: the slalom and giant slalom, limiting the number of races she participates in. But here’s the thing, reading between the lines of Mikaela’s quotes, we can sense a slight shift in her mentality. Yes, Mikeala appears to be as competitive as ever, but she also seems to have a new found appreciation for finding the joy in the sport and taking it less seriously. In the AP article, Shiffrin says in regards to her struggles at the Olympics, “I think in any universe, in a parallel realm, if I were to be able to go back, it would probably happen that way again. It’s just something that needed to happen in my career.” Keeping in mind that Shiffrin struggled in her specialties at the Olympics and that her best result was a 5th place finish in the downhill leg of the alpine combined event, it seems to suggest that Shiffrin did her best when she didn’t feel the pressure to perform and was simply having fun. Through that lens, we take this quote to mean that Mikaela feels as though she needed that Olympic experience to shift her perspective, leading her to focus more on having fun and less on living up to expectations. That idea, combined with another quote from this week’s article in which Shiffrin said it, “brings me a lot of joy to ski super-G,” leads us to believe that it’s important for her to compete in these super-G races as she’s come to a place mentally where having fun with skiing matters to her just as much as her results do. All told, this week’s article leaves us feeling excited for the season ahead as it feels as though Shiffrin is on the verge of a return to greatness. To learn more about Shiffrin’s perspectives ahead of the season, you can read the article in full, right here.
#2: Freeride World Tour Announces Official 2023 Calendar and Event Details:
In other competitive news this week, the official 2023 Freeride World Tour (FWT) schedule and event details have been announced! Well, technically this information was released at the end of last week, but considering the fact that we shared all of the U.S. FIS World Cup events in our last Top 5 Friday, we figured we’d delay this news a week so as to not overwhelm you with event dates and details. That said, let’s take a look at what the season ahead holds for the FWT athletes.
As it turns out, this season’s schedule looks a whole lot like last year’s, which, if you’ve been paying attention to the Freeride World Tour in recent years, might not be such a bad thing. Last year and amidst the pandemic year, the FWT toyed with a number of changes, some forced by Covid regulations, and others just for the sake of experimenting. Last year, it felt like the Tour found a good balance as they introduced a two run format at Fieberbrunn, a two stop final, and bonus points for first place in the two finals events. As it turns out, Tour organizers must be in agreeance with us as this year’s schedule and event formats are almost identical to last year, with the exception of moving Kicking Horse, British Columbia from the third stop on the Tour to the first, allowing athletes to stay in Europe for the final four events on the calendar. Other than that, the calendar and formats are identical. On that note, here’s a roll call of the dates and locations for this year’s schedule.
To kick things off, athletes will convene in British Columbia at Kicking Horse during the week of January 13-18th as they await the weather window for their first event. From there, the roster will quickly travel to Baqueira Beret, Spain for an event sometime between January 28th - February 2nd. Last year was the first year the event went to Baqueira Beret, and the venue didn’t disappoint as rookie athletes unleashed a number of tricks on the face’s undulating terrain. From there, athletes will head to the equally playful Ordino Arcalís, Andorra on February 4th - 9th for the final stop of qualifiers. Then, after about a month off, those who make the cut will head to Fieberbrunn, Austria on March 11th - 17th for the first of two finals stops, where the reduced field will give athletes the chance to take two runs down the mountain as they look to take home first place and the 12,500 points that go with it. Finally, the Tour concludes as it always does at the Bec des Rosses in Verbier, Switzerland, arguably the most extreme venue on the calendar. Here, athletes will have one last chance to earn points before winners from each category are crowned.
If you haven’t paid attention to the Freeride World Tour in the past, we highly recommend checking it out. It’s a highly entertaining event where athletes combine technical skill, creative vision, and their unique skill sets to compete for the most impressive run down incredible mountain faces. The result is an event that combines everything from high risk freestyle tricks on big mountain terrain, to massive cliff drops, high speed chutes, and of course, heart stopping crashes. To us, the Freeride World Tour highlights competitive skiing in its rawest form as it ultimately comes down to how each athlete sees the mountain and the risks they’re willing to take to win the day. To learn more about this year’s Tour, check out the update from their website.
#3: Park City Lift Mechanics Follow Ski Patrol’s Lead in Effort to Unionize:
In this photo from 2018, lift mechanics at Park City make necessary adjustments ahead of the season. Fast forward four years, and now those in this line of work are looking to unionize. Image: Park City Resort on Facebook
Moving on from competitive news this week, we bring you a highlight that caught our attention coming out of Park City this week. As you might know, Park City Mountain Resort found themselves in a pretty tense situation with their ski patrollers last year as a disagreement regarding compensation resulted in public protests by the unionized patrollers, and the looming threat of a strike. When all was said and done, the Park City Ski Patrol managed to more or less win the negotiation, with Vail Resorts agreeing to increase their starting wages. Interestingly enough, along with the main plotline of that story, was a subplot in which many believed Vail Resorts wasn’t resisting wage increases because they didn’t think the ski patrollers deserved it, but rather because they were hesitant to give into the union’s demands due to the precedent it would set for both other employees at the company, as well as ski patrollers at other resorts. In other words, if Vail met the ski patrol union’s demands, it could lead to ski patrollers and other groups of employees, both at Park City and other Vail resorts, to unionize in an effort to increase their wages too. Enter: this week’s news.
This week, we learned from KPCW that Park City’s lift mechanics and electricians are looking to unionize. If successful, their union would organize as the Park City Lift Maintenance Professional Union, under the United Professional Ski Patrols of America, which is a branch of the Communication Workers of America (CWA). In other words, Vail Resort’s fears are becoming a reality as Park City’s lift mechanics are very much following ski patrol’s lead, citing a number of similar reasons. In a press release on Tuesday, the mechanics team cited low wages that are inappropriate for the nature of their work and don’t meet the cost of living, dangerous work conditions, and understaffing which results in high turnover and a lack of experienced leadership. In their argument for higher wages, the Park City lift mechanics also cited their importance to the success of the mountain, much like the ski patrol union did. At present, the lift mechanics have submitted a petition to hold a representation election to the National Labor Relations Board, a petition in which 80% of local workers signed. With such strong support, approval for that election is likely, and a vote to unionize could occur in 4-6 weeks, just as lifts begin turning. Once unionized, the lift mechanics would have stronger bargaining power, although it remains to be seen what tangible outcomes will result from the effort. For now, you can learn more about this story by checking in with KPCW.
#4: Colorado’s Camp Hale, Where the First Seeds for Skiing in North America Were Sown, is Officially a National Monument:
Before there was skiing in North America, there was the 10th Mountain Division, stationed at Camp Hale in Colorado. After playing a pivotal role in WWII, soldiers from this division returned to the U.S. and created many of the nation’s original ski resorts. Earlier this week, Joe Biden made it his first National Monument of his presidency. Image: The Whitehouse on Facebook
Finally, we end this week with a story that, while political in nature, is one that we suspect all skiers will agree is a positive development. As we know, for many of us, skiing is a borderline religious experience. It’s where we find our flow state, where we connect with the natural world, and where the stressors of daily life inevitably fade away. If you’ll allow us the leeway to draw comparisons between skiing and religion, then allow us to also suggest that like every religion, skiing has its holy sites, where significant events have occurred that have resulted in the development of our “religion”. For skiers in the United States, this train of thought would make Camp Hale, Colorado one of the holiest of holy sites in North America.
In 1942, 15,000 U.S Troops were sent to Camp Hale, Colorado as part of the 10th Mountain Division. Setting up camp at an elevation of 9,200’, soldiers in this unit were tasked with learning the skills required for high elevation, mountainous combat. In addition to cold weather survival skills, a key element of their training was to become proficient skiers, enabling them to efficiently navigate mountainous terrain. This training would come to pay off in a huge way as the 10th Mountain Division was ultimately sent to the Italian Alps in early 1945 where they spent five months engaged in combat, taking over a high altitude German base and disrupting supply lines for Axis forces. In successfully doing so, the 10th Mountain Division played a crucial role in ushering in the conclusion of WWII. Upon conclusion of the war, the 10th Mountain Division was demobilized and its soldiers became civilians once again.
For skiers, this is where the story gets even more interesting. Upon returning from the war, numerous 10th Mountain Division soldiers parlayed their exposure to European ski culture as well as their own experiences on skis into successful endeavors here in the United States. Resorts like Vail, Aspen, Arapahoe Basin, Sugarbush, Whiteface, and 59 other ski resorts can all cite members of the 10th Mountain Division amongst their founders or original management teams. In addition to developing ski resorts, members of the division also played crucial roles in the growth of the National Ski Patrol, in creating ski schools, distributing ski equipment, creating backcountry hut systems, establishing environmental stewardship practices, and much more. In other words, after the war, former members of the 10th Mountain Division became the driving force behind the creation of what we now consider ski culture in the United States. Their impact truly cannot be understated.
All of this background is meant to bring context to this week’s headline: President Biden has just announced the creation of the Camp Hale-Continental Divide National Monument, forever preserving 53,804 acres of mountainous terrain, much of which makes up a crucial part of skiing’s history in America. Amongst the many comments Biden made in a speech at Camp Hale on Wednesday, he referred to the area, as, “‘treasured lands’ that ‘tell the story of America.’” Noting the importance of this land in shaping some of the men who would go on to play key roles in shaping modern ski culture in America, we would have to agree that Camp Hale does indeed, “tell the story of America.”
Of course, we do want to acknowledge the fact that this designation isn’t just significant for skiers. In addition to this land’s significance to us, it’s also highly significant to the Ute tribe, who cared for the land long before the 10th Mountain Division arrived there. For them, the region holds special meaning as it’s where their ancestors lived “since the beginning of time.” It’s also where they would gather every spring as the snow melted to hunt and gather as winter turned to summer. All told, regardless of who you are, this week’s announcement is big news as it secures a special place in America in perpetuity. To learn more about this, check out the report from Summit Daily.