Men's Ski Team Hosts Teton Gravity Research's Re:Session

The men's ski team will be hosting the Rhode Island premiere of Teton Gravity Research's new movie Re:Session presented by The North Face, Rossignol, Dynastar/Lange, Oakley, Powder Magazine, Outside Magazine, and Jackson Hole Mountain Resort. TGR is one of the premiere ski and snowboard film companies in the world. The ski team is excited to be involved with this innovative company that continuously pushes the limits of our sport.

The showing will take place on Friday, October 23rd on campus in MacMillan Hall 117. Tickets will be available all week on campus in J Walter Wilson and at the door on the day of the show. Tickets are $6 for Brown students and $10 for the general public. All proceeds will be used to help offset annual ski team costs.

Join us for free Red Bull, gear giveaways, and offers from local shops including City Sports and Ski Market of Warwick.

Ski Team Introduces Thank You Gift

As we push towards the end of the fiscal year, the ski team is stepping up its efforts to encourage people to support the team. For every donation made over $100, we will send you an official Friends of Brown Skiing t-shirt. For every donation made over $500, we will send a sweatshirt that sports the same design as the t-shirt. We are working hard to surpass last year's efforts by surpassing the $25,000 goal for the women's program and the $35,000 goal for the men's team. We hope to drive alumni participation up to the 15% level, so please consider giving in any amount. While some schools are cutting their ski programs, we are hoping to make this year the strongest one yet for the Brown Ski Team. Click HERE to donate and be sure to check off the ski team when you choose what team you'd like to support. Thank you in advance for your generosity!

Campus Dance 2009

We had the opportunity to organize a group of current athletes, graduating seniors, and alumni for this year's Campus Dance. We met up at 11pm on the front steps of Sayles. Thanks to those of you that were able to make it this year. Congratulations to graduating seniors Anna Bengtson and Susan Kovar. Thanks for your hard work for the ski team. Hope you enjoy the photos. (If you happen to have any more, please send them our way brownskiteam at gmail dot com)

Tuckerman Ravine

Tuckerman Ravine has tempted Brown skiers while they train at Wildcat Mountain. It has tempted New Englanders for decades. This year a few alumni got together to conquer the piste. The gruelling hike (for those out of shape) was rewarded by some glimpses of the sun and relatively warm weather. When we reached the base of the Ravine at the rest spot known as HoJo's we strapped on warmer clothes and ascended into the clouds that covered the Headwall. As we approached the Lunch Rocks the clouds got thicker and we could hardly see forty feet in front of us. For neophytes to the Tuckerman experience, this meant three guys with absolutely no idea where the top of the mountain. The climb to the top was difficult as we kicked boot holes into the ice. As Coach Mike suggested afterwards, "it's really more like mountaineering in ski boots." John Gillis accurately pointed out that at Tuckerman Ravine everyone is a liability as the talent pool at Tuck's is, to put it politely, diverse. Accordingly, as we hiked up, we kept on our guard - unsure as to whether the person in front of us might slide down the whole face of the mountain and take us out in the process.

The snow was bumpy ice and comparing it to the Birds of Prey downhill is not an exaggeration. The clouds made it nearly impossible to have any sense of the direction we were skiing. Eventually the clouds did part, to the cheers of the onlookers below, and we learned a lesson on why not to bring snowboard Tuckerman Ravine (see video below). We ran into a fellow alumnus David Lavallee '87 on the ascent, but didn't see him again at the end of the day, so we hope he made it down. After the three runs we took the descent on the ski trail at full speed. There were numerous streams to jump and grass covered hills to ski down. Hoping to make this event an annual proving ground for old Brown Ski Teams. Hope to see you then!

Nationals Redux: SL

(3/6) We had cold training for slalom on 3/5. Many of our gates broke and the three coaches spent most of the morning moving through the course screwing, unscrewing, rescrewing, and drilling gates. It was still good training for the team as we moved into the final event of the week.

For the slalom we had a similar lineup to the previous race, though we swapped GS-specialist Emily Simmons our for slalom-specialist Elisa Handbury. We had assistant coach and wax guru John Van Slyke manning the top as we got everyone into their skis first run (see left). The race began well with Kia Mosenthal laying down a solid top ten run that put her in a good place for the second run. Krista had taken the training day off and had great difficulty even mustering up the energy for the inspection run. Her time reflected her illness and she took a long nap between the two runs as she sought to get better as quickly as possible. (Ultimately she would not even be able to inspect for the second run due to fatigue.) Elisa has had a strong season in slalom with several strong results and a top ten finish. Unfortunately, she was unable to ski as strongly as she had hoped, but was able to finish for the team. Blaine Martin delivered a good first run, though probably not as fast as she is able to ski, having posted several top 20 results at the the slalom races this season. Anna Bengtson '12 had a straddle on the third gate and her momentum on the pitch kept her coming down the hill. She had to hike two full gates on the pitch and it put her into the empty zone pretty quickly. She was able to make a few more turns before the altitude and fatigue caught up to her and she had to ski out. It was perhaps a too soon ending to Anna's career which finished this year as she is a senior. (Best of luck to her as she contemplates her future in the skiing world!)

For second run we continued to have a bit of difficulty with the finishes. Kia was able to come down and finish with a fourth place. Our best finish at Nationals. Congratulations! Krista came to the start of second run having only inspected the course via a drawing from Kia. On her way down to the course she broke her pole freeskiing with a simple pole plant. In the frenzy that followed we were able to dig up an extra set and even with tonsillitis, Krista was able to land in 31st place. Blaine's final race for the season ended with difficulty as she fell and lost a ski on the pitch. A tough ending for an otherwise solid season. With two skiers down, Elisa stood up and finished, bringing the team to a healthy ninth place finish, all things considered. Overall for the two days, the team took home a tenth. Certainly not where we'd like to be, but a great stepping stone for the planned successes of next year.

Unfortunately, this was the end to our great season. While it was not as successful as we might have liked, everyone skied and worked as extremely hard this year. Much was made of the fact that we have a young team and that they intend to excel as they work to improve their consistency in finishing! Congratulations finally to Kia Mosenthal who earned a First Team All-American in the slalom and to Krista Consiglio who earned a pair of All-America honors, earning Second Team All-America in both the giant slalom and combined.

Hope to see you all next year for another season of hard work and fast times!

Nationals Redux: GS

This post has been a long time coming. The first few days of our trip to Winter Park were excellent. We had the chance to get in some great skiing and some excellent training. We trained on Cheshire Cat (great trail, lame name) with many of the teams that we ski with back home as we adjusted to the high altitude. We took it easy so as not to tire out too quickly and most of the girls headed back home after lunch. The photos for all of Nationals continue to be available HERE. Please let me know if you have any more photos that you would like to contribute!

Giant Slalom. (3/4) For the GS we had a full length set on Norwegian which is a trail that goes right under the Zephyr Chairlift. The trail starts off flat and then picks up pace as you come over the roll onto the steep section. The steeps are not only long, but they have a sustained pitch that made them tricky for the entire women's field. Our bib draw for the first race was a bit strange as we drew a 1 for our first bib (Kia) and a 40 for our second bib (Krista). Kia started off the race strong, but allowed some bad habits to get the better of her and fell before she made it to the steeps. It was a tough way to end the GS season. Krista battled severe tonsillitis (we only found out after the race what it was!) but was able to put down a top 15 finish for the first run. The warm Colorado sun and large field wreaked havoc on the course as the buff finish deteriorated into some pretty serious ruts and more than a few chatter marks. Blaine Martin had a tough run first run that left her hiking on the steeps. Anna Bengtson also fell and lost a ski to finish her day far too early. Emily Simmons stood up, though the rugged course and high altitude were tough on her and did not have a run nearly as fast as the GS runs she had been putting down the rest of the year. While our results were not strong, we did have the pleasure of Dow Travers '12 gracing us with his presence by taking a short break from the difficult training regimen he has in preparation for his Olympic bid.

For the second run we had a deficit that was impossible to make up as a team. We focused instead on individual results as only 3 of our women were racing. Krista Consiglio was able to dig deep. With only a few racers up before her, she was still sitting on the ground trying to find her inner strength as she looked off into the distance unsure as to whether she was going to be sick at the top of the course. With only two racers to go, Krista struggled into her skis and slid down to the start. With years of ski racing experience, she went into autopilot and was able to muster up a 12th place finish even though she hardly enough energy to walk. Impressive. Emily Simmons finished out out the day with a 36th place and a commitment to undertake an impressive aerobic drylanding training schedule as she plans to continue her assault on the MacConnel Division next year. Blaine Martin rounded out our GS with a nearly-the-last-racer position in the start order. She skied quickly on the top section with a very strong split time, but she was unable to hold onto the speed towards the bottom, though she did move up significantly from the previous run. With the GS behind the team, everyone focused on slalom for the next two days.

Nationals Photos!

Thanks to the parents for helping me out with new photos for our blog. We had amazing support from the Martins, Simmons, Handburys, and Bengtsons while we were out in Winter Park. In the coming days expect more photos to be put up, but in the meantime, you can check out the new photos HERE. I will be writing up a more complete description of our time at Nationals soon.

Waterville Regionals / We're At Nationals

Apologies for the long delay in updating the blog. We are currently out at Winter Park Colorado with the Brown Women training for USCSA Nationals. Last week the team qualified at Regionals taking a 3rd in the GS and in the Overall as well. We had excellent food from the many parents that came to the event. Debbie Consiglio has graciously uploaded some excellent photos which you can check out right HERE.

The past few days here at Winter Park have been nothing short of spectacular. Blue skies and 50 degree weather make all of those cold temperatures and overcast days back East well worth it. We are staying within walking distance of the town of Winter Park which makes for plenty to do after skiing is done. We have had two excellent days of training and another day of fantastic free skiing. The ruts have been big in the training, but nothing that we couldn't overcome. After hard training in the mornings, the afternoons have been free with plenty of time for free skiing and relaxing at home. The coaches have even been able to make a few turns together in the afternoons (!).

Tomorrow is the women's GS for the National Title. We are motivated after some fantastic skiing over the course of the past few days and we are hopeful that the results reflect all of the efforts that we have put in over the entire season. We will be joined not only by the Simmons, Handbury, and Martin families, but also Olympic hopeful and Brown sophomore-to-be Dow Travers. Thank you all for your ongoing support and interest in the ski team!!!

Banquet and Alumni/Parent Ski Race

We ended the season with what we are hoping will be a new tradition of a banquet and Alumni get together after the final race. We were pleased that the Sports Foundation was able to help us pull together and excellent event. Thanks to Matt Tsimikas the Assistant Athletic Director who came up to the event and helped organize everything. It was great to have the parents come together and for current athletes meet some of the ten or so alumni that made the trek to Wildcat to support the team.

Mike LeBlanc delivered a short speech on behalf of Hilary Swafield, a former ski teamer who died two years ago. We have created an award on her behalf to honor an individual who shares the passion for ski racing and hard work that Hilary had while she was on the team. This year the award was presented to senior Anna Bengtson. Congratulations Anna.

On Sunday we took again to the slopes of Wildcat, on the famed Cheetah trail for an alumni parent show down. The warm weather and sunny skies that we were hoping for turned quickly into high winds and snow. We were miraculously able to pull off a well run race with timing and everything! We saw some falls from John Van Slyke '01 and Griffin James '01 as they sought to win the first ever Alumni Classic. Kelly O'Hear '07 represented the only alumna present and laid down some times that put her in contention. There were some athletes that chose (and ultimately probably regretted) to go for the "big mountain ripper skis" like Captain Emeritus DR Richardson '08 and John Gillis '07. John Hastings '05, Douglas Allen '07, and Taylor Lloyd rounded out the alumni participants. Coach LeBlanc, and even Andy Salter (Alex Salter's '12 dad) got in on the mix. Ultimately, it was Charley Cummings '06 who won the cup and began what will hopefully be a longstanding tradition.

Hope to see you at Regionals at Waterville on Feb. 21 and 22! Best of luck to the team as we seek to make the trip out to Colorado for Nationals.

Wildcat Slalom - Season Ender

First, a special thanks to the many parents that came to the slalom and GS to show their support for our team. As Coach Van Slyke noted: "I have never been this well fed a a ski race - ever." The Sally's pizza, chili, barbeque chicken, deli sandwiches, bagels, brownies, and everything else made for an excellent meal for the athletes throughout the day. Thank you to the parents that traveled especially long distances (think Maryland, California, Seattle) just to come to this event! A shout out to the all the parents that helped out this weekend and provided for our athletes and coaches. We were glad to have you there and look forward to having you at the many races to come next year.

As for the slalom it was not our strongest day for our women, but we certainly pulled through. We started the day without top skiers Elisa Handbury and Emily Simmons. For Krista Consiglio '11 and Blaine Martin '11, the day proved to be a strong one. Krista took a 2nd place finish and Blaine pulled down a solid 14th place finish. A tricky course set on the second run proved treac

herous for Kia Mosenthal with a short hike near the top of the course. Seniors Anna Bengtson and Susan Kovar sported the traditional costume for the final race in plenty of style. See photo above. 

We also were joined by a former ski teamer Lorenzo Majno '79 who helped out our gatekeeping section with heroic efforts to keep a rutted up course smooth and make sure the gates were in place. Thanks for making the effort to come all the way up to Wildcat!

The men's team posted several personal bests, in addition to tying MIT for 8th place for the season. Ken Ettinger '10 and Alex Salter '12 both laid down their best slalom runs of the season. Jeff Ernsting accomplished his goal for the year by placing in 27th.  Rob Culliton finished the season for the league with a run to remember. As the last racer down, the top of the course broke out into overwhelming cheers as he stood in the gate. Never one to play down his abilities, Rob encouraged the cheering. Ultimately, he was followed down the entire course by cheers of good will for another great season in USCSA.

The season ended strong for Brown. The women finished in 4th place. The men tied for 8th. And, Mike LeBlanc finished the season as the McConnell Division Coach of the Year. Congratulations to Mike and to all of the athletes as well! Thank you all for your hard work.

Women Take First in Wildcat GS

The last GS of the year began the day before. Much of the Brown and BC team spent Thursday putting up fencing along the entire GS hill. This meant 100+ rolls unrolled and drilled into the snow. A safe race to be sure, but exhausting to set up.

The tiredness did not get to our women's team, however. After the first run they had the 2, 3, and 5 spots occupied. Emily Simmons '12 was set to have a season best performance when a bobble on the pitch led to a hard crash into the fences. Kia Mosenthal '12 and Krista Consiglio '11 skiied to 2nd and 3rd places respectively. Blaine Martin '11 finished out our scorers with a regular season GS personal best finish in 20th. Congratulations to the women's team on putting it down, and putting away another win. The deepness of our team is clearly strong, and we hope to continue our performance in two weeks at Waterville Valley for the Regional Championships. 

The men's team put down some personal bests as well. Jeff Ernsting '11 took down another 114 point race to match his result from last week. Rob Culliton '10.5 not only did not have any crashes, something he has been unfortunately prone to this year, but he had a personal best in the GS as well. As he told me at the top of the course at the slalom "If I had known that ski racing was going to be like this, I'm not so sure that I would have actually gone for it. I'm glad I did though." Mike Cohen '11 took the men's team crash of the day in the second run when he was unable to transfer his weight to the new ski and instead headed full on into the aforementioned nets. Alex Salter also put down his best race of his first year racing. One former men's team member even took the opportunity to forerun the race. While the men's season is over, we are looking forward to building on these performances next year.

Pat's Peak Slalom

Pat's Peak was the destination for the penultimate Slalom of our season. We were fortunate to be able to have two courses set. Unfortunately, this didn't stop the course from turning into a bobsled run. With the Super Bowl on everyone's mind we pushed through the day efficiently. 

It was great weather at the Peak. Emily and Kia were able to stop for a moment to get an early morning photo with the Pat's Peak mascot. It was good luck for Kia who ended up taking a second in the race. The women's team had some tough breaks with several falls preventing them from having three solid finished. As they head into the final races at Wildcat, they will have the benefit of bringing Krista back from the Disabled List and going for broke as they seek to seal the deal on the path to Regionals. 

The men's team continued its moves forward as they worked hard to improve on past performances. We were proud to once again have five finishers, and Michael Cohen '11 posted a personal best in slalom. We are excited about the upcoming weekend at Wildcat, not only for the chance to finish the season with strong race results, but what is shaping up to be a great alumni event. On Sunday we will be holding the first annual Alumni Cup as we take to the treacherous Cheetah trail at Wildcat. Look forward to seeing you there!

Bears Shred Loon GS

We returned to the legendary trails of Rumrunner and Coolidge Street for one of the most rugged GS hills on the circuit. Many will remember the feeling of terror as the flats at the top give way to rugged terrain and ruts for the duration of the steeps. This weekend was the exception. Even after getting close to two feet of snow in the past couple of weeks, the hill held up exceptionally well. We were joined by Mallory Taub '08 who came to cheer on the team and help us out on the hill. Thanks Mallory.
The women started the weekend with a deficit, as Krista and Blaine were out due to injuries. They went in strong and worked hard as a team. Kia Mosenthal pulled out a win, taking the race by over a half second! Emily Simmons scored a top ten finish even after a harrowing near fall that had her headed towards the nets, only with a sharp atheltic move down the hill was she able to recover. Anna Bengston (above right) rounded out the team result with a 15th place finish. The women took 2nd overall.

The men put down four finishers for this race. Jeff Ernsting continued the upward arc of his skiing and had another personal best. We also saw personal best for Ken Ettinger and Alex Salter. It was a tough break for Rob Culliton as he lost a ski. 

We have cranked up his DINs accordingly, and we won't be seeing a lost ski unless he really needs to lose it. It did provide him some time for introspective free runs at Loon, however. 

After and epic day at Loon, we did the mandatory B-net roll up drill and made off for dinner in the state capital in Concord and to rest for the day ahead at Pat's Peak.

BANNER WEEKEND AT WATERVILLE

This weekend the team was back on top. On Saturday the women returned to #1 in the Slalom. The first time in over a year. The men's team pushed hard, finished and took down an 8th. A special thank you to the Mosenthals, Consiglios, and Simmons for their generous food contributions!

SLALOM The women took it back to first place where they belong. We had some serious results with Kia Mosenthal '12 (3rd place), Krista Consiglio '11 (5th), and Elisa Handbury '10 (7th) all scoring for the team. Well done. The men's team also fired it up with Rob Culliton '10 completing the first complete race of his season. The draught has ended for the men's team with incomplete finishes! Jeff Ernsting '11 posted the best Slalom points race of his career. This was certainly a morale builder for the whole team. Frustration has given way to some strong results. This was what we needed as we enter the second half of the 10 race season.

GS We took to the storied knolls of Waterville yet again, running a full length GS from the top of the World Cup Triple. Out of the starting gate almost everyone bit the bullet and glided into the steeps section with a lot of speed. The courses were fairly straightforward, stacking up in the first run right around the slalom start. Those who found the fall line after that were the most successful. Susan Kovar '09 (above left w/ Blaine Martin) had a personal best in the first run improving significantly from last week. Emily Simmons '12 took down a solid 12th! Krista Consiglio '11 was able to score for the team even with an injured back and we hope that week off will help her heal and prepare for next weekend at Loon and Pat's Peak. Blaine Martin '11 posted a solid first run and is looking to push it in the next few weeks as she seeks to push the envelope on her skiing. Captain Anna Bengtson '09 took back to the Waterville GS for the first time since her injury here last year and made a big leap on her road to recovery.

The men also posted strong results. Rob again finished both runs. It is his first year ski racing and we are proud of his hard work in taking on a challenging course. Mike Cohen '11 and Ken Ettinger '10 (right) both continue to work to bring their bodies down the hill towards a faster line. We are hoping that this week of training at Wachusett will be helpful for them! Alex Salter entered the second half of the season strong as he continues work on adapting that ski racer line down the course, something that is difficult for someone more used to ripping the pow at Jackson Hole.

FACEBOOK We are up on Facebook now, so please add "Brown Skiing" as a friend as an esier way to keep up to date on what is happening on the team and see our former (and infamous) alumni.

"What you need is high edge angle coming into the knoll over the slalom start. Set up early and then let 'em run" (left)

Races at Sunapee, Slalom Training

It's been a few days since we've been able to update the blog. Two full days of races at Sunapee and some training at Wildcat have left everyone (including myself) pretty drained. With some fresh snow this weekend and sunny skies, we are looking forward to a spectacular second week of training.

Thursday we were able to simulate race conditions with two runs of GS on a timed course. Everyone stripped for both runs and we went into strong and prepared to race.

On Friday we had our first race of the season. It was the first part of a back-to-back GS series. Our women took huge setbacks with Kia Mosenthal out with an injured shoulder and Krista Consiglio out with the flu. Rob Cuillton '10.5, Alex Salter '12, and Susan Kovar '09 were all racing for the first time at this race and made the most of it. Rob had an heroic second run with two hikes, including a full length hike only two gates in right by our gatekeeping section. It was one of those moments that reminded all of those present why college racing is so much fun - as he passed through the gate after his hike all the athletes and coaches were cheering him on. Jeff Ernsting also posted a solid race with the best points result of his career. A special thanks to Debbie Consiglio who brought some phenomenal pizza and other food for the team! We look forward to meeting all the parents throughout the course of the season.

On Saturday we had our second GS race. Once again we were at Sunapee, and the rolling knolls that we have come to love made for two solid course sets. A timing glitch meant lots of waiting around before the second run, but our women's team was able to hold strong and post a stronger results than the day before. The field for the women is especially tight this year, with only a few seconds difference between the top team and seventh. It will make for a difficult and exciting year for our women as they work towards making regionals. Freshmen screamer Emily Simmons recorded excellent times and a top five finish as she put it down the hill both runs. Well done Emily. 3/5 of the Men's team lost skis. We have turned up the DINs and are looking forward to finishing all five this coming weekend. While the team did not do well, Mike Cohen's times were enough to win against Ken Ettinger in the friendly head-to-head match up known as the Chicken Finger Classic.

Sunday was a rest day that allowed for some local adventuring in the snow, lots of down time, and plenty of time to tune up the slalom skis.

On Monday we moved into slalom and this is where we will spend most of this week. We continued training with Boston College which has allowed for multiple course sets and even longer courses. Those new to racing found slalom skis even easier to feel the carve, now it is just a matter of hoping that they don't get distracted by the lure of hammering gates in the course. Kia Mostenthal and Krista Consiglio are back from their weekend recoveries. We are looking forward to a great week before it gets cold on Thursday. We look forward to seeing many of you at Cranmore on Friday and Saturday.

Pictures to follow!

Ripping the Pow

Another day at Wildcat brought six inches of snow to the hill. We were able to get timing in on second run today and the coaches were able to reset during lunch and get everything ready for the athletes.

A deep hole underneath at hard left footed blue gate in the morning provided plenty of interesting transitions and falls. The ruts were deep all day and visibility poor, but our athletes persevered. The new studded tires on our van made the return drive home especially easy.

Elisa Handbury '10 was out bright and early to help set the course and was in high spirits. Kia Mosenthal '12 was the only Brown athlete to strip down and had some excellent runs despite a sore shoulder. Newcomer Jen Therrien '11 impressed everyone on the hill with her first day in gates. Anna Bengtson '09 was back in the gates as she recovers from last year's knee injury. We are all excited for the race on Friday and the many alumni who have responded to join us at the event on Feb 7th.

Windy Weather at Wildcat

We've returned this year to Wildcat Mountain in the shadows of Mt. Washington. With our condensed season this year we are moving quickly into the gates.

On Sunday we went freeskiing around the Mountain and tried to regain our balance. For many athletes it was their first time skiing this year, and for some their first time skiing with a race team ever. We continued on in our bold tradition of welcoming all to the team and there has been much progress since our first day.

On Monday we braved 60 MPH winds and pelting ice blowing up the hill to make it through a rough day. The quad was shut down, but the triple cranked us up as we trained on Cheetah. There was plenty of time for free runs on the harrowing "Wild Kitten" Trail and Blaine Martin '11 and Kia Mosenthal '12 continued their drill progressions as they push towards the top of the podium this weekend. Miraculously, the wind did not mean cold weather, but it did make effective training difficult. We braved through it, as we only have a few days left until our first race.

Today was another excellent day of training with the Boston College Ski Team. We had a reprieve from the wind, by the ice prevailed on treacherous Bobcat. Edges were tested along with spirits as we stripped down to GS suits for timed runs. Ms. Krista Consiglio '11 took the most enthusiastic award for her four runs in her bright pink GS suit while Mr. Jeffrey Ernsting '11 skiied remarkably well, posting likely the best run of his entire life. Many skiers were taken out by the mid course ice mogul/aerial jump. We fixed the problem and finished up with our best day of training yet! We are finishing up the day with some video analysis.

Three days until our first race at Sunapee, hope to see you there!