ALPINE
FIS: Snowbasin
FIS athletes competed at Snowbasin Resort in two giant slalom races. These races were GS qualifiers for U.S. Nationals (along with Snowking races, scheduled for February). Top results came from Alli Rathfon, who finished seventh in the first race, and Lily Fitzgerald, who finished seventh the second day. Maddie Ferris was 10th in the first competition. Hayden Terjeson came in 14th on the second day of racing in the men’s category, followed closely by teammates John Blackburn and Spencer Wright in 15th and 16th.
Results
FIS Western Elite: Park City/Snowbird
FIS athletes were at Park City and Snowbird for FIS Western Elite races. The Park City races were changed from GS to slalom and were open FIS races. Snowbird slaloms were U.S. National qualifiers (along with slaloms scheduled at Snowking in February).
Top finishes:
Erin Smith: 11
Lily Fitzgerald: 7
Grace Pepin: 28
Molly Milgard: 27
Elizabeth Vanderkloot: 33
Cailin Chandler, 39
Charlie Lamb: 28
Carter Jendrezak: 36
Noah Leininger: 38
Max Noddings: 33
Matt O’Connor: 31
Jack Smith: 19
John Blackburn: 26
Jake Blackburn: 27
Bennett Snyder: 26
Hayden Terjeson: 23
Results
USSA/IMD: Wes Barron
38 SVSEF athletes competed in the Wes Barron Speed Series, an IMD Open Super G event, at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort. SVSEF had great results across the board, in large fields of 85-100 athletes in each event. SVSEF girls came out strong in the super G, with Sage Curtis placing second, Jessica Blackburn eighth and Saba Grossman ninth, for a total of three in the top 10. They again had a good grouping in the second super G, with Marit Kaiser in eighth, Saba Grossman and Sage Curtis tying for ninth, and Jessica Blackburn a few spots behind in 13th. Logan Lindstron and Lola Street both had good races, moving up from bib numbers in the 40s to 20th and 21st. Sage stayed steady all weekend, finishing seventh in the third and final super G and ending the series with three top-10s. Marit was 13th, Saba 16, Jessica 18 and Anhwei Kirk rounded out the top 20 in 20th.
Another athlete found the podium, this time in the men’s race. Ian Hanna finished third in the first super G. Finn Mallinen had a great race, landing in seventh, teammates Josh Blackburn and Nathan Gowe were ninth and 10th, and Ridley Lindstrom finished 12th. Leo Molter was the second U14 finisher in this race, and 29th overall. Finn inched closer to the top in the second race, tying for sixth. There were a couple more ties in this race; Josh Blackburn tied for ninth and Max Moss for 16th. Nathan Gowe had a solid race in 19th. Breaking the top 20 in the third race were Ian Hanna (7th), Finn Mallinen (10th), Josh Blackburn (11th) Ridley Lindstrom (13th) and Nathan Gowe (19th). Colin Hanna, a U14, finished 28th overall and was the second U14 finisher.
Results
IMD: Grand Targhee U14 Speed Project
Seven IMD athletes participated in the Grand Targhee U14 Speed Project, a camp targeted towards developing the education and application of technical and tactical components of a speed course. Now in its third year, the camp is offered to 12-14 year olds in the Intermountain Division. Athletes have access to quality, in-season exposure to specific aspects of a course, complete with video and feedback.
MOGULS
Travel Team: Deer Valley
The Travel Team were in Deer Valley for the Deer Valley Grand Prix. Athletes competed on the World Cup course Champion, in two singles events and one duals moguls event. Leading the team were Luke Rizzo and Sammy Smith, who both made overall podiums, and up-and-comers Toby Rafford and Tillie Babcock, who each rose to second place in their respective age groups.
Mogul Technical Director John Grigsby commented on the event and on the progression he’s seen this season. “I’m extremely proud of our athletes and coaches performance at this past event. Everyone in the west had a difficult start to the season; the lack of snow has made it hard for anyone to build a training venue. Our athletes’ hard work in the preseason really shows.” A special thanks to Sun Valley Company and mountain operations for helping us build a great training venue.
TOP RESULTS
Singles 1/20:
Luke Rizzo 4th overall / 2nd M17
Toby Rafford 2nd M15
Alex Austin 4th M15
Henry Buell 21th (overall)
Erik Babcock 5th M15
Samantha Smith 1st F13
Tillie Babcock 2nd F13
Rainey Wilson 5th F17
Singles 1/21:
Luke Rizzo 1st overall
Toby Rafford 10th overall
Samantha Smith 3rd overall
Duals 1/21:
Luke Rizzo 3rd
Toby Rafford 9th
Photo:
Toby Rafford 2nd place M15
Results
PARK & PIPE
IFSA Big Mtn: #1 & #2 Regionals at Snowbird
IFSA Big Mountain athletes finally had a chance to put all their training this season into practice at Regionals at Snowbird. Head Coach Conor Davis was pleased with his athletes’ foray into competition. “All of the athletes who attended the event at Snowbird this passed weekend surpassed my expectations! I saw sportsmanship amongst our fellow competitors, and we all learned a lot.” Conor was insightful when pointing to areas where there is room for improvement. Athletes are scored on lines, control, technique, fluidity and energy – foregoing hesitation, cranking hard turns, and being strategic with line choice all make a difference. That being said, SVSEF athletes put down solid results for their first taste of IFSA competition. Paris Pratt, Addie Rafford, Molly Kucher and Joe Goitiandia all found the podium throughout the weekend.
Best finishes:
Wilson Dunn: 12 (M15-18)
Hunter Diehl: 9 (M15-18)
Axel Diehl: 32 (M15-18)
Paris Pratt: 2 (W15-18)
Will Price: 25 (M15-18)
Addie Rafford: 1 (W15-18)
Joe Goitiandia: 2 (M12-14)
Molly Kucher: 1 (W15-18)
Esmee Verheijen: 8 (W15-18)
Video of SVSEF athlete runs
January 20 results
January 21 results
Alumni
AlumniSVSEF alumni, Chase Josey, won the Toyota U.S. Grand Prix halfpipe competition at Mammoth on Saturday, January 20. This event was key, as it was the last qualifier for the U.S. Olympic team. Three male athletes had already been confirmed for the team, leaving one discretionary spot. The national event was consolidated as high winds on Thursday prohibited the qualifier from taking place. Instead, both the qualifier and final took place on Saturday. Chase had the highest score from the qualifier, going into the final. In his first of three final runs, Chase threw down a cleanly executed and highly technical run, scoring a 94.50 – this was his winning run. The announcement was made Tuesday, January 23 that Chase officially secured the fourth spot on the U.S. Olympic Snowboard Halfpipe team, meaning he will represent the U.S. in Pyeongchang. Read the official announcement here.
Results
CROSS COUNTRY
Alumni
A number of SVSEF alumni are currently racing on the East Coast college carnival circuit. This past weekend, college teams from the northeast met at Sleepy Hollow in Huntington, Vermont, for the St. Michael’s Winter Carnival; 12 former SVSEF athletes competed, representing Bowdoin, UNH, UVM, Dartmouth, Middlebury and Bates. Day one was a 10k/5k classic, and day two was a 15k/10k freestyle race. Top results came from Peter Wolter, a freshman at Middlebury this year, who took second in the men’s 15k freestyle; Katie Feldman, who was sixth in the women’s 5k classic, and Sam Wood, who finished sixth in the men’s 15k freestyle. Katie and Sam are also Middlebury athletes. The next EISA competition is the UVM Carnival, February 2-3.
Results