McKee's McThoughts: Fall's flirtation with ski racing

October rocks my socks. I just love this frippin’ time of year.
    Historically it’s a time to celebrate. The harvest is in. It’s time for Oktoberfest.
    Maybe it’s just the change of pace, but to me October just smells, sounds and looks great.
    Occasional frost warnings are being issued. Pumpkins are being weighed, gutted and carved. Won’t be long before we turn the clock back and after that there is no turning back. We’ll be headlong into winter before we know it. Snow and ice and ski racing… There, I said it. Ski racing is rolling around on the calendar. Less than a month now and we’re under way. That’s exciting for guys like us.
OCTOBER ROCKS my socks. I just love this frippin’ time of year.
    Historically it’s a time to celebrate. The harvest is in. It’s time for Oktoberfest.
    Maybe it’s just the change of pace, but to me October just smells, sounds and looks great.
    There’s a little wood smoke in the air—"just to take the chill off." The Canada Geese are honking and squawking as they lift off the neighboring pond already rounding into the "V" formation though barely above the trees. And speaking of the trees, oh man, what a good foliage season ‘08 has turned out to be in these parts.
    Walking out behind the cabin there is such a clean definition between yellow and red lying on the ground it looks like an Andy Goldsworthy art project. (Google him; his work is amazing).
    Point is—at least I think I have one—point is the seasons are turning. Football is being played. And yes, my fantasy team is doing very well, thanks for asking.
    Occasional frost warnings are being issued. Pumpkins are being weighed, gutted and carved. Won’t be long before we turn the clock back and after that there is no turning back. We’ll be headlong into winter before we know it. Snow and ice and ski racing… There, I said it. Ski racing is rolling around on the calendar. Less than a month now and we’re under way. That’s exciting for guys like us.
    This year, we got something to look forward to.
    This ain’t ’88.
    Lindsey Vonn and Bode Miller come into this season as the World Cup champions. Ted Ligety as the Giant Slalom champ. As a group, U.S. skiers put a shine on the 2008 season that sparkles against any previous U.S. group. It was a season well worthy of celebration. But this is sport and in sport last year doesn’t count for much. In sport, last week doesn’t count for much.
    All last season provides at this point is that elusive quality we call confidence and believe me, it’s been a long time since American skiers, as a whole, have possessed this quality. We got believers now, from the top to the bottom of the pyramid.
    Sure there have been individual standouts from time to time. We’re a big nation, so even though higher profile sports skim off much of the athletic talent there always seems to be athletes funneling up the U.S. skiing pipeline.
    There is reason for concern in that. Over the last several seasons we have not had youngsters emerging at a level where they hold first seed status at the World Junior Championships. If we’re going to keep this Bode/Vonn momentum going we gotta have that. USSA, in fact, says it is aiming at having two first-seed racers in every World Junior race. That’s an aggressive goal, something akin to that "Best in the World" slogan put up back at the turn of the century.
    Let’s see how this pans out. Plans for this season focus on the women’s group with an already identified group (check the D-team) set for a camp at Aspen right after the December World Cups and run by what development director Walt Evans calls an "all-star, all-women staff." With Jonna Mendes, Kirsten Clark and Debbie Armstrong listed among the coaches, I’d have to say he’s accurate in that assessment.
    It seems obvious from here there ought to be a “bump” in American racing provided by the wild successes of last season. Evans says that bump is already evident. One D teamer told him her goal: to be Lindsey Vonn.
    Sound familiar?
    Vonn wanted to be Picabo Street. So maybe, just maybe, this thing is starting to snowball a little.     The early Nor-Ams, with the usual assortment of European World Cup skiers in the mix, will be interesting this season from more perspectives than one.
    We got kids who want to change the face of ski racing, kids who wouldn’t mind wrapping the flag around themselves on an Olympic podium.
    Now let this old coot offer up an observation.
    Early this summer there was a news item that went largely unnoticed. Hans Knauss won his suit against the manufacturer (and a supplier) of a nutritional supplement. Knauss, you might recall, is an Olympic medalist, a World Championship medalist and a World Cup winner. He had six races wiped from the 2005 season and was subsequently banned from the sport after testing positive for drugs which were not supposed to be in the supplement he took. Those are the rules. Regardless of intent, a single positive test ended his career even though the ruling body (FIS) agreed he was not at fault.
    All you guys who want to change the face of ski racing, have at it. Go get what you want. And don’t forget to celebrate the little things, the change of season, the smell of wood smoke. Just be real damned careful what you consume. That’s a lot of hard work you’re putting in to get there; don’t waste it.
    I’m going to go out now and enjoy some October and I suggest you all do the same.
    Safe speed my friends.