Kitzbuhel Time

[James]

That time of year again for the Hahnenkamm and the slalom race.

Steve Nyman was 2nd in training today, .08 back.
Bryce Bennett and Thomas Biesemeyer were 20,21.

https://data.fis-ski.com/dynamic/results.html?sector=AL&raceid=91532
On the course:
"Fast, exciting, scary"
On the first time:
"...I was just fired up because I made it down. I was alive."
-Bode

 

[Muleski]

Jared Goldberg 11th.

Not normally a lot of correlation between training times and race day, BUT.....Jared must be healthy. He's been kind of banged up.

And Steven Nyman's skiing is really interesting. He's been rehabbing and slowly coming back from his serious knee surgery {three ligaments}. I understand that the team told him to take as much time as needed on snow to be comfortable, have his timing right, etc.

So two easy trips at Val Gardena and Wengen. I assume that he's trying to time plateauing at the Olympics. Seems strange to me that he'll throw it down at Kitz, other than the fact that it's the granddaddy of them all, and this is likely his final season.

The only two on the calendar before the games are Kitz and then Garmisch, where Steven crashed hard last season.

He's been a class act for a long career. Hope the rest of the season goes well for him. He deserves it.

BTW, I'm rooting for Wiley Maple. Dropped from the USST, Aspen guy racing as an independent. Wiley is {or should be} in the mix for the 4th spot in Korea. Needs to do well in the next two and have the two SG guys, TB and AW, not exactly kill it. Tommy B has recently skied real well in two EC DH's. I wonder if Andrew will race this DH.

 

[James]

Ah missed Jared Goldberg. 1/100th off Svindal's time.
Weibrecht trained today- 45th.

 

[Muleski]

I would not read a thing into the training "results", other than that barring a miracle, AW has probably raced his last competitive DH. These days are also not quite the same as race day.

I'm watching to see what happens with Nyman, and if something has suddenly clicked with TB. Jared and Bryce are real solid and developing very nicely.

It's a strange year for our men. Might see an effort to win a medal in the last Olympic combined. Actually that's a question.

We know that FIS is killing off the combined at the WC, and I believe the EC and continental cup {NorAm} levels. I have presumed that means the Olympics as well. But I don't now that. Just an assumption. Could be entirely wrong. Easily.

 

[James]

So Weibrecht won't go on race day?

 

[Muleski]

He may. I bet he will, but you never know. He's been coming back from injury, and before that had raced twice in DH. 51st at Lake Louise, 54th at Beaver Creek. Has one top 20 in two years, one other 28th.

He's just not a competitive DHer at this point. Some think that getting married and having kids does not help American DHers sharpen their focus. I'll leave it at that. Same conversation about Nyman, though that was a darn fast training run.

I suspect we'll see him give it his best in Korea, and at US Nationals, both in the SG. Then, retire to run the family biz: the Mirror Lake Inn in Lake Placid. A hunch.

Important to remember, right now, this is their job. They are well paid with their current contracts. Those would presumably drop off "considerably" were they to continue in the sport.

More of the same. The team is fragmented. Those at the end of the road, even hanging on, and the young ones. Middle years are almost vacant.

 

[James]

Some think that getting married and having kids does not help American DHers sharpen their focus. I'll leave it at that. Same conversation about Nyman, though that was a darn fast train

Bode and Lance talked about the kid effect. They both agreed by the 3rd or 4th kid, can't remember, you're done. Just not willing to take the risks either cycling or skiing.

 

[Muleski]

Some would say with the first child, if you think it through. I imagine it depends on the person. I know that my life changed forever, in the best way, with the birth of number one.

 

[James]

Short video on Canadian Brian Stemmle and his horrible crash in 1989. Without helicopter rescue, he'd likely would have died. Skiing the Steilhang, the right turn before, has been called "like skiing around the outside of a basketball".


Nineteen years later Bode would ski off the wall in that section. Amazingly, he came down and tied the leader, Mario Schreiber. They'd be beaten by 0.27 seconds by Didier Cuche who would go on to beat Franz Klammer's record of 4 victories on the Streif with his 5th in 2012 at age 37.

In Italian
"Mama mia!"

 

[Started at 53]

I think it would be a good test for Lindsey to race the men



If you have not watched the movie, Streif, One Hell of a Ride do yourself a favor and watch it before you watch this weekend’s race. It really puts things in perspective. I know guys like @James @Muleski have seen it, but for any that haven’t it is amazing.

 

[James]

Yes, watch The Streif!
Here's a new series, American Downhiller. Former and current US team members. This one, episode 2, has a lot on Kitzbuhel.

 

[Primoz]

Bode and Lance talked about the kid effect. They both agreed by the 3rd or 4th kid, can't remember, you're done. Just not willing to take the risks either cycling or skiing.

There were some more or less correct calculations for Formula 1. They said once you get a kid, you are, if I remember right, 0.1sec/lap slower then you were. With another kid you add another 0.1sec/lap. I'm not sure number is correct, as for not important things my brains do lot of filtering , but it was so big number, that even with one kid, you have very very little chance to be competitive. And I don't see any reason why it would be different in DH or any other sport, where it requires for you to take huge risk.

 

[Erik Timmerman]

https://www.redbull.com/at-de/max-vs-streif-galerie-die-besten-bilder?linkId=47041161

I can't wait to see video of this insanity.

 

[Ron]

anyone know what network this will be televised on?

answered my own question.



EDITED- past years schedule.


also, please check your local listings as I found that the olympic channel is broadcasting much of this

 

[Stephen]

https://usskiandsnowboard.org/news/kitzbuehel-airing-nbcsn-and-universal

This is a link to the 2015 info

 

[Ron]

thanks @Stephen. appreciated. I did find most of the race will be broadcasted on the Olympic Channel but also NBCSN

 

[givethepigeye]

If only your cable provider would let you watch Olympic Channel *sigh*

 

[Rudi Riet]

FWIW, the following online streaming services carry Olympic Channel:

YouTube TV
PlayStation Vue
FuboTV

They're all pay-to-play, but they carry the channel. Some even allow "virtual DVR" to watch things later (I know that YouTube TV offers this).

 

[4ster]

I was there on an Instructor exchange in 1981 to watch. It was scary enough from behind the weak, wooden picket fence!
I rode the Tram to the start with a bunch of the racers, when Fleischer refers to it as the morgue in the video posted above he hits the nail on the head. On the ride up no one said a word, just a bunch of intense, solemn game faces.
Canadian Steve Podborski won that year. Phil Mahre & Ingemar Stenmark ran it that year for points. IIRC, Phil had a top 10 finish & Ingemar was in the 30's barely ever even attempting to grab a tuck.

 

[RachelV]

FWIW, the following online streaming services carry Olympic Channel:

YouTube TV
PlayStation Vue
FuboTV

They're all pay-to-play, but they carry the channel. Some even allow "virtual DVR" to watch things later (I know that YouTube TV offers this).

Not to totally derail this thread, but just want to +1 YouTube TV. Awesome service, and you can stream on up to 3 devices at a time so you can split the $35/mo with friends in your area. It has whatever sports channel the WC races are always on, too (blanking on the channel name at the moment).