Spencer steps back into start house this weekend

A number of the U.S. Ski Team’s starters in Sunday’s World Cup-opening men’s GS race are making what some may call fresh starts in 2007-08 after battling injuries last season. Both Erik Schlopy and Jake Zamansky saw their campaigns end prematurely after getting hurt, but perhaps the most grateful U.S. racer to be stepping into the Sölden start house is Dane Spencer.
A NUMBER OF the U.S. Ski Team’s starters in Sunday’s World Cup-opening men’s GS race are making what some may call fresh starts in 2007-08 after battling injuries last season. Both Erik Schlopy and Jake Zamansky saw their campaigns end prematurely after getting hurt, but perhaps the most grateful U.S. racer to be stepping into the Sölden start house is Dane Spencer.
    Spencer, who isn’t yet 30 years old but is entering his 13th season on the U.S. team, spent the latter half of the 2006 season on the sideline and missed all of last year after sustaining life-threatening injuries in a February 2006 crash in a NorAm downhill in Montana. Spencer’s litany of injuries included two broken vertebrae, a shattered pelvis and a punctured lung.
    Spencer’s recovery was slow and grueling, but he was cleared by his doctor to resume race training last September, less than seven months after the crash. Since that time, Spencer’s been getting back into shape both physically and mentally while living in Park City.
    Ski Racing caught up with Spencer this week as he prepares for Sunday’s Sölden GS.

Ski Racing: Talk about your road back from the injuries in 2006. How do you feel physically and mentally right now?
Dane Spencer: Physically, I feel amazingly good right now. Besides the normal aches and pains, my body is great. My major injuries, especially those areas, have not bothered me at all. Mentally, I still have some hurdles to overcome before I am at 100 percent. Racing will be the final big step in this process. Every day of training is making things more automatic, both physically and mentally, and it will be exciting to see how this process works out for me in actual competition.

SR: How’s training been going this summer and fall? What was your focus during the off-season?
DS: Training has been great this summer. We had some great camps in New Zealand and here in Austria. Our group is very cohesive now, both athletes and staff, so it has created a real positive environment for my return to racing. During the off-season, I focused on the usual conditioning program, plus some added programs specific for my injuries. Besides that, I spent a majority of my time remodeling a home in Park City. No [hardgoods] companies really wanted to sign on the guy with a broken neck, so I had to find supplemental income. It was a very educational project, a lot of hard work, but in the end rewarding to learn some new skills. The house also turned out very well — now we just need to sell it!

SR: What are your emotions entering Sölden after enduring everything you have the past two seasons?
DS: I am trying to stay emotionally detached from my experience over the past 20 months through the race this weekend. I know I won’t be able to do this entirely, but I have to control my mental state as much as I can, otherwise it will be challenging to focus on the details come Sunday morning. This aside, I will never forget the significance of what I have overcome, and the debt of gratitude I have toward all the people that helped me to get here.

SR: Describe the support you’ve received from your teammates and coaches.
DS: The support has been awesome. Everyone has been really professional about focusing on what matters — skiing fast.

SR: Outline your goals for this season.
DS: My goal for the season is to re-establish myself in the top group in GS. I have returned to the sport to accomplish my most challenging goals, and they can only be achieved by attaining success on the World Cup circuit.