Racing in the notorious Hahnenkamm for the first time in his life, Canada's Vincent Lavoie finished a solid 27th Thursday in Kitzbuehel to post Canada's best result of the day.
“I feel like I've been initiated. I am no longer a Kitzbuehel rookie,” said the 26-year-old from Cap Rouge, Que.
For Lavoie and teammate Jeff Hume of Whistler, BC, Thursday's race was not only their first at Kitzbuehel, but it was also the first time the pair ran the entire course in one shot. Wednesday's training was shortened because of poor weather. Lavoie and Hume skied the top part of the course in a mini-training session Thursday before the race so that the International Ski Federation could allow the race to start from the top.
“Training woke up my legs,” said Lavoie, who posted a time of two minutes, 01.11 seconds to finish 2.33 behind the leader and claim 27th. “It was fun. I liked starting from the top. I am really happy to be in the top-30 but I'm aiming higher. I feel confident on the course. Technically I have reached this level. I am not far from the best. Now it's a question of learning the course, of where to apply pressure, where to gain the most speed.
“I was proud to reach the bottom. All the years that I watched this race on TV, it was impressive and I really wanted to be here. Like Ken (Read) says, it's the Super Bowl of skiing.”
Hume was 43rd and posted a time of 2:02.55.
“I'm proud to be in the finish” said the 24-year-old who's competing in his first full season on the World Cup circuit. “Starting higher (than in training) ended up adding a lot of heat. The first jump is huge. It's crankers for the next four turns. My legs were burning by the time I was only 30 seconds through. It was tough on me. My legs felt it all the way. I was a little worried to be honest. I was only a quarter of the way down and my legs were toast already.”
Arguably the most difficult downhill on the circuit, the Hahnenkamm's notoriety comes as much from its successes as its crashes.
“The spirit of the downhill is still there because the way this hill lays out you can't change it,” said Alpine Canada Alpin President and 1980 Hahnenkamm Champion Ken Read, who is at Kitzbuehel to take in the races at be part of the annual charity race of champions. “It's all there. This downhill is about contrast, very extreme changes, very steep, very flat. Those steep pitches still have to prepared by hand. Our success in the early 80s gave it a whole different aura. To me it was like coming to hallowed ground. I read about it very young and knew all these names but I had a mind set. This was a classic location and a cool spot. I was more intrigued by it than intimidated because we had the stories of people who had problems. Since we won and since Canada had some misfortune it's taken on a bit of a different persona.”
Rossland, BC's David Anderson
EXPERIENCE PREVAILS OVER YOUTH AT HAHNENKAMM
