U.S. Nationals: Training runs axed; SL set for Friday

Thursday’s training runs ahead of the Nature Valley 2008 U.S. Alpine Championships at Sugarloaf, Maine, were canceled as continued snow and ice pelted the area.
    Conditions actually were considerably better than had been anticipated with predicted high winds not materializing. Officials were optimistic the training would get run. Athletes were sent up the hill for inspection and officials in place for scheduled starts at 1 p.m. for women and 2 p.m. for men. But at 12:40 the races were called.
    “Visibility was satisfactory, and the nets were in good shape but the snow was very granular and it was impossible to get it all off the course,” said Walt Evans, the U.S. Ski Association’s Director of Competition.
    The resulting schedule change will have the championships open a day early with slalom races for both genders on Friday.
Thursday’s training runs ahead of the Nature Valley 2008 U.S. Alpine Championships at Sugarloaf, Maine, were canceled as continued snow and ice pelted the area.
    Conditions actually were considerably better than had been anticipated with predicted high winds not materializing. Officials were optimistic the training would get run. Athletes were sent up the hill for inspection and officials in place for scheduled starts at 1 p.m. for women and 2 p.m. for men. But at 12:40 the races were called.
    “Visibility was satisfactory, and the nets were in good shape but the snow was very granular and it was impossible to get it all off the course,” said Walt Evans, the U.S. Ski Association’s Director of Competition.
    The resulting schedule change will have the championships open a day early with slalom races for both genders on Friday. The FIS downhills originally scheduled for Friday have been canceled, but Evans said the full slate of national championship races, eight races plus two combineds, are still on the agenda. Training runs are mandatory for downhill racing, and that has been pushed to Saturday with the downhills now scheduled for Sunday. Under the current plan super G’s would be held Monday, the men’s GS on Tuesday and women’s GS Wednesday.
    Two combineds are also scheduled to be scored, based on results from the downhills and slaloms.
    The snow surface was particularly difficult. Evans said when coaches first got to the start early Thursday morning they were skiing very tenuously, concerned about injury from catching edges.