The World Cup According to Grande: Women's bib draw in Levi

By Published On: November 13th, 2009Comments Off on The World Cup According to Grande: Women's bib draw in Levi

Ski Racing is pleased to introduce “The World Cup According to Grande.” This exciting new addition to our coverage of the White Circus will feature blog entries from former U.S. Alpine Ski Team Coach Greg “Grande”  Needell. Check back often for more from Grande.

Needell grew up ski racing at Stratton Mountain, Vermont. After graduating from SMS he skied for NCAA Division 1 St. Lawrence University in Canton, NY where he was co-captain in 1986. Greg returned to SMS to coach there for five years serving as the Head Women’s Coach as well as the Head J2 Men’s Coach. He then moved to Mission Ridge in Wenatchee, Washington in 1992 to become the Program Director and Head Coach of the Mission Ridge Ski Club. In 1997, Greg became the Head Coach at Mammoth Mountain, California.

In 2002 Needell was asked to join the U.S. Ski Team staff as a World Cup SL and GS coach. From 2002 to 2008 Needell helped lead the U.S. Ski Team Men to 43 wins, 105 podiums and 264 top ten finishes. Now at the helm of Alpine Race Consulting, Needell offers his knowledge and experience to clubs nationwide.


Women’s bib draw in Levi: What it means and why should we care?

The bib draw is an amazing thing. The night before most World Cups, all the best 15 in the race show up at a stage, usually with a band, and choose their numbers out of a bin, or a hat, or whatever folk art is popular in the area. And usually the bibs are delivered to the athletes by a local junior skier. But whatever happens, it is a huge party to get the thing kicked off.

In Levi it already happened today and local hero Tanja Poutiainen got the “hole shot.” It’s like Jimmy Johnson getting the pole in a NASCAR race in his home town. It’s awesome, and exciting. She will be amped for that first run like never before and it will be very interesting to watch the outcome. Schild got 2 which is ok but still a little too early for someone who has been out for so long. If I were her I would prefer 4 which is what our hero Lindsey Vonn drew. I think a perfect first run number in Levi. With the normal two-minute interval for the first group, she will have about eight minutes to get herself into the right mood. I have said this before and I will again. She’s a pro. She knows her job and she knows herself. I am very impressed with her entire approach to the sport. She will get it done here. Riesch is 5 which is good for both her and Lindsey as they are good friends and will likely relax each other. Sandrine Aubert(FRA) pulled 7 which is always disappointing but I don’t think it will matter much. She should be in the mix.

I don’t think the next group of 8-15 packs much punch for this race. Maybe Therese Borssen(SWE) will get something done. I can hope all I want for Manu Moelgg(ITA) but more as a fan and friend than an analyst.

Lindsey Vonn in LeviThe real meat of any World Cup first run is the rest of the field. Will late top 30 starters stay in the 30 and get a 2nd run or will the girls in the back bounce them out? Especially this early in the year. Some of them are ready and others are not. One of my favorites, Resi Steigler will be starting 27. She is finally returning to the regular World Cup tour after consecutive knee injuries. She will be racing on her 24th birthday and my 46th. We are Scorpios and we all know that scorps kill it on their big day. Resi will get a second run and move up into the top 15 for a nice start to the season. This is a great hill for her as it matches her grip and rip style. Hailey Duke out of Boise will start 29. This is a big deal as she is nursing an ankle injury and a later start number could really make her feel it. Sterling Grant, the NorAm champ starts 34 which gives her a great chance at scoring some points as well. Unfortunately, Sarah and Kaylin are starting in the weeds at 58 and 70 respectively and that takes a lot of risk, guts and luck to get in the flip from there.

The Canadians all have decent numbers and could all be there in the second run. Anna Goodman starts 25 and was very consistent last season. I think she will start to break into the top 15 instead of the top 20 starting tomorrow. Marie-Michelle Gagnon and Brigitte Acton start 35 and 36 and have a great shot at getting in there for a second run. If Brigitte can get it rolling early in the run and find her rhythm, she can be fast. If she struggles or bobbles early, she has a hard time bouncing back.

Some young girls to watch:
Christina Geiger(GER) She was born in 1990, yes that makes her 19 years old. She’s starting 32 and was 2nd in the Europa Cup slalom standings last year. Bernadette Schild (AUT) is also a 1990 year of birth and for Austria to bring her up to Finland for one race means they believe she can get the job done. The same goes for Nadja Vogel(SUI) who is also a 1990. Even younger are Elena Curtoni(ITA) who is a 1991 and Mona Loeseth(NOR) who is also a 1991. Both are younger siblings of established World Cup slalom skiers and I think that the younger brothers and sisters tend to out perform their older siblings.

Start times are 11 AM and 2 PM CET. Stay up all night and fire up the computers to check it out!

Click here to go to Alpine Race Consulting.

Vonn image by Gepa

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About the Author: Eric Williams