I sat with the other athletes in the start house at the top of the Hahnenkamm as the race began and we watched the first racers attack the course on the TV screens. Tensions are always high in the lounge area as we all wait for our shot at arguably the biggest race of the season. I always feel torn between watching the others on the screen versus staying focused on my own race plan. I had been struggling through the downhill training runs to ski with full confidence, and was also feeling like something was a bit off with my equipment as I struggled to get the grip I was looking for on the more icy and chattery snow. It’s a difficult feedback loop to break when the equipment doesn’t feel right but you know the skiing also wasn’t your best. Ultimately, I knew that even with some adjustments to my equipment I would still need to charge harder right out of the start gate on race day. As the race began, I was undecided about whether or not to watch my teammates race before me; I like to see how they execute our plan, but I often find it more nerve-wracking to watch my buddies go. I couldn’t help but keep my eyes on the screen as Cam Alexander raced down into second position, which fuelled my excitement. I put all my equipment on as the clock ticked closer to my start time, and was about to walk outside to get warmed up when Jack Crawford pushed out of the gate. I turned away from the screen, having decided it was too close to my own run to keep watching. Then I heard some exclamations as Jack got to the first split with the green light. I turned back and watched as he continued to hold the lead through the next couple sectors. I wanted to walk away and focus on my own pre-race routine, but the whole start house was on the edge of their seats as Jack approached the finish with a narrowing lead. He crossed the line with the green light, got a cheer from all the remaining athletes, and I walked towards the door with a smile on my face thinking “that was wild, my buddy just won Kitzbuhel”. I walked outside to where our physio and Jack’s serviceman were high-fiving and cheering. We were all a bit awe-struck that our team currently had two guys in podium position, but of course I still had a job to do. To his credit, our physio came over to me and quickly put on a straight face as we went through my warmup routine and got a course report from the coaches. It was my turn, and I was eager to chase the performances my teammates had just put down. The last thing I told myself before pushing out of the start was “attack”.
I definitely skied better than I did in the training runs, taking a step in the right direction with my approach. I still made some small mistakes which cost me, and in the end the 23rd place result was nothing special. Although I was disappointed I fell short of what I knew was possible that day, it was pretty hard to feel down as I greeted my teammates in the finish area. The race eventually came to an end, and for the first time in over 40 years our team stood in the finish area as two Canadians climbed onto the Hahnenkamm podium. It felt surreal to hear our national anthem play as the guys stood with the final pitch of the legendary Streif as their backdrop. With a historic day like that, we all knew it was going to be a great night of celebration at the Londoner…
The next stop on the calendar was Garmisch the following weekend. I was feeling determined to use that weekend to get my skiing back to where I wanted it, to find the feeling of being loose but hungry to go fast. It seems it wasn’t meant to be this year, for Garmisch threw everything at us from heavy snow, to rain and thick fog. Both training runs were cancelled, meaning there could be no race on Sunday. We managed to take the opportunity to train on the upper part of the downhill track on what would have been our race day, and with that as our final preparation, we packed up and headed for the Saalbach World Championships.
The vibe at an Austrian World Championships is wild. Every day the village was packed with fans, and the music blasted all around our hotel late into the night. It’s always a heavy week for the athletes with three scheduled downhill training runs, the super G, and the downhill race all in a row. With that schedule, it’s important to find time for recovery in the afternoons, which isn’t so easy when your entire hotel room is vibrating from the bass of the music outside.
The downhill course in Saalbach has a mix of terrain, beginning with a steep pitch on the top half, then more mellow terrain through the bottom with lots of tricky fall-away turns. These were crucial for carrying your speed to the bottom, as any bit of time lost from a poor line was impossible to make up in the lower section. I certainly had my struggles through the week when it came to linking all the sections together, but that was only a small part of our team’s difficulties. In the second training run, we lost Cam to a season-ending knee injury. It was a tough blow for us to lose one of our team leaders, especially after he had been looking so solid all season. We did our best to refocus on the task at hand, for which we had very high expectations following our most successful World Championships two years prior. Medals were the clear goal, but with that comes pressure. I will admit I felt the pressure of that expectation on the morning of the super G race. The air was slightly tense, and more serious than usual. Although I pushed out of the start gate with full intention to charge and attack, I quickly found myself slightly on my heels and hesitant. I know I always perform at my best when the mood is light and I can simply let go and lean into the challenge in front of me. In hindsight, I was choked that I hadn’t been able to recognize this before the race and find a way to lighten that burden of expectation we were all feeling. Despite my best efforts to get in that headspace before the downhill race, I still struggled to get out of my own head. The performances felt a bit too forced, missing the ‘presence in the moment’ I was able to find in some of my better races in the early season.
Our team dispersed after World Champs for a short bit of time off. I think we all left Saalbach in disappointed spirits, knowing we could have done so much more especially after the high that was Kitzbuhel. I was at least able to end the championships with a fun experience in the inaugural team combined event, racing the downhill portion and cheering for Erik Read as he came down the slalom run. It was a new experience to be in the finish area with all the other downhillers as we heckled each other and cheered for our fellow combined partners. I look forward to more of those events and especially being able to field more Canadian teams. For now, I think we are each looking for our own way to hit the reset button in a sense. There’s plenty of racing left this season and we’re hungry to finish strong. Up next is Crans Montana, which will be a new track for us, cut in preparation for the next World Championship in 2027. My goal is to find that race pace again, where you feel like you leave it all on the slope each time you race. Thanks to all those who continually support me in the pursuit of better, and I hope to give you something to cheer for in the coming month.
Cheers,
Brodie.
