This post was written in fall 2020 for FIS Snowkidz. Since it’s publication in winter 2021, Alice McKennis retired from the US Ski Team. I see her online now coaching the next generation of racers, doing her part within the US ski racing pipeline.
When Alice McKennis began ski racing, it was because of her dad. “Like 99% of ski racers, I got into the sport because of my family,” shares McKennis who has been on the US Ski Team since 2008. Growing up in rural Western Colorado, the family skied at Sunlight Mountain Resort, a small, local mountain that was nearby.
McKennis, and her older sister Kendra, began racing because it was fun. Like many small mountains, Sunlight is a place where local families meet up every weekend throughout the winter to ski and socialize. And once the local kids can link a few turns, the first step in their progression is to join the mountain’s recreational Buddy Werner League.
Named for famed US ski racer and Olympian Buddy Werner who died at 28 in an avalanche, the Buddy Werner League is a recreational league that introduces young kids to ski racing, while building their skills in weekly clinics.
For most kids, ski racing is a fun, social way to build skills and make new ski friends. After a few years in Buddy Werner or another recreational program, many children move on, content to hit the park, chase powder, and leave mom and dad in their tracks.
But for some, the racing sticks. And it’s at this point, that they enter the “pipeline.”
The US Ski Racing Progression
Like every sport, the ski racing pipeline is a funnel, with lots of young athletes trying sports to see what sticks. Over time, the funnel narrows, as the focus on competition increases, along with the commitment of additional time and money. Following participation in a recreational league, the next step is a local club, then on to state and regional competitions, national competitions and beyond.
There are, of course, variations, with some kids racing on school teams, and others attending boarding schools where the primary focus beyond academics is reaching the highest level of competition.
One of the big challenges in the United States is that the US is so big. Regional differences in terrain, snow quality, access and culture have big impacts. “In the US, it’s harder to bring athletes together to train and compete,” explains McKennis, reflecting that in Austria, one might drive two hours and pass fifty ski clubs, while in Colorado a drive of the same length will take you past perhaps three organized clubs.
Dialing It In With Alpine Training Systems
Gareth Trayner, Director of Sport Education for US Ski and Snowboard, knows these challenges well. Recognizing that kids come into ski racing through diverse portals and at various ages, US Ski and Snowboard utilizes a flexible framework called Alpine Training Systems to create consistency among clubs, to support coaches, to help parents set realistic expectations, and to meet children where they are in terms of mental and physical development, technique, fitness and age.
Divided into six phases, Phase 1 begins with early childhood, ages 2-6 years, while Phase 6 applies to young women and men, ages 17 and up. And while chronological age is an easy way to divide kids into groups, the Alpine Training Systems framework is fluid, recognizing that young athletes will fall into several phases simultaneously depending upon their personal development and the time they’ve spent in the sport.
“The process isn’t rigid,” explains Trayner. “A racer may be in Phase 4 by age (roughly 11-16 based on gender), but have characteristics that range from Phase 3 to Phase 5.” Using a phased framework, coaches, athletes, and parents can assess athletes, evaluate progress and create a realistic, individual plan for each participant.
And while the ultimate goal is to create sustained success at the highest levels of competition, Trayner believes that the Alpine Training Systems framework also creates a ski culture — at every level — that is more fun and enjoyable and avoids burnout for both athletes and their parents.
Ski Racing’s Golden Goal
Edie Thys Morgan is a US downhiller who competed in the 1988 and 1992 Winter Olympics. She’s also the mother of two racers based in the New England, the epicenter of American ski racing. As a US Ski Team veteran and two-time Olympian, Morgan knows ski racing from multiple angles and believes in the benefits of skiing and competition.
“Skiing builds physcial, emotional and social skills, while also requiring problem-solving skills, sheer guts, and resilience,” says Morgan. “No sport serves up these lessons better than ski racing.”
Morgan sees burnout as a major challenge. “It’s really troubling for our sport to see people chasing it so hard and throwing money at it too early,” she explains. “There’s no need to keep up with the Joneses,” she says, using an idiom that means to benchmark ones success against that of one’s neighbor.
Instead, Morgan suggests that families and athletes consistently take the long-view when it comes to ski racing.
“Rather than burn out or quit out of frustration, just work on getting better as a skier, athlete, and competitor,” says Morgan, noting that the US Ski Team doesn’t have to be the end goal. “Success is just getting better, stronger and learning, It’s not always about results.”
McKennis agrees. “The results when you’re younger don’t indicate where you will be in 5-10 years,” adding that “skiing in whatever capacity you can is a really amazing thing.”
Ultimately, whether a child races for one year or sticks with racing well into adulthood (and even old age), the objective for US Ski and Snowboard is to provide build a supportive and fun environment, so that racers at all levels will want to stay in the sport for life.
“That’s the golden goal,” says Trayner.
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