Over and Out
It's been about 2 weeks since the last race series in Mission Ridge, which was my first time racing in the state of Washington. After flying to Seattle, I drove about 3 hours east to Wenatchee where I'd be staying for the race series. It was quite warm when I got there, approaching 70 degrees or even higher during the day. The city looked like summer! However, the snow conditions were perfect. There's a lot of moisture in the Northwest, and when the temperatures got cold enough overnight it can set up quite nicely. However, the race series did not go as planned. In the slalom, I was skiing quite well coming down into the middle section and caught a bump and blew out. The next two days of GS were plagued by the same mistake: leaning a little too much inside and sliding out. On hard snow or ice, you have to be really over the top of your outside ski and be careful of leaning your upper body inward. I just didn't do that, and slid out first run on the first day and second run on the second day - the last race of the season.
Overall, I'm quite disappointed with my season. After not really skiing much since the Olympics in 2014, it's been hard to get back into it. I felt like I was improving exponentially up to the races in Winter Park, only to have my ankle injury take me out for the next 4 weeks. After that, I didn't have the substantial training or confidence going into the last races like I needed to and paid the price. Results matter and they will continue to for the upcoming Worlds and other high-level events. The results simply did not come through this season, but I guess I have to look on the positive side. My skiing has improved significantly over the course of the year and I feel like I'm generally back into the swing of things. My body feels good, and I'm excited to push myself physically over the course of the summer to be well prepared for next season. The 2016/2017 season starts today!
I'd also like to give a thank you to my incredible sponsors for helping me out this year. Lindsay and Bangers and Mash have been so helpful over the course of the year, and it's been incredibly fun filming entertaining videos and promoting our cooperation all over social media. Also, thanks to Camp Chef for your continued support over the last few years and to Activated Nutrients for keeping me healthy during the season.
I'll be sure to keep you updated on my summer antics as I'm sure there will be one or two adventures here and there. Until then, I better put my head in the books; university final exams are coming up! Talk to you all soon.
/CL