AST Athlete Journal: Cole Merrett
Hey everyone, it’s Cole Merrett checking in for my final athlete journal of the season!
It’s crazy to think I’ve officially completed my first year on the Alberta Ski Team. This season was full of amazing experiences, new opportunities, and unforgettable memories that helped me grow both as an athlete and as a person. From traveling and competing to meeting incredible people along the way, I’m so grateful for everything this year brought. I wanted to take a moment to reflect and share some of my favorite memories and biggest learnings from an unforgettable season.
We started off our season in August this year in Saas Fee, Switzerland, where we had a three-week camp on the glacier, doing slow-speed technical drills to dial in the basics. This camp is a crucial stepping stone to get back into the sport after a couple of months off the snow. Following our stint on the glacier, we headed to Winterberg, Germany, where we spent 4 days indoors on a watered slope. This had to have been one of the coolest experiences, as you would have a two-hour session where we did 20 laps, having super high volume in a short time period. After this 4-week camp, I returned home and went to my first, last day of high school.
After grinding out school and getting back into the gym for three weeks, we departed for our second training block in Hintertux, Austria. Hintertux differed from Saas Fee, as it was a full winter destination with hard glacial ice. It provided a difficult challenge that beat your body up. Though it was very hard, it also drastically improved our skiing. Training on ice, which you needed your hockey skates for, made us very technically sound skiers. If you weren’t in the right body position, you wouldn’t stand a chance of turning the skis and making it down the hill.
As we returned from our second camp, we came back in time for Nakiska’s opening and got right into training on home soil. This had been the most skiing I had ever done before the race season, with almost 60 days on snow before the first race. I had made some big improvements in my skiing and was eager to get back into the starting gate. We flew up to Whitehorse, Yukon, where we had our first races of the 25/26 season. I was really stoked to score two personal bests, which showed the work I had put in really was paying off. From there, we flew back and competed in two GMC Cup regional FIS series, which concluded a three-week stint of racing before Christmas.
Following Christmas break, we started our two-month stint of racing, where we traveled to Quebec twice, throughout Alberta and BC, and down to the States for some NORAM races. As everyone does, I had some highs where I found success with good skiing but also had lows with frustration and bad performances. This season, I learned a lot about myself, the importance of headspace, and how much of an impact it has on my performances. One of the most crucial things I learned was the significance of positivity.
Throughout February, I had a three-week stint of bad races where I wasn’t putting down the results I wanted. Through this, I found the biggest thing I could do was to go into each new day with a positive attitude and expect a good outcome. I wouldn’t let any negative thoughts come into my brain and would only think about the task at hand. The biggest learning, though, was letting go of bad days. I made a rule for myself that if I had a bad day on the slopes, I could think about it for an hour or so following the race so I could reflect on what happened, but once I left the hill to go back to our accommodation, I wouldn’t allow myself to think of the negative. Instead, I’d remind myself of how good a skier I am and that I’m going to show everyone that the next day. A quote that really stuck with me this year was “Be committed to the process without being emotionally attached to the results.” ” To me, this means to trust the work you’ve put in and execute on the process, rather than focusing on the outcome. Things don’t always go as planned, but by being committed to the work I’ve put in, there’s always something to be proud of.
We were very lucky to have wrapped up the last bit of racing in the year close to home at Panorama, Nakiska, and Sun Peaks. Although it was definitely hard racing, I was happy to put down some good runs and conclude the year on a high note. Reflecting back on this year, I was really proud of myself for the hard work I put in the gym and on the hill to reach the goals I did. Although I fell short on a couple of my outcome goals, I felt my skiing was at the level; I just didn’t capitalize on the days that I needed to. Overall though, I had one of the most fun seasons of my life, and I got to spend it with all of the best people! As always, I want to thank the GMC Dealers of Alberta, Mountain Fire Foods, Genstar, Karbon Sports, Inspired Go, and Gear Up Mountain Sports. Your support helps make everything possible.
Thank you!
– Cole Merrett