BEAVER CREEK, Colo. – Although the favorites ended up on top on Sunday, the Birds of Prey super G is always good for surprises. Aleksander Aamodt Kilde took his fourth straight win, Marco Odermatt was runner up and Alexis Pinturault was third. However, a handful of jaw-dropping surges from the back of the pack provided real entertainment.
Norwegian first-timers on the speed track
Wearing bibs No. 32 and 33, Norwegian tech stars Atle Lie McGrath and Lucas Braathen shot out of their very first World Cup SG starts in a big way on Sunday. Both looked on pace to land on the podium. McGrath missed it by less than three-tenths of a second, finishing fifth, while Braathen took seventh.
“We made a plan last spring that we wanted to do more super G,” said McGrath, who has a couple of World Cup slalom victories and podiums in GS and parallel and whose American father, Felix McGrath, also raced. “For both of us to be top 10 is just insane.”
McGrath and Braathen took a brief hiatus from training with the Norwegian tech team to travel to Colorado and train at Copper Mountain leading up to the Beaver Creek weekend.
“The altitude is tough, but everything else is just perfect. It’s such great snow. Being half-American, I feel very welcome,” McGrath said. “This has been, even before the race today, one of the most fun camps I’ve had in years. That was my mental thing going into this race. I’ve just had so much fun, so I’m going to go super hard.”
Mission accomplished. After seeing his long-time buddy throw down, Braathen, who also has a pair of World Cup wins in slalom and GS and a handful of podiums, followed suit.
Charging in step
“Being bib 32 and 33 is such a comforting thing up at the start,” Braathen said. “You know his level so well. You know your own level. So when he’s sending it right in front of you, that definitely does help on a day like today.”
That’s not to say it wasn’t a little scary.
“This is extreme sports compared to what I come from,” Braathen said. “You know you’re going to hit well over 100Ks here and you’re going to be shaking and jumping.”
Braathen’s limbs flailed wildly over the Golden Eagle jump, after which he said he “lost his commitment,” but says there will be at least one more super G start for him this season in Aspen.
“This was an introduction, but I’ll tell you this much, it was a hell of an introduction. I’m a bit blown away by what just happened, so I need to dissect it and look at the plan. I’ll for sure do one more. If the calendar allows it, maybe we’ll do three.”
McGrath also sees a future as a three-event skier.
“The plan this year was to only ski here and in Aspen, but we might have to go back and re-evaluate it,” McGrath said. “It ends up having to be on the table now, adding a third event. We’ll see.”
Hometown hero
The most noise of the day was probably delivered for local athlete River Radamus. Wearing bib No. 57, the giant slalom specialist launched out of the SG start house with his pink hair on fire. He charged to 16th place. The effort marked his first World Cup super-G points.
“It’s a really menacing start,” he said of the course. “Four gates feels like straight down the hill. I just kept telling myself that you have to carve at least the second and fourth turns. Those are the ones where you really pick up speed. If you’re scared of it, it sets the tone for the rest of the thing. I committed full-on with every bit of my being to cleaning those. I was just pushing the line the whole way. Before the last jump, I almost lost it, but I felt good about my effort and intensity all the way down. The result matched and it felt awesome.”
Radamus’s motivation to charge was boosted by former U.S. downhillers Daron Rahlves and Marco Sullivan.
“We had Daron and Marco a bunch of other legends coming through talking about what it means to race at home. I live 10 minutes from here. It raises my intensity and my desire to put one down. I’ve had a couple of missed opportunities at Beaver Creek, but today it really connected,” he said. “There’s nothing like racing at home. My neighbors, family, friends and girlfriend are all here. Putting one down and giving them something to cheer for means a lot.”
As for adding super G to his calendar, the Vail native said it would not happen immediately. Eventually, he’d like to compete in every discipline.
“Right now, the priority is getting my GS to the place I want it to be,” Radamus said. “I’ll continue to keep getting reps in super G, maybe one day also in downhill. I’ll be adding rather than subtracting, not overwhelming myself with too much super G, so I can’t keep my GS good. This is a technical super G. It suits GS skiers. You saw from the results today.”
Sunday’s backfield fireballs also included Chilean athlete Henrik Von Appen. After notching his first-ever World Cup SG points with an 18th place last weekend in Lake Louise, he followed up at Beaver Creek, landing in 14th wearing bib No. 40.
Also earning the first points of his World Cup career with 21st in SG last weekend in Lake Louise, Canadian Jeffrey Read kept the flag flying with a 20th at Beaver Creek wearing bib No. 45. A GS specialist, France’s Cyprien Sarrazin rocketed to 12th place wearing bib No. 37, earning SG Cup points for the second time in his career.
About the Author: Shauna Farnell
