Jumping Journal: January 25, 2008

Don't get run over.  Look both ways before you ski across the road.  Bad jokes like that must mean it's time to head to the White Mountains of New Hampshire and jump at the Kennett ski jump.

 

The jump that is used by the kids from Kennett High School in North Conway, New Hampshire sits practically dab smack on the Kancamagus Highway.  If you don't get stopped by the end of the short outrun you will find yourself going across the highway.  Yes, the outrun is quite short, the shortest outrun I've seen anywhere.

 

Their are two jump that both share the same outrun, a K25 and a K35.  The K25 is an all natural ski jump while their is a tressel on the K35.  Looking at the K35 jump tonight, for the first time in several years, it almost looks big enough to be a K50 landing hill.  Granted I'm use to looking up the K50 in Lebanon and looking at it from the side like I can the Kennett K35.

 

I met up with the Sunapee High School team for the two hour drive up to North Conway this afternoon.  I knew the jumping was going to b interesting to say the least.  I hadn't jumped the K25 before and only have  3-4 jumps off the K35, and they were probably back in 2004 time frame.  I knew before I intentionally took short skis with me to try to make stopping easier.  Today I was going to, reluctantly, stick with my 265's that I have been jumping on for the past several weeks.

 

We arrived at the hill and we were the first school to show up.  A few of the Kennett kids were there and the coach ws working on getting the hill marked for the meet.  He was thinking about using both jumps and it ended up being that instead of the usual best two out three that it was going to be two jumps on each hill.  It would be two separate competitions.

 

I suited up and headed on up the stairs up to the top of the K25.  I knew I wanted to get a couple jumps off it since I had the chance this time around.  The main meet was to be on the K25 and not on the K35.  The K35 would be an added bonus.  I watched one of the other kids take his first jump.  I wanted to see how smooth the inrun was by watching him.  Let him tell me what I wanted to know.  It did seem like he 'bobbled' in the transition on the inrun.

 

I put on my skis and got in the track.  I got the signal and headed on down the jump.  I whimpishly jumped at the takeoff and put in a decent landing and rode to a quick stop in the outrun, still upright.  NICE!!!  I didn't notice the same bobble effect the jumper before me made.

 

I walked back up top and went for the second jump.  This time I noticed that it seemed like I was getting way further to the left than what I wanted to.  MUCH FURTHER.  It turns out the track isn't set up to keep you going right down the center of the landing hill instead it sends you off to the left side of the landing hill.  I guess in talking with the Sunapee coach afterwards that the track is always like this.  I landed the jump but was sitting to far back going through the transition and lost it and fell down.

 

I got up and brushed the snow off and walked on up for the third and final jump on the K25.  This time before I started down the inrun I noticed the curve on the inrun that set the jumpers up to go off to the left side of the landing hill.  I headed down and jumped, and felt much better this time around.  I got into the outrun and tried putting in the hockey stop but just couldn't hold it on the harder/icer snow and ended up going down.

 

Now I do have to say many kids seem to end up losing it on the outrun unless they are the Kennett kids that train there all the time.  At least one of every two jumpers, especially on the K35 lay it over before they get stopped/turned around.

 

After a couple minutes to warm up by the bonfire I headed on up to jump the K35 for the first time in at least four years.  After a long wait up top the first group of jumpers, including me finally got their chance to jump.  My first jump was timid and I didn't really jump very hard at the takeoff.  I was mostly just feeling out the jump and hoping to keep my butt up so I didn't get back too far going through the outrun.  The only problem I had with the jump was the usual, trying to stop/turn around.  I laid it over again.

 

I went back and grabbed a second jump.  This time I had a shaky inrun, and that led to a jump that wasn't as nice as what I was hoping for.  Once again, the jump went smooth other than the outrun.  I was getting closer to holding it all the way to a stop but I didn't quite make it.

 

The third and final jump on the K35 went much better...at least on the inrun and in the air.  It was the further jum of the evening.  I couldn't even begin to say for sure how far I went but it was the longest jump of the day.  I almost made it all the way stopped but I didn't put quite enough pressure on the skis and ended up laying it over once again in the outrun.

 

Maybe next year, or the next time I make it back up to North Conway I'll get lucky enough to be able to get the stopping down on that darn outrun.  Maybe...just maybe.

 

So far it seems like I'm jumping some rather unusual hills for me this year.  I guess why stop now.  I hear next Wednesday I could get the chance to jump a hill I haven't jumped since the first weekend of 2002 if not before then.  Right now it's looking quite promising that I'll be jumping the smaller of the two 30 meter hills at Andover next week.  I have been jumping the K38 several times a winter for the past four or five years but I have jump the K34 since the start of my second winter of jumping.  This should be interesting.  The K38, always seems to have you jump high in the air.  The K34 should be quite interesting.  It's on the same tressel with a lower start and the takeoff four meters further down the landing hill.

 

I don't know if I'll be jumping this weekend of not, time shall tell.  I would love to keep this 11 day streak alive since the weather forecast is sounding in my favor right now for keep the streak alive through this time next week.  I guess I'll have to wait until tomorrow and see if any jumping opportunities come my way or not.

 

Crash