About the Author: Dr. Jim Taylor

"With September coming to an end, you have entered Phase II of the prep period for the ensuing race season that is equally as important as your summer efforts to your achieving your ski racing goals."

"In an ideal world, cost would never be an obstacle to a young skier who wants to become a ski racer. But this is the real world, and we must face the reality that the cost of ski racing will always be a barrier to entry for many.

The once-in-a-lifetime (hopefully!) COVID-19 race season is now over, thankfully. Like all of us, I’m

The ski racing community is now deep into what is certainly the strangest race season

Have you experienced this before in a race? You’re in the starting gate and ready

Back in December, I wrote an article titled, Parker Biele is My Hero, in which

I’m sure I’m not the only follower of all things ski racing to observe what

A number of occurrences compelled me to write this article. First, a growing number of

It has certainly been a challenging 2020 for our ski racing community. In mid-March, Covid-19

You might be asking, “Who the heck is Parker Biele and why does she deserve

In the Part I in my series, Fear of Failure, I introduced you to the

In my last post, Fear of Failure: Part 1, I discussed the sad epidemic of

After the abrupt end of the last race season, everyone in the ski racing community

In addition to my work in the sports world, I have also consulted extensively in

It’s hard to believe the summer, what I consider Phase I of the ski racing

Mental training, traditionally called sport psychology, can suffer from ‘guilt by association’ with the broader field of clinical psychology that still carries the stigma that only screwed-up people seek professional help. This perception, however inaccurate it is, can prevent athletes, coaches, and parents from seeing mental preparation for what it is.

Consider the vital importance of the mind in ski racing. Motivation, confidence, intensity, focus, emotions, resilience, adaptability, patience, perseverance, coachability, attitude, collaboration, the list goes on. Yes, these mental “muscles” can develop on their own with individual athletes.

Watching videos of yourself and World Cup racers is a powerful tool for strengthening important mental muscles such as confidence, intensity, and focus.