dustincook's Blog

30
Dec
Career Series

Its been almost two weeks since the races, but the Panorama Nor-Am series was the best series of my career (so far!). I felt really strong going into the series and had high hopes but the races went better even than I expected. (Video of the races?here.)?

I started the first Super-G with bib number 40 and I was really looking to improve on my 16th place finish from Lake Louise. I attacked from the start and made a few mistakes, but finished up 5th! I'm usually very reserved with my emotions but I let out a huge scream when I saw the result! It was my first top 5 (and top 10) in a Nor-Am race and it felt like it had been a long time coming. With the result I moved into the top-15 of the Nor-Am Super-G standing so my start number would improve dramatically for the next day.?

I was starting 12 in the second Super-G and I knew that if I could do it from the back I could do even better from the front. Unfortunately I hit some soft snow near the middle of the course and missed a gate. I was really disappointed for a while but after watching my video I was pretty happy that I didn't get injured with the sketchy maneuver that caused me to miss a gate.?

The GS races were the races I had been looking forward to for almost a month. Starting 19th in the first run I came down with a decent run and went into 7th place. I was happy with the result but I knew I had more in me so I put a lot more on the line in the second run and made some mistakes, but finished third in the run and moved up to third overall! I had promised my coach and my dad a podium in Pano and I had done it! I was ecstatic to say the least and excited to continue the momentum the next day.?

The second GS was more of the same in the first run and I would up 6th after everyone had gone. In the second run I had one of the best race runs of my life but a huge mistake 10 gates from the finish caused me to nearly miss a couple gates and cost me a ton of time. I still ended up 6th overall, 4 tenths from the podium. I couldn't be happier with the way the series went and I'm really looking forward to getting back to racing to keep my momentum going.?

I just spent the holidays relaxing and skiing at Mont Ste Marie with my family, and I head out to Sunday River, Maine, on New Years Day to train before the next Nor-Am races there which start on the 5th of January.?

Cheers
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30
Dec
Speed Week

I just finished up the best week of speed racing of my life so far in Lake Louise. Historically downhill has been my weakest event but this week it was feeling pretty strong. I was training really well in Super G this summer however and something seems to have clicked in downhill as well. I went into the Lake Louise races with no real expectations other than to hopefully make it into the top 30. Starting near the back (52) I thought this was a reasonable goal.??

I finished 19th in the first training run and was pretty surprised and happy. The second training run was moved down to a lower start after bib 14 due to visibility, and from bib 15-100 I finished 5th. My coaches and I were pretty excited about how I skied and the result so I was really confident going into the race. In the first race I had my best run of the week and had great splits until the final flats where I somehow lost a TON of time and wound up 26th. I was really disappointed because I couldn't figure out how I dropped so much time in the last 30 seconds without making any mistakes.. I tried to forget about it and finished 17th the next day even though I made a huge mistake coming onto the gunbarrell pitch.??

Yesterday was Super G which I have been skiing very well in all year. I had a great run going and was sitting 6th at the middle split (and I started 42) but made a brutal mistake on the pitch and nearly skied out. I managed to stay in but lost a ton of time and and ended up 16th. Considering the mistake I made, finishing 16th is pretty awesome but also disappointing because a top 5 finish was easily with reach.?

Right now I'm in Panorama for two Super Gs, one Super Combined and two Giant Slaloms. I'm really looking forward to this week because I know this hill and I know I can do really well.?

Cheers
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30
Dec
So The Season Begins

Just a quick update because it's late and I need rest!?

The preseason has been very successful! Nakiska had its ups and downs but overall it was significantly more positive than past seasons. The four days we spent at Panorama were some of the best I've had all year which is great. We had a chance to train with some of the World Cup technical guys and it was good to get a benchmark on where I sit.?

Tomorrow I head to Colorado for the first races of the season. They are four Nor-Am slaloms, two at WinterPark and two at Loveland. Wish me luck!?

I've uploaded a bunch of video and it can all be found on the?Videos?page.
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22
Nov
Nakiska Preseason

The last camp of the preseason is in full swing. Nakiska somehow managed to open up for racers with all of 3/4 of one run open! They have since opened half of another run with plans for both runs to be fully open in a matter of days. With that said the snow has been good and the terrain is super gnarly so the training has been great for the most part. We just finished our first block of three days of slalom and three days of GS. There are a bunch of World Cup teams here with some really good guys such as Didier Cuche and Marco Buechel to name a couple. We were also training with the Canadian World Cup men before they left to get some training in at Lake Louise. Cheers
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17
Nov
In Between Camps

Home sweet home! The second Farnham camp was almost a repeat of the first with brutal weather at the beginning (snow instead of rain this time which was nice) and nice weather towards the end. Unfortunately we didn't really see as much hard snow as the first camp but nevertheless we piled on the runs and the training was pretty decent. We had a chance to ski GS on the run that is normally reserved for speed which was a really nice change because it has more terrain changes and things to throw you off balance. The day after returning from Farnham I drove to Montreal for the annual SQA Gala. After the Gala I stayed in Montreal for the remainder of the week to visit some friends, catch up, and just relax! I am currently in Ottawa finishing up some schoolwork and doing some maintenance work in the gym. On Saturday I'll be attending the NCO Ski Team Auction where I will be auctioned off this year! The Auction is a really fun event with a ton of great items that you can grab for awesome deals so check it out (more info at the end of this post). After the Auction it's back to bed for a quick sleep before flying out to Calgary the next morning for two days of media events with Alpine Canada. Then finally back to business on the 11th! Pre-season training continues at Nakiska for a solid two weeks before my race season officially begins in Colorado at the end of November. Cheers NCO Auction: Date: Saturday, November 8th @ 6:30 PM Location: St. Joseph's Parish 151 Laurier Ave. Corner Cumberland & Wilbrod Admission: $5.00 / person More info: www.ncoski.com
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