USSA Congress 2012

I just returned from Park City where I attended the USSA Congress (convention)as a part of the Northern Division representitives. It was a good session and I was very pleased to share it with the very capable group from ND. Lots of topics were discussed for 2013. The new age group changes were discussed at length and we should see decisions about the final alignments by mid-June.

Age Group Changes and USSA Registration

I want to point out that USSA membership is now open for On-Line registration. If you have been a member, you should still expect a mailed membership reminder and form. Before you join, USSA is changing the age group classifications to reflect a method more akin to what Soccer uses; a U-12 group will contain 10 and 11 year olds, U-14 will contain 12 and 13 year olds, etc. In the past the Northern Division group that contained 13 and 14 year olds could chose to race as either scored or un-scored. A scored race/racer was tracked in the national ranking system and compared to all others in the system. This year the grouping will join 13 year olds with 12 year olds, not 14 year olds. 14 year olds will be joined with 15 year olds in the U-16 group. With the U-14 group there is still some question regarding how they might be a part of the national ranking system. Because this question has not been answered yet, it is recommended that racers in the 12/13 year old (U-14) group hold off on their USSA registration until that decision is made. The time table for that decision is early June at this time. The deadline for USSA registration is Oct 15 so there is no immediate need for registration.

Four Whitefish Skiers Receive Academic Awards

Four Whitefish ski racers were presented with Academic Awards to celebrate both their skiing success and their dedication and academic achievement by the Northern Division of the United States Ski Association.

To qualify for the awards the recipient must maintain a minimum of a 3.5 grade average and be selected to attend the Jr. 1-2 Western Regional Championships (ages 15-19) or the Western Region Junior Olympics (ages 13-14).

Named Whitefish athletes are:
Piper Howeth 3.75
Oliver Van Everen 3.75
Brittain Walton 4.0
Nevada Kramer 3.5

Whitefish Skiers Win Awards at Divisional Championships

Six Whitefish Skiers traveled to the Over The Hill Gang Divisional Championships March 30, 31 at Bridger Bowl.
Friday began the series with Giant Slalom for both Women and Men. Erin Tabish ended the day with a Third place Medal and Piper Howeth finished 4th in her age group. Britt Walton led the Whitefish guys by winning his age group. Jacob Welch also medaled, finishing 3rd in the 15/16 year old group. Cameron Welch charged to 5th and Austin Oberlitner was 9th.
Saturday was Slalom day and Erin Tabish finished 4th and Piper Howeth was 5th in their respective age groups. Skiing in the 13/14 year-old group; Britt Walton again led the charge in 2nd, Austin Oberlitner was 4th and Cameron Welch finished 8th. Jacob Welch in the 15/16 group was just out of the medals in 4th.

More News From the US Nationals

Read about the GS here...

Dedeir Cuche's Last World Cup Run

Retiring after many successful years, see Dedeir's last run here.

Mikaela Shiffrin Wins US Slalom Title

Read Mikaela's Story Here...

Whitefish YSL Championships

The 3-day season-ending YSL Championships for USSA’s Northern Division was held at Whitefish Mountain Resort this past weekend with 26 Whitefish racers, ages 6-14, competing in a strong field of 185 athletes from a three state region. Friday’s event was a 2 run, fast Giant Slalom course that tested each racers speed and stamina. Saturday was a challenging, technical 2-run tall gate Slalom race requiring quickness and technical skills tempered with speed. The final day was a single-run Kombi race combining the elements of both disciplines.

Drive and determination paid off for all of the Whitefish athletes; and 10 year-old Colter Upton capped a great season with 3 podium finishes, along with a spot on the Overall Podium. He posted two ripping slalom runs on Saturday to finish on top of the podium in 1st place. He also garnered two 3rd place finishes in Giant Slalom and Kombi. Overall points were tallied throughout the weekend for racers in all divisions to crown the top 3 boys and girls for the entire event. As a 1st year J5 racer (9-10 year olds), Upton surprised the field landing in 3rd in the boys Overall standings. Those podium spots are generally occupied by racers 2-3 years older. The Northern Division manager could only recall one other J5 racer achieving that coveted position in recent memory. Upton commented that standing next to racer’s he’s admired for the past 3 season’s on that podium is his new “best skiing memory”.

10 year-old Whitefish racer, Liam Nelson, really found his groove this weekend and finished on top of the J5 podium in Giant Slalom, along with a strong 4th place finish in Slalom Saturday. In his first year of racing on the YSL circuit he has become an amazing racer this season. Nelson says GS is his favorite because he can “go really fast” and that he does.

As well, Whitefish’s 8 year-old Gardner Dominick who does it all on skis, and showed it this weekend. He put all his strengths together to take 1st place on Sunday in his division, along with two 2nd’s in GS and Slalom. With his great balance and slick moves, he is a very fun skier to watch.

Multiple Top 10 finishes from the Whitefish team included: J4 Pixie Moore 8th in Kombi, J6 Marina Kramer 3rd in GS, 3rd in SL and 4th in Kombi, J5 Walt Hollensteiner 6th in Kombi and 10th in GS, J5 Ian Calloway 7th in GS, J6 Zane Elliott 5th in Kombi and 8th in GS. Cameron Kahle of Whitefish also finished with a strong 4th, 5th, and 6th places respectively in J6 boys.

A large group of young racers from the team competed and were led on the podium by 6 year-old Trey Nelson, finishing with two 1st places and a 2nd in his division. Elizabeth Spradlin got a 2nd place finish in the girls 5-6 year old group. Mikaela Daniels was 3rd in the Kombi and 5th GS and Murial Mercer was 6th in SL,7th in the Kombi and 8th GS.

The Jr 3; 13-14 year old J3 racers competed and the field was dominated by Whitefish athletes with Piper Howeth earning three 1st places, Kelly Shea with three 2nd’s, Britt Walton two 1st’s and a 3rd, Oliver Van Everen a 1st and two 2nd’s, and Cameron Welch with a 2nd and a 3rd.

YSL Championships at Whitefish

Waiting for results to post, but check our the new videos under the "Photos and Videos" tab...

Ted Ligety Talks About This Season and Next!

Click Here to Read More of What Ted Has to Say

This has to Infuriate the Austrians...

Read about it here...Way to go USA Girls!
Just a bit more evidence that what we are doing here in the US is working JUST FINE!

Whitefish Racers Rage at Discovery!

With over 200 racers from throughout Montana attending, 14 of our local alpine ski racers took to the Giant Slalom courses with a passion and intensity that served them well. The Whitefish racers garnered 13 top 10 placements in the two races, including 6 podium finishes. Blue skies, pleasant temperatures and excitement filled the air as the athletes raced through 2 long GS courses each day.

A determined 13 year-old Cameron Welch led the team with 1st and 2nd place finishes in the J3 boys division. Ten year-old Colter Upton continued his course of podium finishes this year, landing in 2nd and 3rd places in the two J5 boys races. Speedster Gardner Dominick raced to a 2nd place finish on Sunday in J6 boys division.

In additon to Upton, a strong contingent of Whitefish J5 boys were represented well with top 10 finishes including: Liam Nelson 5th and 6th, Douglas Mercer 9th and Walt Hollensteiner 9th. James Thompson broke into the top 10 group of J6 boys with a 10th place finish on Sunday.

Not to be outdone, the Whitefish girls had a strong showing with top 10 finishes by Marina Kramer (J6 girls: 3rd and 5th) and Pixie Moore (J4 girls: 6th and 10th).

Also competing for Whitefish was Kristin VanEveren, Stella Eddy, Caroline LeCompte and William Lewison.

Look for these and many others to compete in the upcoming Base Lodge Clinic Northern Division YSL Championships to be held at our very own Whitefish Mountain Resort March 23rd-25th. A record-breaking field is expected along with some incredible ski racing, so come cheer on the racers in the season-ending finale.

Will Brandenburg 6th in World Cup Slalom!

Will Brandenburg is from Spokane; read what he said about his day:
"I really needed that. It has been a grind of a year and I have been skiing great and haven’t been getting to the finish with a clean run. It’s the first time I have done that and been happy at the finish line of a World Cup.
I have the speed and sometimes I take too much risk. Today I skied smart. My coaches and I have worked on my line and tactics a lot. I took the right tactics today in a first run for where I was starting and in the second run I let it go a little bit more. You always want more but that was a great day.
I have battled where I try to take a more aggressive line and it sometimes pays off for good speed but it hasn’t paid off in consistency. I am learning. I will come back next year and hopefully build off this result and start getting closer and closer to podium."
Read More About the Race Here

Great Day on our hill today!

Three Training Courses going at once was a wonderful sight to behold! Left to right (viewed from the bottom) A full length Kombi, a GS for the Jr. Team and full length Slalom for the FIS-USSA group.
Good Scene!

Ligety Wins Large at Kranjska-Gora

Quote from Ted:
"It’s definitely a big victory, especially winning by that margin. I was proud of the effort I put in today. I think the last couple of races I was having trouble putting in the right amount of intensity and today I was able to find it and ski great both runs.
I am about 90-something points behind now and that’s difficult to make up in one race. He (Hirscher) would have to blow it and I'd have to win, but we will see. I am just going to try to take another good race to end the year and wherever I end up, I end up.
This year is pretty crazy. The season Hirsher had is incredible, he is over 600 points with one giant slalom race left. That's maybe the most points scored in giant slalom since I don’t know when. I have 500 points, which is the most points I have ever scored in giant slalom. It would be tough not to win the title but I am also proud of having that kind of season.
I feel like the last couple weeks of giant slalom have been a fluke, at least as far as my results go. Definitely I had a little more expectations for myself, so in that sense, it's tough to lose the title in just a couple of races. At least I am proving that I am right up there with Hirsher".
Read more here...

Mikael Shiffrin top ten in Are World Cup Slalom

Mikaela Shiffrin (age 16):
"I'm really excited about racing in Schladming. It feels goodt to be top 25 in the world, but honestly, I've been dreaming about winning World Cup races since I was five years old.
Sometimes it feels like, 'man, it's about time' and I have to take a step back and realize that some of these girls have been the fastest skiers in the world for ten years, so I need to fight every single run. It's hard but it's also really exciting.
I'm happy becuase I broke the trend I've had going of not making second runs and that it was one more top 10. I was only .39 out of first, so it was a really close race and I know that I have some faster skiing in me.+
Read more about her race here!

Ryan Cochran-Siegle Strikes Second Gold Medal at Jr. World Championships

Read about Ryan's Second Gold
Medal here!

Vonn Locks-up Overall World Cup Title with GS Win

Click Here to read about her win and the title!

Weibrecht Qualifies for World Cup Finals...

Read about Andrew here...

Determination Pays Dividends as a World Cup Podium for Risi Steigler

Determination pays off...(click here)

5 Whitefish Athletes to Attend Championships

The Western Region of the United States Ski Association has invited five Whitefish Alpine Ski Team athletes to race in the end of the season age group championship events.

Whitefish invitees include Nevada Kramer 15, Piper Howeth 13, Kelly Shea 13, Oliver Van Everen 13 and Britt Walton, 13

Kramer will attend the Western Regional Championships and Howeth, Shea, Van Everen and Walton will attend the Western Region Jr. Olympics.

Schweitzer Basin, Idaho will host the Western Regional Championships March 6-11. The WR Championships bring together the fastest 15-19 year old ski racers from the Western US.

The Western Region Junior Olympics will bring together the most qualified 13-14 year olds in the Western US to compete at Bridger Bowl and Big Sky resorts, March 15-18.

Coach Pete Collins commented: "All of these athletes are in the first year of their age group blocks and it is a real accomplishment to qualify to one of these events your first year."

Ryan Cochran-Siegle Wins Jr. World Championship DH

Click here to read about Ryan's Win

Lindsay Von a Rare Runner-up

Click Here to read about Lindsay's GS

Whitefish Skiers at Great Divide

A group of Whitefish Mountain skiers travelled to Helena last weekend to compete at Great Divide’s alpine races. They were treated to blue skies and pleasant temperatures as they raced through a two-run slalom race Saturday followed by two, single-run Kombi races on Sunday. The Kombi race is a combination of tall and short slalom gates and GS panels. That along with the snow conditions made for a wild and challenging course for the racers.

Whitefish was led on the podium by J5 racer Colter Upton, who had a 1st place finish in one of Sunday’s Kombi races along with a 2nd place in the slalom on Saturday. Nine year-old William Lewison also competed in the 9-10 year old boys division and moved into the top 10 group, with 9th and 10th place finishes in the Kombi races.

The team had good representation by both Kristin Van Everen and Pixie Moore in the J4 girls division. Kristin had 2 top ten finishes on Sunday (9th and 9th), while Pixie had a 10th in one of Sunday’s races as well.

Athletes from this YSL team are all part of the Flathead Valley Ski Education Foundation, a race team that strives to develop a lifelong enjoyment of the sport while supporting personal development. This year 53 athletes ages 5-18, have been supported by a great group of 8 coaches. The Foundation would like to thank their season-long sponsors The Base Lodge Clinic (North Valley Hospital) and The Sportsman & Ski Haus, along with the on-going support of Whitefish Mountain Resort.

Team Skis Well at Red Lodge JO Qualifier

Four Whitefish alpine ski racers attended the USSA Northern Division Junior Olympic Qualifier Series held in Red Lodge, February 24-26. 2 giant slaloms and a slalom race were held as the final events of a season long series that will qualify the Northern Division team roster to the Western Region Junior Olympics and the Western Regional Championships.
Age Class results from Red Lodge are as follows.
Scott Kahle, 16: 9th - GS #1, and 10th - GS #2
Jacob Welch, 15: 10th – GS #1 and 9th – GS #2

Britt Walton, 13: 4th – GS #1, 1st – GS #2, 3rd - Slalom
Austin Oberlitner, 14: 14th –GS # 1, 14th Slalom

The Western Region Junior Olympics will bring together the most qualified 13-14 year olds in the western us to compete at Bridger Bowl and Big Sky resorts, March 15-18.
Schweitzer Basin, Idaho will host the Western Regional Championships March 6-11. The WR Championships bring together the fastest 15-19 year old ski racers from the Western US.

Erin Tabih Scores Slalom Result in FIS U

Erin Tabish scored a great Slalom result on Wednesday, 2/22 at Bridger Bowl in a FIS University Competition. The race, rescheduled from Alaska, allowed Erin an opportunity to compete against a strong field of NCAA women.
Erin started bib 42 and finished 34th with an excellant 107.02 point result. Her ranking going into the race was 130.49.

Whitefish Skiers at Big Sky Haul Home Hardware

Britt Walton Skys the Jump at Big Sky

Six Whitefish Alpine Racers traveled to Big Sky Resort February 10-12, for a USSA Northern Division Junior Olympic Qualifier Series. Three Super G races were contested on the difficult Hangman’s Trail. A sizeable jump was constructed on the course, giving the racers even more challenge.
The Whitefish group proved to be up to the challenge of the speed and air time, returning to Whitefish with multiple medals; aka “Bringing Home the Hardware”.
Due to the difficulty of the track and the jump, Friday was scheduled as a training day to acquaint the racers with the challenge. Two races were held Saturday followed by one on Sunday.
Results for the three races are as Follows:
Jr. 2 Girls
Erin Tabish: 3rd, 4th and 5th.
Jr. 2 Boys
Nevada Kramer: 2nd, DNF and 4th.
Jacob Welch: 8th, DNF, 11th.
Jr. 3 Boys
Oliver Van Everen: 2nd, 4th and 1st
Britt Walton: 4th, 5th and 2nd
Cameron Welch: 16th, 12th and 11th.

Showdown at Bridger YSL Super-G

Six young Whitefish Mountain ski racers competed this past weekend in a GS/Super G Kombi race held at Bridger Bowl. It was a great introduction to a “speed” event in which components of a Super G race were added to the traditional Giant Slalom platform. Pleasant temperatures and blue skies were welcomed by the 150 racers that competed in 3 separate, one-run races. With just 6 racers competing from Whitefish, they had impressive results, fielding 6 podium finishes and 3 top ten finishes in the 3 races.

With passionate coaching provided by Roy Loman and Zak Anderson, the team continues to be inspired to perform with excellence both on and off the hill. Both coaches felt the team really stepped up and pushed themselves to move to the next level. Coach Loman said, “In the 30+ years that I have been coaching, never I have seen more improvement from a team of athletes. Our group was so able to focus on what they needed to do to move to the next level; and we saw that work in their improvement for every individual on the team. It is seldom that you get that kind of focus and execution from an entire group."

A tenacious ten year-old Colter Upton topped the podium with a 1st place in his age group on Sunday with an aggressive run, following his two 2nd place finishes on Saturday. Eight year-old Marina Kramer demonstrated solid consistency, earning three 3rd place finishes throughout the weekend, in the 7-8 year old girls bracket.

A determined nine year-old Douglas Mercer had 3 top ten finishes--10th, 10th and 7th in his group. First year nine year-old racer William Lewison made fantastic improvements throughout the weekend, finishing more than 6 seconds faster in his final race.

Team leaders Story Crossett and Kristin Van Everen competed in the competitive 11-12 year old divisions and were both good examples of persistence and diligence for their teammates.

The next scheduled Youth Ski League races will be at Great Divide and Discovery followed by the season finale championships held at our very own Whitefish Mountain Resort March 23rd-25th. Wish the Whitefish racers good luck.

Large Whitefish Team with Strong Showing at Big Sky GS Races

A strong contingent of Whitefish ski racers, ages 8-13, competed in two GS races recently held at Big Sky Resort, along with 180 other racers from throughout Montana. With team members battling illness, cold wind chills and a strong field of competitors, they performed well and had a lot of fun along the way.

Podium finishes for the Whitefish team included: Gardner Dominick with two 1st place finishes in the 7-8 year old boys group, Marina Kramer with a 3rd place in 7-8 year old girls, Colter Upton with two 3rd place finishes in 9-10 year old boys and Cameron Welch with a 2nd place in 13-14 year old boys.

Newcomer Liam Nelson finished with a strong 4th place finish on Sunday in the 9-10 year old boys division. Pixie Moore continues to move up in the highly competitive 11-12 year old girls bracket, breaking into the top 10 with a 9th place finish on Sunday. Other racers competing for Whitefish included James Thompson, Stella Eddy, Walt Hollensteiner, Kristin Van Everen, Caroline LeCompte and Story Crossett.

Upcoming YSL Race information: Great Divide/Discovery

Here is a bit of info regarding 2 upcoming YSL Races; 1 at Great Divide and the other at Discover, near Anaconda.

Great Divide YSL
DATE; February 18 and 19, 2012
EVENT: Slalom - Saturday, and 2 Technical Combi Races - Sunday
RACERS ELIGIBLE: JIII, JIV, JV, JVI
LOCATION: Great Divide Ski Area, Marysville, Montana - 25 miles northwest of Helena, Montana.


Discovery GS Series

Events: GS, Saturday, March 3, 2012 – Morning and afternoon run
GS, Sunday, March 4, 2012 – Morning and afternoon run
Class: Men & Women - Youth Ski League - Classes J3 and younger
Registration: 8:00-9:00 a.m. Discovery Lodge 2nd Floor, Discovery Ski Area
Lift Tickets: Racers 12 and under $10 per day. Racers 13 and over $19 per day. Purchased directly by the coach. Payable by check. Parents and spectators must show their season pass in order to receive discounted lift tickets.



If you plan to go to either of these, let me know and I will place you on the list.

Both are great races...

This is who I have to
Great Divide: Kristin; Story and Colter
Discovery: Kristin; Story, Colter, James and Liam.

Both the La Quinta in Helena and the Fairmont Hot Springs have asked us to make our reservations quickly...(within the next week)


Helena Lodging (La Quinta)
Name: Whitefish Ski Team
Contact: Roy Loman

Arrival Date: February 17, 2011
Departure Date: February 19, 2011

6 - 2 queen bed rooms
Rate: $83.00 plus tax
Cancel by 6:00PM on date of arrival
Hotel Phone number to call for room block reservations: 406-449-4000 Individuals make own reservations and responsible for own room charges. Please make your reservations ASAP.



Discovery Lodging
Fairmont Hot Springs
1-800-332-3272 1500 Fairmont Road
(406) 797-3241 Fairmont, MT 59711
(406) 797-3260 FAX bbrown@fairmontmontana.com
Rate: $114

SPORTSMAN & SKI HAUS JO QUALIFIER

FVSEF,the Sportsman & Ski Haus and the Whitefish Mountain Resort hosted the season’s first Junior Olympic Qualifier. The Qualifier consisted of 2 Giant Slalom races and 1 Slalom. Results from this and additional qualifiers held at Missoula Snow Bowl, Big Sky Resort and Red Lodge will be used to determine attendance at the Western Region’s Junior Olympics to be held at Big Sky and Bridger resorts and the FIS Western Region Championships at Schweitzer Basin, Idaho.
The opening series started with a Giant Slalom on the steep Ed’s Run at the Whitefish Resort. Excellent snow conditions provided an extremely good track for the 3 contested races. A second GS was held Sunday and the races concluded with a Slalom on Monday.
Local results from the Saturday GS include:
Women
Erin Tabish 7th; 15-16 year old category
Madeline Williams 3rd; 17-19
Men
Brittain Walton 6th; 13-14 year old category
Cameron Welch 12th; 13-14
Oliver Van Everen 13th; 13-14
Nevada Kramer 3rd; 15-16
Jacob Welch 9th; 15-16
Aaron Oberlitner 3rd; 17-19

Sunday GS
Women
Piper Howeth 5th; 13-14
Kelly Shea 6th; 13-14
Erin Tabish 3rd; 15-16
Madeline Williams 3rd 17-19
Men
Oliver Van Everen 7th; 13-14 Yrs.
Brittain Walton 10th; 13-14
Cameron Welch 12th; 13-14
Nevada Kramer 1st; 15-16
Jacob Welch 8th; 15-16
Aaron Oberlitner 2nd; 17-19

Monday Slalom
Women
Piper Howeth 7th; 13-14 Yrs.
Erin Tabish 4th; 15-16
Madeline Williams 2nd; 17-19
Men
Oliver Van Everen 6th; 13-14 Yrs
Brittain Walton 7th; 13-14
Cameron Welch 13th; 13-14
Jacob Welch 4th; 15-16

The Flathead Valley Ski Education Foundation would like to thank it’s major sponsors, the Sportsman & Ski Haus and the North Valley Hospital’s Base Lodge Clinic for their continued support.

Tommy Moe Series Begins with a GS on Sunday Jan 22, 2012

Just a quick reminder to all that the Tommy Moe Series kicks off this week-end (Sunday) with a GS…

THIS IS A GREAT RACE SERIES TO PARTICIPATE IN!
See the link below for the schedule and more information...
See more here:http://skiwhitefish.com/programs.php (click on the Tommy Moe Tab)