Hard-charging Leanne Smith joins the Slytech team! For those of you who don't know her, here's a little introduction.

BIOGRAPHY
Olympian Leanne Smith followed her older sister Laurel into skiing, latched onto racing and has kept shaving microseconds from her time. A NorAm champion and topflight junior skier, she inked a spot on the World Cup elite after finishing 23rd in her career first World Cup start, which also happened to be the first downhill of the 2008 season.

Coming back from injury is never easy, but it didn't slow Smith in 2010. After missing the latter half of 2009 with a torn ACL, this Granite Stater linked World Cup points in seven races (scoring in downhill, super G and super combined) and notched a Europa Cup downhill win en route to three top five finishes at her first Olympic Winter Games. Then she won the U.S. downhill title.

Early summer, she was nailing the Center of Excellence with a bit of rehab following a minor knee scope and a procedure to remove a screw from her ACL surgery, but all things are pointing in the right direction and Smith was full speed by New Zealand.

LEANNE SAYS
It was definitely cool to be a part of the Olympics for the first time, but I didn't want to just be a part of the team, I wanted to kick some butt and I think I could have skied a lot better.

I'm proud of my season and things are coming along. I was more consistent towards the end of the year and feeling more confident. I got my butt kicked in the gym this summer doing a lot of things at the Center of Excellence and I made the switch to Rossignol, which I'm really positive about. I'm psyched on our new coaches and I'm excited about next season and the few after. I'm ready to do some damage.

FIRST TRACKS
On skis at six, Smith followed sister Laurel into skiing at Cranmore, the heralded Mount Washington Valley ski area made famous when instructional legend Hannes Schneider arrived from Austria in 1938. Smith skied for Cranmore’s race team until she entered Kennett H.S., where she continued racing. She spent a year at UNH and took leave for Winter ’07 when she moved to the Mount Washington Valley Ski Team...and erupted for a breakout season as a double NorAm champion.

OFF THE SNOW
Smith is in her third summer taking classes at Westminster. It's easy to stay motivated on school and working out with roomies/teammates Alice McKennis, Julia Ford, and Hailey Duke around. Spends as much time back East as possible, especially kicking it in NH during the month of May, which for some reason always has amazing weather.

Biography:
Formerly coached by four-time Olympian and skiing great Casey Puckett, the resume' of Alice McKennis reflects a thing or two about speed events. Evidence: McKennis claimed multiple World Cup top 10's in downhill, finished 20th in the World Cup DH standings and made the 2010 Olympic Team in her rookie World Cup season.
Coaches, fans, journalists and other athletes took notice immediately when McKennis landed 18th and 10th in the season opening World Cup downhill races in Lake Louise. But they really started paying attention when she backed those up with World Cup points in six other races, including a downhill ninth in St. Moritz, Switzerland just prior to the Olympics.

A fluke disqualification in the Olympic downhill placed a minor ding in her season, but didn't stop a 20th place result in the overall World Cup downhill standings rocketing this young star from the U.S. C to A Team status. Guessing she's OK with skipping a step.

a-mckennis-6

◄ Back

Next ►

Picture 1 of 6

ALICE SAYS
When I think about my season I can not believe how it has gone for me. My biggest accomplishment was making the Olympics. I had always dreamed about going to Vancouver as a kid but as it got closer it only seemed more and more difficult to reach. I remember looking at the Olympic and World Cup Finals criteria last fall and thinking there was not much of a chance of me going to either event.

Coming into last summer during the prep period in New Zealand, Chile, Austria and Colorado I was often the slowest in training. This was not exactly the best way to enter an Olympic season where everyone is gunning it to reach the same Olympic goal as you.

So I set my sights on trying to score in the top 30 in my first World Cups and then things went about 10 times better than I had hoped! After my tenth place in Lake Louise I thought there was no way that I would reach the top ten again this season and then I did one place better in St. Moritz. I ended up scoring in six out of eight World Cup Downhill races; two top 10's, one top 15, two top 20′s (plus a 16th in Garmisch) and two top 30′s Although the Olympics did not go quite like I had hoped I learned so much from them and it was such a great experience for me. I am so proud to be an American and represent my country even if I did not perform to my best ability.

FIRST TRACKS
McKennis grew up on a hay and cattle ranch, but she lived close enough to the mountains for her future career path to make sense. Her father Greg took her to Sunlight Mountain Resort in Glenwood Springs for the first time before she had even turned two. She began racing at age five, following her older sister Kendra, who later competed on the FIS (minor league) level for two seasons. At about the same time, tragedy struck, when the girls' mother Jill died in a car accident. The family continued to ski as a way of coping with the loss. When she was nine, McKennis joined Ski Club Vail, the club that, at the time, was nurturing the all-around skills of Alpine star-in-the-making Lindsey Vonn. McKennis watched in awe as the U.S. Ski Team phenom - who was five years older than her - tore down the slopes, and took some valuable mental notes. After several years of bouncing around different ski clubs in Colorado, McKennis landed with the Aspen Valley Ski Club. One of her coaches there was former U.S. downhiller Casey Puckett.

OFF THE SNOW
McKennis was a competitive equestrian competing in jumping, cross country riding and dressage until she was about 14. Now a full-on member of the U.S. elite she made the move to Park City in order to take advantage of both the Center of Excellence and also pick up some classes via the U.S. Ski Team scholarship program with Westminster College in Salt Lake City. Summer activities also include mountain biking and the occasional whitewater rafting trip.

Andy Phillips has a bit of a different story to tell than most ski race athletes. Soft-spoken Andy Phillips is a prime example of the U.S. Ski Team National Development System. A development teamer in 2007, he was upgraded to the U.S. C Team after the 2008 season, but turned down the nomination in favor of a two-year LDS mission in Oslo, Norway for the 2009 and 2010 seasons.

He's back to skiing and already impressed coaches at the spring on-snow camp in Mammoth Mountain, CA. In between working out at the Center of Excellence in Park City, Phillips is taking classes at Westminster College during the summer months before heading to the Southern Hemisphere for some more time on-snow before getting into the competitive season.

ANDY SAYS
Living in Norway for the past two years was one of the best experiences for me. It gave me a chance to grow up and gain discipline in some areas in which I was lacking, and will attribute to my skiing success.

Being out on your own in a different country and not knowing the language is a difficult situation, but because of these circumstances I was able to push myself to learn the Norwegian language and acquire much needed skills.

As I came home from my mission, I did not know what to expect when I got back on skis at our Mammoth camp, but I knew that it would take much longer than two years to take ski racing out of my system. After some much needed free skiing with Sasha and a few days to compose myself and find my balance, I was able to get back up to speed and begin where I had left off in 2008. I now look forward to some more skiing this summer and to the start of next season.

FIRST TRACKS
Phillips started skiing when he was two years old with his dad at Snowbird, Brighton and Alta. He started racing at the age of five. He grew up at the base of Little Cottonwood Canyon in Sandy, Utah. He got his start at The Waterford School then moved to Rowmark Academy in Salt Lake City. Then he turned to the Park City Ski Team before joining the U.S. Development Team in 2007 and jumping to the C Team the very next season.

OFF THE SNOW
Phillips plays the violin and piano. Stays summer fit by wakeboarding, hiking and swimming. Biking, yes please – road and mountain. Grabs a good book from time to time and loves kicking back with his family.

Slytech Nervous Arm Guards for Super G

I was recently up in Squaw Valley, California with Slytech user Julia Mancuso At her pre-Olympic training on home turf.

The race department at Squaw was amazing, turning on the Exhibition Hill's flood lights at 6am so that the team could setup gates for Julia. 4 event alpine ski racer and men's US Ski Team member Travis Ganong was on hand to provide Jules a race partner. Sporting his nervous arm guards in Super G, he kept a really tight line and slapped the gates as he flew by. He's freaking fast!

Travis has a lot of career ahead of him and we wish him all the best!

Interesting to see how the girls tend to give themselves a little more room around the gates of a Super G, versus the men take a tighter line, making an arm guard almost essential. Not sure hitting a gate at 70mph is a fun experience!

Custom Lights Arranged at Squaw

A Racer's Dream | Your Own Training Setup

Coaches Setting Up

Kicking out of the make-shift start gate

Are you a ski speed freak? Then you have to see this teaser to the upcoming release of Truth In Motion: The U.S. Ski Team's road to Vancouver a documentary film to hit TV in the USA on January 30th.

It's scheduled to air on Jan. 30 at 8 p.m. on NBC, followed by an encore showing on USA Network on Feb. 6, the film chronicles the trials of select members of the U.S. Ski Team as they prepare for Vancouver in 2010.

If the visuals are anything like the teaser suggests, then this should be a MUST-SEE for any ski buff.

Check it...

Olympic alpine athletes will be selected primarily from individual race finishes on the 2009-10 Audi FIS Alpine World Cup. The top two athletes, by selection criteria, have a guaranteed start right in that respective event. Athletes must be ranked in the top 500 in the world on the FIS Points List to be eligible. In addition, athletes in speed events must have a maximum of 120 FIS points.

Selection Period: Oct. 23, 2009 – Jan. 25, 2010 Team Size: Maximum of 22 (max. 14 per gender) Team Nomination: January 25, 2010 Event Quota: Up to four U.S. athletes per event Top Criteria:

1. One or more top three World Cup finishes
2. One or more top 10 World Cup finishes
3. Total Audi FIS Alpine World Cup points in an event

Click here for complete details of alpine selection criteria.

http://www.ussa.org/magnoliaPublic/dms/documents/2008-09/10-OWG-SKI-ATH-Alpine-FINAL/10%20OWG%20SKI%20ATH%20Alpine%20FINAL.PDF

Slytech: Official Supplier

Author of Story: Doug Haney

PARK CITY, UT (Oct. 15) – It's been a busy late summer for the women's U.S. Alpine Ski Team. Following a speed camp in Portillo, Chile the focus moved a few Andean valleys over for a technical camp in Valle Nevado. The name of the game: repetition.

"We eat, ski, sleep, eat, ski, hydrate, sleep, then do it again the next day," said Resi Stiegler (Jackson Hole, WY). "We had an awesome camp. The main focus was to get lots of runs under our belt, test out our endurance and just ski. No matter how hard you work all summer strengthening, there is nothing like skiing."

Joining Stiegler for the Valle Nevado camp was Julia Mancuso (Olympic Valley, CA), who was also in Portillo for the speed camp, Sarah Schleper (Vail, CO), Megan McJames (Park City, UT), Hailey Duke (Boise, ID), Kaylin Richardson (Edina, MN), Jessica Kelley (Starksboro, VT), Sterling Grant (Amery, WI) and Laurenne Ross (Klamath Falls, OR).

Resi Stiegler with Her Team

Author of Story: Doug Haney

Olympic Preview Set for Aspen

ASPEN/SNOWMASS, CO (Aug. 4) - World champion Lindsey Vonn (Vail, CO) and Olympic gold medalist Julia Mancuso (Olympic Valley, CA) will headline ski racing action in Aspen over Thanksgiving weekend, as the Audi FIS World Cup comes to one of the tour's most legendary classic stops in Aspen. It will mark the sixth straight season the women have highlighted the Aspen Winternational and the only American stop for the U.S. Ski Team women before the 2010 Olympic Winter Games.

Ski racing action opens on Saturday, November 28 with giant slalom followed by slalom on Sunday, but festivities will be planned throughout the week beginning on Thanksgiving Day.

"We are really pleased with the long term partnership we have with Aspen," said U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association Vice President Events Calum Clark. "It is a massive undertaking to prepare a World Cup slope for Thanksgiving weekend, but Aspen has always produced incredible snow conditions for what truly is a world class event."

Aspen has long been a classic stop on the World Cup with the town being among the most popular on the circuit.

"Aspen has a great history of World Cup racing going back to the origins of the series," said Clark. "The athletes love coming here and experiencing the great enthusiasm of this historic community."

While this winter will mark the sixth consecutive year of World Cup racing at Aspen, the town's storied World Cup history began in 1968 when the former mining town hosted its first World Cup race in only the second season of the tour. However, its roots in ski racing date back to 1939 when the mountain held the earliest sanctioned races. Later, thanks to the efforts of local skiing legend Dick Durrance, Aspen hosted the FIS Alpine World Ski Championships in 1950.

"Aspen Winternational is a true backbone event for our community," said John Rigney, Aspen Skiing Company VP Sales and Events. "The tremendous community support we receive is vital to the success of the World Cup. The races and surrounding events, in turn, are vital to the overall success of our season. Nearly 10 million fans watch Aspen Winternational live in Europe. There is no better message to these potential visitors and the rest of the world that Aspen/Snowmass has snow and is open for skiing. Plus, it’s just a fun kick off to our season."

Not only do the people of Aspen embrace the World Cup, but the athletes love Aspen. The relaxed setting provides a perfect venue for U.S. Ski Team athletes to spend the holiday with their families. International racers love it too as it gives them a great opportunity to work on some pre Christmas shopping.

"Aspen is such an incredible venue for racing," said Vonn, who became the most successful female skier in U.S. history last season. "The crowd there is always so supportive of all racers. I love seeing all the young racers with posters. We get such a boost racing in front of a hometown crowd. I'm hoping Vancouver feels just like Aspen."

Last season, Vonn was fourth in both slalom and giant slalom at Aspen while racing with a knee injury. The reigning World Champion in downhill and super G has World Cup wins in all disciplines except giant slalom.

"I was really hoping to get a podium at Aspen last winter and hopefully I can make it happen this year," said Vonn. "I feel like my slalom is really good after last season and I'm going to do some more giant slalom training this summer with the goal of scratching a GS podium off my 'to do' list before the Olympics."

World Cup racing begins October 24 with the annual giant slalom in Soelden, Austria followed by a slalom race in Levi, Finland before swinging to North America with the Aspen Winternational.