WC Notebook: Mancuso has quite a quiver

U.S. women’s racer Julia Mancuso has 35 pairs of skis with her for the North American swing of the alpine skiing World Cup, according to her Rossignol technician, Andrea Vianello.
    Among the quiver are four pairs for slalom, four for GS, 12 for super G and 15 for downhill. Mancuso also has four pairs of boots: two for speed events and two for tech. Vianello said he hopes to trim down the quiver later this season.
U.S. WOMEN'S RACER Julia Mancuso has 35 pairs of skis with her for the North American swing of the alpine skiing World Cup, according to her Rossignol technician, Andrea Vianello.
    Among the quiver are four pairs for slalom, four for GS, 12 for super G and 15 for downhill. Mancuso also has four pairs of boots: two for speed events and two for tech. Vianello said he hopes to trim down the quiver later this season.
    “We need to try a lot of stuff, but maybe once we use them more we will be able to bring that number down to 20,” said Vianello, who once tuned for Alberto Tomba and who made a memorable run down the 2006 Olympic giant slalom in his underwear as part of a bet involving Mancuso’s gold medal.
    Mancuso’s skis are 155 centimeters in slalom, 181 centimeters in GS, 201 centimeters in super G and 210 in downhill.
    CALENDAR GIRLS: There’s not even a distribution network yet, but a sizzling new calendar featuring the women of the U.S. Ski Team is already selling like mad. About 1,500 of the 2,000 calendars that the women had printed have sold, according to Julia Mancuso.
    The calendars, which feature action shots by Jonathan Selkowitz and glamour shots by injured U.S. team member Lauren Ross, are selling for five dollars each. The women of the team are selling them to friends and associates in the ski world.
    “There are a lot of beautiful girls on the team,” said Ross. “Here they are, photogenic and strong. We’re strong, not skinny. It’s a really healthy image. You can be an athlete and still be beautiful.
    Ross said that ultimately she wants the money to go to a charity — she named Right to Play. “But first we have to simply cover the costs of printing,” she said.
    Mancuso, who put up the money and legwork of getting the calendars printed, said she hopes to have a button on her Web site soon through which fans can order the calendars. “The hard part is arranging someone to mail them out,” she said.
    The various months show Sarah Schleper (February, August), Kaylin Richardson (April, September), Jess Kelley (May, October), Resi Stiegler (June, November), Ross (January, July) and Mancuso (March, December).
    Some of Ross’ shots have her teammates posing outdoors in fine clothes, theatrical make-up, and with their hair done up in careful arrangements that would never withstand helmets and high winds. Other months show the same athletes clearing gates and carving turns.
    “We go to some beautiful places, like New Zealand and Sölden and Colorado, and this is a way to take advantage of that,” said Ross.
    FRANZ RETURNS: Werner Franz of Austria is back from the devastating leg injury he sustained while training in Portillo, Chile, two summers ago. The 34-year-old Austrian finished just outside the points at last week’s downhill in Lake Louise, Canada.
    “I’m just happy that my leg is still there,” said Franz, who is skiing with titanium plates in his right shin and knee, held in place by a total of 16 screws, inserted in six surgeries. “Skiing has been the best therapy.”
    Though Franz says the pain has subsided, he says the knee is still unstable. He has trouble controlling it, he says, especially at the end of the turn, when pressure builds up.
    “It is just like with Friedman,” said Franz, who made his comeback in the same race that American Bryon Friedman returned to racing after nearly two years. “It was important for me to come back, even if I finished 30 or 40 and nobody cared, because nobody thought I could do it, and now I have.”