Jumping Journal: March 19, 2006

Day 59.  The official end of the winter jumping season.  Granted that doesn't mean anything to me anymore since I don't ever stop jumping.  I'm a jumping fool,  Maybe I should say it more appropriately, I'm a Lunatic Fringe.

 

Made my way up to Lake Placid today for the annual Lead Dog ski meister competition.  It's always a fun meet that can bring out the true kid nature in some of the Lake Placid kids.  Maybe I should say it can bring out the V in some of the kids, not from Lake Placid.  I drove through some snow on the way up after leaving here under clear skies.  It seemed a little unusual to see the snow so close to home, 20 miles west of here, and to have it be clear at my house.  Something really doesn't seem correct about this concept.

 

After getting up and over the Green Mountains in Vermont I made my way out of the snow for a while until I started to get into the Adirondacks and found myself with some more light snow falling.  Once I got to the jump site it decided it wanted to snow even harder.  It kept the snow for most of morning.

 

I walked into the lodge at the base of the jumps and Larry Stone, head coach at Lake Placid, saw me and said how glad he was to see me.  He proceeded to pull the video camera out of his pocket as I about busted my gut laughing.  Both of us knew what was coming during the alpine part of the competition.  First though we had to get through the jumping.

 

After the comp was over on the K18 I got the jump suit on and headed up the lift to get ready for my first jump of the day on the K48.  The fresh snow was definitely going to make for slow conditions.  On the way up I yelled at the assistance coach, who was walking up the steps, about how crazy this is, last week was warm and this week was cold, normally it would be just the opposite.  Lion's Club meet normally has the cold weather while Lead Dog is generally in the 40's.  Not this year, this year everything has been tossed on its head.

 

I put on the skis and I'm about ready to head down the inrun for my practice jump.  I push off and flat out go nowhere.  I'm on the verge, but not quite sticking in place.  I had rubbed on some purple wax after I got to the jump.  I had forgotten to repack my yellow wax from the day before.  I'm not the kind of wax would have really made any difference.  Then again, I'm no wax buff by any means.

 

I stopped myself just in time before going over the edge of the top of the inrun, into the land of no return.  I pulled myself back into the position at the top and tried for it again.  I made my way on down the inrun and had a good jump going.  I landed somewhere aroudn 27 or 28 meters.  I rode the landing hill and it felt very smooth.  Truly the best I had ever felt on the 48.  I got into the transition and the only thing I can figure is that it was still a little on the stick side from the fresh snow that was falling.  I ended up going down on my face and sliding to a stop.

 

I get up to find one of my binding cords has come off completely and is laying by the ski.  The other ski saw the entire heel block come off.  I knew I was in trouble then.  I managed to get ahold of a screwdriver and with the help of one of the parents I managed to get both problems fixed just in the nick of time.  Right after the crash Larry radios down to one of the ski patrollers and told her to make sure that I was okay, he needed me to be ready to run the alpine course.  I could do nothing more but laugh my ass off.

 

As I head back up to take my first round comp jump I see one of the kids come down and he decides to put in a V.  Only this V is spread apart, WAY apart, at both the tips and the tails.  I had never seen such an over exaggerated V in all my life.  One of the other kids decide to do the old windmill technique.  That was the first time I'd seen anyone do it intentionally.

 

I go up and take my first comp jump and it goes fine.  I do notice the stickiness a little again right in the transition but I do manage to stay upright this time.  It was somewhere in the 26-28 meter range.  Several meters shorter than last week.  Second comp jump is pretty much identical to the first jump including the distance jumped.

 

Then it was time to change clothes and skis.  Time to get ready for the alpine race.  Now this isn't any alpine race, it's held on the K120 landing hill.  Not many alpine races are held on such a steep slope.  Since this is pretty much all that is available at the jump site it's what they have to use.

 

In the past three years that I have went to the meet, I haven't made it down the race course successfully as of yet.  I'm six for six on my butt.  Last year on the second run I ended up with the best looking side slide probably ever seen.  I ended up taking out one of the gates on the way down, and the whole thing was captured on video.  Hence why Larry pulled out the video camera very first thing he saw me today.  We both knew what was coming.  Or so he thought.  I hoped for something different.

 

After making my way up to the top I waited around until everyone else had their first run and then I got in the starting gate for my first run.  Everyone up top and down below was getting ready for the action that was about to happen.  The video cameras were rolling.  I start down the course and get to the first gate and goof up at the very first gate.  I end up clipping the gate in Bodi Miller fashion.  I ended up falling down.  I start to slide but quickly stop my slide since I'm still on the knoll and not on the steepest part of the landing hill...yet.  I hop back up enough so I'm back in the course and I continue on.  I'm doing pretty decent, managing to get the turns going pretty good.  I come down to just above the flush and lose it again.  This time there isn't a chance for a recovery.  There is only time to try to keep the slide under some symbolance of control.  Fortunately, I do manage to keep it under control.  I pass by Larry laughing my ass off, I'm pissed to say the least.  7 for 7.  Can I go 8 for 8.

 

I head back up, and on the way Larry yells up at me and sends my mind over the deep end.  I think, what does he want me to do, test the deflection boards, LOL!  I get up top and wait again until the I'm the next to last one to go.  Larry tells the starter to have me go last in case I take a gate out.  Who needs enemies with friends like this, LOL!!!

 

This time I try to take a bit of a higher line through the first gate and I don't clip the gate.  I continue on before losing it right after gate three.  I manage to get back up and continue on making it a couple more gates before I lose again.  This time there's no chance of recovery.  I'm down for the count.  I start sliding.  I'm noticing that I'm getting close to deflection boards but I manage to keep myself away from them.  8 for 8.  Guess I'll have to wait until next to try to break the streak once again.  DRATS!

 

Next it came time to change clothes and get ready for the cross country course.  I knew that since I was on the cross skis that I was going to make a for go at it this year.  It ended up being a lot better than yesterday.  I'm a little surprised how little trouble I had trying to keep my weight over the whole foot today.  Yesterday I found myself on several occasions falling behind.  Today it only a couple of times before the comp started and I still didn't get very far behind.  I ended up in next to last place in the cross country portion of the meet.  I definitely need more practice with the cross skis which I think I probably end up spending quite a bit of time on them this next week when I'm not out jumping.

 

To explain the alpine in a little better terms, I spend two days a year on alpine skis, at Mud Meet and at Lead Dog.  Otherwise I don't put on the alpine skis.  I'm skiing on the old straight skis, not the new shape skis.  The skis haven't had anything done to them in ages.  The edges are dull and even, in spots, rusted.  With the icer conditions that always seem to be prevelent at Lead Dog it doesn't help matters, yet alone the 37 degree slope.  Trying to even get any practice in on that steep of a slope isn't easy around these parts.

 

I do both Mud Meet and Lead Dog for the pure of being out there.  l do hope someday, in some lifetime to actually make it down that darn alpine course on the skis I have right now.

 

I have video that one of the parents took for me and hopefully I might be able to get it up on the net as well in the next several days, and if so I will post the link for the video of my lovely alpine runs from today.  The commentary by Larry is priceless.

 

Crash