Sam Morse / GEPA footage
Again to the Fundamentals of On-Hill Necessities
World Cup velocity skier and serviceman Sam Morse shares a tough race-day scenario—and the way he rose above it with the correct instruments and expertise.
Annually, the on-snow preparation of the Stifel U.S. Males’s World Cup Velocity Crew begins in South America. This season, we kicked issues off on the slopes of Valle Nevado, overlooking the gorgeous sunsets of Santiago, Chile. The coaching was stable however not spectacular—tender situations made it robust to extract a lot. So, I made a change, heading over to La Parva for the South American Cup velocity sequence. With higher snow on La Parva’s barely completely different side, it proved to be a clever choice.
Getting the possibility to race this early within the yr at all times helps me lock into the racing mindset and bear in mind what it’s all about. I had an superior downhill day—completed second, scored good FIS factors, and felt fired up for the following day’s two Tremendous-G races. My plan was easy: carry one pair of SG race skis and change edges between runs.
Upon kicking out of the gate, throughout my second skate movement, I noticed one thing darkish out of the nook of my eye. Already dedicated to my cadence, I pushed on—however the second my left ski slid into the skating groove and over the darkish patch, I knew I used to be in bother. It was a rock. My left ski lurched again underneath me, and I attempted to collect myself within the few turns earlier than the primary large bounce. It’s superb what number of ideas flash by way of your head mid-run. I did a fast test as I cruised by way of just a few glide turns—every thing appeared okay.
Then got here the thirty-meter bounce that lands right into a heavy compression left-footer. As quickly as I dedicated to my left ski for the primary actual check, there was nothing there. I had destroyed the sting. Many of the remaining difficult turns have been additionally left-footers, so I backed off and took it simple to the end, realizing that with out edge grip, velocity snowboarding turns harmful rapidly.
For the second race, I needed to discover a approach to repair my skis—with solely what I had in my backpack. I dug round and got here up with a unfastened file (no information or clamp), a stone, Scotch-Brite, and a gummy stone. That was it. It’s wild to assume that, again within the day, servicemen hand-filed every thing with out guides or machines. So, I took a deep breath and went old-fashioned—regular hand, guessing at about an 87-degree aspect angle.
First, I smoothed out the rock harm with the gummy stone. Then, I hand-filed the aspect and base with no information, going slowly and attempting to match the unique angles. After that, I used the Scotch-Brite pad to easy out any jagged edges from the file and lingering rock scars. Subsequent got here the diamond stone to set the ultimate sharpness. I at all times begin flat alongside the bottom edge, with a slight upward angle to match the bevel and contact the sting. Then I change to the aspect edge for just a few cautious passes.
As a result of the harm was extreme, I repeated the method—again to the gummy stone, then submitting once more—till I had it as regular as attainable.
As soon as happy, I marked the skis to remind myself to change to the undamaged edges for the second race. That meant conserving the unhealthy edge on the pinky-toe aspect, not the big-toe aspect. As luck would have it, the second race was canceled, so I by no means bought to check my restore—however I knew it might’ve been good.
That day was a great reminder: the uncertainty of an outside sport at all times retains you in your toes. Having the correct instruments and expertise issues when issues go sideways. Generally, it’s okay—and even good—to return to the fundamentals with a file, a stone, and a gradual hand.
See you on the slopes!– Moose
