Racing season is in full swing

By Luke Kirchmayr EBS CONTRIBUTOR

BIG SKY – The Big Sky Ski Education Foundation Alpine team has had a very busy two weeks training and competing in races in both Big Sky, MT and in Jackson, WY. All in all, BSSEF athletes competed in 14 races in 11 days.

From Jan. 19 – 24, the International Ski Federation (FIS) athletes traveled to Jackson to compete in two slaloms and two giant slaloms. Conditions in Jackson were harsh with low visibility and an icy surface.

“The surface was very icy and was challenging to find grip, even with sharp skis.” Said Caleb Unger, a BSSEF athlete.

Despite the challenging conditions, the athletes were able to excel and score very well in all events.

While the FIS athletes were in Jackson, the U8-U16 athletes competed at home in the Big Sky Youth Ski League Tech Series from Jan. 14 – 17 with two giant slalom events and one slalom. Although the competition was very tough, the athletes placed extremely well in all categories. 

“The first race of the year is always hard to pull off, especially this year due to COVID,” said Tomás Rivas, head coach of BSSEF YSL. “It was a tough test and a preview into how this strange season is going to play out. All in all, everything went quite smoothly, and fun was had by all. Big thanks to all the volunteers. The kids gave all what they had to give, that’s what makes me happy. Now it is time to keep training.”

With the tech series coming to a close, the entire team is focusing their efforts on speed events, such as the super-G, as the team will be hosting their annual speed camp from Jan. 27 – 31. The camp will be hosting teams from all over the region and will finish with three super-G races.

Results from all recent races are below: