Cookie's Corner: Opening the mail before the season starts

Cookie’s Corner: Opening the mail before the season startsI would like to thank everyone who has been sending in his or her questions and comments. I really enjoy reading your e-mails, and find the challenge of answering them fun. So this week, since there is nothing exciting happening right now in the skiing world, I’ll focus on answering as many of the questions that I can. Just for your reference, I will try to answer the questions that pertain more to the early season, and I will keep all the e-mails. So if yours does not get answered this week, I will try to answer it some other time. Guess you will keep having to read each article!

Question:
The first question is from Gard Skinner: You’re skiing with a lot of hot new racers, great turns, kind of the first generation that is almost 100 percent the product of the evolution in equipment, but; What movements, technique, etc. can you steal/borrow from the older, very successful racers you’ll watch on the World Cup? They’ve done well on two, if not more, generations of design. What has worked and might or might not work for you?

Answer:
The generation that grew up 100 percent on the new style of equipment is still about five or six years behind me so I am not quite the full product of that evolution. I started to ski on the parabolic skis as a J3, which is an age that you are still able to adapt to almost all changes, compared to my older teammates that were racing World Cups on the old skis.

Of course, given the success that they have had, the opportunities to learn from them are endless. They have the experience that is vital to being successful, as well as the knowledge to harness that experience into a plan that can work for them. Right now for me, that is the one thing I try to get from them. As far as technique, there probably is less that I can learn than you think. Because they have had to adjust between two or more different kinds of skis, our way of skiing is totally different. They have certain things that work for them, I have things that work for me, and we both always have things to work on: Nobody is perfect. Even though France’s Carole Montillet may be the fastest downhiller in the world, that doesn’t mean that I have to ski exactly like her, nor would I want to. Because I am much smaller then her means that I have to be more technically sound. I do not have the weight to carry me across the flat, but she does not have the technique to make speed on the steeps.

The thing that I do learn from her when I watch her video (and I do a lot) is the tactical things like the line she takes, or the aerodynamics she holds. That is where she is really good at being the fastest. Same with watching my older teammates; I try to watch how they inspect the course and how they react to terrain, and hard turns. These skills that they have are second nature because of their experience. And is the difference in winning a World Cup and getting top 30 in one.

Question:
The next question comes from a former teammate, and a very good friend of mine. Elysse wrote: I was talking to my coach and he and I were wondering how you focus optimally on race day? What are your main focuses apart from inspection and how do prepare prior to an important race?

Answer:
This is a very hard question for me because honestly I do not know the answer. Training your brain takes a lot of time, and is not that easy. We actually just had a sport physiology meeting the other day that was based on the importance of having a race plan that works for you individually. This may not be that great of an area to take my advise, because I am sure that any sport physiologist reading this would also try to delete it as soon as possible, but I will answer the question the way that I feel… I hate the idea of having a single race plan, or a single type of focus. To me, it feels that having that type of restriction on myself is setting me up for disaster. Everybody knows that skiing is not a sport of regularities; different snow, different hills nothing is ever the same. Sure, you always ski on snow, and you always turn around red and blue gates. But other than that, things change. If your race plan never changes, then you are never really prepared. I like to go with the flow of things, and not restrict myself to doing the same thing for every race. For example, some athletes have to have two free-ski runs before their race, but what if the chair breaks down and you only get one? Then you’ve totally psyched yourself out before the race because you broke from the pattern. If I feel like taking a free run I will; if I am not able to, oh well.

Even with my plan being so free though, there are still things that a racer should never focus on before a race, like results, and I am still training my brain in that area, and probably always will be.

How I prepare for important races? Well, I’ll not even share that info because it is obviously not the correct way since I have seemed to choke in a lot of high-level races I have entered. I still need some help there.

Question(s):
I believe I have saved the best question for last. This is the kind of e-mail I have been waiting to get. I will include the whole thing because it I hope everyone will enjoy reading it as much as I did. Here it goes… It’s hard to narrow it down to ask just one question to someone as knowledgeable and experienced in skiing as you. I wanted to let you know that, in regards to last week’s question that I am definitely the more dedicated skier, with almost no natural talent. I have been working on it, and I have gone from almost last in at my local hill with recreational racers to top five in region races, and I know that’s not saying much, because my friends are all the ones beating me and moving on to sponsorship, bigger hills, and better skiers. My name is Isaac Smith, from Marquette Mountain in Marquette, Michigan (tiny, 600ft vertical). I am a first year J3 this season, and at last season at JO’s I didn’t ski nearly as well as I could have and my best result was 35th in slalom. I know I could have done better, which brings me to my question(s). I know it’s very unfair, and you don’t to answer them all but I just wanted to see if you might be able to answer one or two really quickly.

1) How did you deal with the financial strain of ski racing on your family as a junior? I’m not from a “typical” ski racing family, (my parents aren’t doctors or anything and I am the only skier in my immediate family) and it’s hard for them, I am hoping to get sponsored this year, but it’s very unlikely…2) I ski much better in training than I do in races, although I know it’s almost completely the opposite for you, I was wondering how I might possibly deal with that and maybe switch it around….3) How good were you as a junior? Is it even possible for someone like me to get better, or is it always the one who wins JO’s and Whistler, and goes to Topolino, etc.?

Thank you so much for your time,
Isaac Smith

Answer(s)
The financial strain of skiing is very large, and very hard to get around, but there are ways. It is important to know though, that you have to work to find these ways; most of the time, they never just turn up. There are many scholarships available for junior ski racers, and I was fortunate to grow up in an area that is very supportive of skiing. (Not sure if it is quite the same in Michigan). In the Far West Division there are two main scholarship funds that are very well known: one is the Far West Masters Junior Scholarship fund, in which the regions masters raise money to support over 20 junior racers each year of all different levels, and the second one is called something like the Lake Tahoe Ski Foundation which people from the Lake Tahoe area can apply for. Also many ski teams have some sort of Foundation that you might be able
to draw from. There are also some less-known areas that you might be able to find support. This won’t help you much Isaac, but there are multi-sport foundations like the Women’s Sports Foundation that anybody can apply for, I am not sure if there is a similar foundation for the men. Also, some USSA regions and divisions might have some funds that they can be released. This is something you have to write a letter for though; they don’t just hand out money to anybody. Something else, and I actually did a lot of this, is raise money on your own. Write letters to local clubs (like Rotary, Lions, Optimist, etc…), businesses or even friends. In your letter tell them what you do, why you do it, what your goals are, and why you need support. I bet it will surprise you how many people will be willing to help. For your equipment needs, getting a sponsorship at your age is not easy, even if you are really good. When looking for one, it is probably best to go with a company that does a lot of work with juniors. Rossignol is probably the best known for this (I am not just saying this because I ski on them, it is a well-known fact that they are very good to junior racers). When you venture out to smaller companies, they do not have the means to support as many juniors, therefore making it harder to make your case. There are also programs at ski shops (like Head North in Truckee) that do lease deals where you do not actually have to buy skis, but you still get really good skis. Ask your local ski shops if they do something like this, or if it is something they are interested in doing.

If you are really interested in ski racing, I could safely tell you it will be much harder pursuing a career in Michigan, although not impossible. I really have no idea about this, but one of my teammates said that many of the ski academies around the country (especially on the East Coast) offer scholarships to needy people that are very dedicated. I personally loved going to public school, but from reading your letter, this might be a very good option for you in the future.

I do believe that you do not have to be the best as a J5, J4, or J3, to be the best in the world later in your career. I never went to Whistler or Topolino. I never won a Junior Olympic race until I was a second-year J2, and it is very possible that you could be like me and not be good until your body has fully developed. Besides, it is always easier to be an underdog and move up the ladder then be at the top and try to stay there forever!

You stated that you are much better in training then in racing. So am I. It is still something that I am trying to overcome also. For now, just look at it this way: Even if you are better in training than in racing, the better you get at training, the better you will get at racing! Don’t let it frustrate you; it’s probably just the way you are. That does not mean stop trying to fix it though. Maybe when you are at races, you need to remember why you race (‘cause it is really fun), and how relaxed you feel when you train, then try to mock that feeling.

Isaac- I wish you the best of luck in pursuing your dreams, and there is no doubt in my mind that you can’t if you keep the same attitude you expressed in your letter. Try to learn something everyday you ski, keep your focus, and keep your eye on your goal, and then the sky is the limit.

Previous entries:
October 21, 2004 Welcome to my online journal!

November 1, 2004: What I did with my summer vacation

Stacey Cook is the reigning overall NorAm champion. She will update her online journal here every two weeks this season, and hopes you’ll send her your questions about life on the U.S. Ski Team. Contact her directly at cookie@insideinc.com. Make sure to include your name and a note about yourself. If you’d like to remain anonymous if Cookie answers your note, say so in your e-mail to her.