AST Athlete Journal: Polly Lang
Hello everyone!
The past month has been busy and there is so much to recap. In terms of racing January was a challenging month. At Stratton, my first norams this season, I didn’t finish either of my first runs in the slalom and the GS was cancelled. Norquay GMC cup was a difficult race for me. I put in some solid first runs but I fell on the second run everyday. One happened to be into the finish timing and the finish volunteers, so fortunately I ended that series with at least one finish. Going into the Kimberly night slalom I wasn’t feeling entirely confident in my skiing after taking many falls. My run of misfortune continued and I didn’t finish my second run. Whilst Julia and Zoe raced the DH and Super g at Kimberly Makenna, Sean and I headed down to Bridgerbowl, Montana for a university GS race.
After a rough run of races I looked at Brigerbowl as a chance to finally do some skiing I was happy with. However the conditions in Bridger were not optimal, there was zero good surface and with every racer the rut just got deeper. As I was on deck to take my shot at the course I heard the start referee say the conditions were not safe enough to run the boys. Instilled with confidence I was determined to battle through the bathtub ruts. I had underestimated how difficult the conditions were and once again did not finish. The second run ended up being cancelled after both forerunners crashed. On the bright side, that DNF does not show up on my FIS profile. They determined the conditions were not going to improve and they cancelled the second day. So Makenna, Sean and I packed quickly and left that evening. 8 hours of driving each way for nothing… Well we did get to go to target at least!
Once home we had a couple of training days to prepare for the Nakiska race. It was nice to get back to my home hill for some awesome training. The Nakiska GS races went well. I finished both! And found myself 2nd overall and 1st u19 both days, On the second day the women’s team swept the podium. Instead of doing the super g Makenna and I had some valuable days of slalom training. This training was important as it’s some of our only training before a big block out east. I am currently on a plane to Toronto. Once we land we drive to the ultimate ski destination… Collingwood. Our trip starts in Collingwood for some FIS races, then we drive to Quebec to race Mont St. Marie and Camp Fortune Norams. Then head back to Collingwood for the Georgian Peaks and Osler Bluff Norams. I am hopeful with some improvements in my skiing these Norams should go better than the last (Vermont did set a low bar). Unfortunately unlike Vermont, if the conditions take a turn and races get cancelled there won’t be a target or trader joes to explore.
As the season ramps up I would like to thank the team’s sponsors Sporting Life, Karbon, GMC Dealers of Alberta and Mission Wealth Advisors, your support has been critical in making this season possible for everyone. And a big thanks to Fischer and my main sponsors… My parents!
I hope everyone is enjoying their season so far!
Polly
