![\"\"](\"https:\/\/danceonedge.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/07\/Aspen_downhill-ski-racing_John-Mattson.jpg\" "\\"Aspen_downhill")
<\/a>Masters Downhill race in Aspen Colorado.<\/p><\/div>\n
It was my turn to make the run, and I had already finished stretching and was mentally prepared to go blasting down a mile long course at a very high speed with rough snow and bad visibility.<\/p>\n
But the weather was deteriorating rapidly, so I put my jacket back on and jumped up and down to try to stay warm and loose.\u00a0 The minutes ticked by, and I tried to relax while concentrating on the course that I had memorized during the last few days.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m sorry to report that the last racer has been injured,\u201d the starter told us.\u00a0 \u201cThey are repairing the course, and we should be starting again, in a few minutes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt sounds like there is a very bad rut by the sixth gate,\u201d remarked one of the racers. \u201cThis weather sucks.\u201d<\/p>\n
My goggles were getting fogged, so I removed them and swirled them around in the cold air.<\/p>\n
\u201cOkay! The course is clear. Next racer,\u201d yelled the starter.<\/p>\n
I quickly removed my jacket and headed for the starting gate.<\/p>\n
\u201cRacer ready?\u00a0 Ten seconds…five…four…three…two…one…Go!\u201d<\/p>\n
The anxiety of waiting was finally over, and it was time to get focused.\u00a0 I took two good skating strides, quickly pulled into a tight tuck and tried to keep my skis flat.\u00a0 Flat skis don\u2019t track very well and are hard to control, but they glide very quickly, and speed is what downhill racing is all about.\u00a0 The visibility was bad, but I could still see the pine boughs that had been dropped to mark the course.<\/p>\n
\u201cStay low, stay focused,\u201d I said to myself, as I approached the first sweeping left turn.\u00a0 \u201cStart high and carve a smooth turn.\u00a0 Aah! Feeling good, going fast.\u201d<\/p>\n
The wind was starting to whistle in my ears, and the ground was flying by at a very rapid pace.<\/p>\n
\u201cGet ready for the first knoll! Got to pre-jump, and suck it up.\u201d\u00a0 Too much air is dangerous \u2014 and slow.<\/p>\n
Three down, and twenty to go as I headed into the steeps.\u00a0 My speed increased, and the visibility got even worse as I approached the scene of the last crash.\u00a0 I could barely see the ruts in the bad light, and my skis bounced radically as I struggled to carve the turn.<\/p>\n
\u201cOops!\u201d Too far back!\u201d\u00a0 I almost crashed, but somehow managed to keep my balance and rocket forward toward the next gate. The conditions and visibility improved as I reached the lower elevations, but the course got even steeper with the fastest portion just ahead. My skis bounced again as I tried to hold a good tuck and carve smooth turns on the rutted course. The last hill was the steepest, and I tried to prepare for the strong gravitational forces of the compression, which was probably the most challenging and dangerous portion of the race. My legs were burning with pain, as I flew over the knoll and used my last ounces of strength to pre-jump and carve my way to the finish.<\/p>\n
\u201cYow!\u00a0 What a rush!\u201d\u00a0 Adrenaline is a wonderful drug, and I had just gotten a huge dose of it.<\/p>\n
Twenty-four is a very late age to start downhill racing, but it\u2019s better late than never and the thrills were probably just as good or better.\u00a0 There was no pressure to make the U.S. team or win a world cup downhill. I set modest goals and competed against my friends, and we all shared a few beers after the races.<\/p>\n
The Aspen town race league was, and still is, one of the best racing programs in the United States, and the Town Downhill was the premier event.\u00a0 The race organizers borrowed a radar gun from the local police, and clocked a top speed of eight-five miles per hour on the steep hill before the compression.\u00a0 My personal speed record of seventy-eight was quite a ways back in the field, but I left with one of the best memories of my life.<\/p>\n
Table of Contents \u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n Link to buy books<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n World cup racer crashing on Aspen Mountain<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" \u201cTwenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn\u2019t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your … Continue reading <\/a>