Beaver Creek: Cuche wins training run; Nyman 2nd
Welcome to the big leagues, boys. Beaver Creek is known for having one of the toughest downhill courses in the world, but with little snow this season, the course is bigger and faster than years past — and that’s apparent by the results of the first downhill training run Tuesday.
Swiss Didier Cuche clocked the fastest time down a bumpy Birds of Prey track, followed by Steven Nyman of the U.S. and veteran Marco Buechel of Liechtenstein.
WELCOME TO THE BIG LEAGUES, boys. Beaver Creek is known for having one of the toughest downhill courses in the world, but with little snow this season, the course is bigger and faster than years past — and that’s apparent by the results of the first downhill training run Tuesday.
The Birds of Prey was on watch for the weakest. Even the toughest went down. World Cup overall leader Aksel Lund Svindal crashed going off the famed Golden Eagle Jump at the lower part of the course and was taken away on a sled and hospitalized with a 6-inch laceration on the back of his left leg and broken nose and cheek bones. The survivors, however, were Switzerland’s Didier Cuche, American Steven Nyman and Liechtenstein’s Marco Buechel who finished 1-2-3 respectively.
“Today, Golden Eagle was pretty fun,” Nyman said. “I went off that jump and didn’t expect it to be that big. I was soaring. We were all soaring. All the boys were saying it is a lot bigger than it’s ever been. … I was in the air forever.”
Cuche was exhausted at the bottom. “It’s tough,” he said. “Beaver Creek is always difficult and this year is less snow. Every roll was bigger.”
Many of the racers, however, were impressed that the course was in such superb condition. Especially since, as of yesterday, there was a 20-foot high pile of snow at the bottom of the run that was pushed up the hill. A winch worked on the Brink section of the course for 41 straight hours. All the fencing was put up Monday night, and it took 40 million gallons of water to finish it off. The white ribbon is thin but consistent at 8-10 inches deep top to bottom.
Some of the men took it easy, just to feel out the conditions. Canada’s Jan Hudec, who won last weekend’s downhill in Lake Louise, finished 41st. Marco Sullivan, who got second place last weekend, finished 48th.
“I was kind of cruising,” Sullivan said. “On the first run on a tough hill like this, especially with all the new terrain, there were some sections that I was going hard but on the flat sections and stuff I was just in a high tuck. Basically today was just to feel out the hill and hopefully with another training run tomorrow, I can start pushing the pace.”
The second-best American finisher was Bode Miller at ninth.
Get ready for a ride. If the above doesn’t sum up what the races will be like starting with the downhill on Friday, maybe this will. “It was humbling,” U.S. Ski Teamer Byron Friedman said about being back on the Birds of Prey.
About the Author: Pete Rugh
