THE STEPPING STONES OF SKI RACING by Sofi Leroux, Whistler Mountain Ski Club first-year FIS athlete
"As you grow older, you must take steps: small steps at first, then they get bigger, and bigger, and so on, and so on… These so called “steps” include the transition from K2 to FIS. Some skiers find that this is a huge step in their career when really it isn’t much different from another step that they took not more than 3 years ago: the transition from elementary school to high school. To be completely honest, I was petrified for both of these steps! I was not ready to be the youngest, to be the least experienced, and to have a new set of mentors and instructors, to leave my friends or just to grow up. Sooner than I thought I would, I learnt that going from K2 to FIS came with a pretty good deal. Though this deal seemed a wee bit more expensive than the deal that came with going to a new school, I soon saw that it was worth it; I had learnt knew things, I had improved my technique, I had become a stronger skier both mentally and physically, I had acquired great new coaches, I had made new friends and I had exposed myself to the real world of ski racing. These steps I talk of weren’t as difficult as I expected them to be; they were more like a guided tour a long stepping stones rather than leaps of faith into the void and I hope that all of the club’s future FIS athletes will realise this quicker than I did.
"My first race was something I was excited for yet dreading at the same time, like my first day of high school. What truly scared me was having to start from scratch, or as they say in FIS, nine-hundred and ninety nine points. Yes, I had started from the back before but this time seemed a little more nerve-racking: the girls that had started in the top seed were not only just a few mere months older than me nor were they from the same province; they were in their twenties and came from around the world! Seeing this made me realise that I had to really prove myself to get anywhere in this world as we all do in our day to day life. I decided it was wiser for me to try to learn from these girls instead of run and hide from them and I hope that someday I would be able to teach other first years, not unlike myself, something as valuable as that.
"Once it came time to stepping in the start gate, my mind was running around in circles so quickly I am surprised it didn’t just flop over on its side because it was so dizzy. My heart was pounding and I could feel the butterflies crowding my stomach. I knew there was nothing to fear because it was just another race yet this one seemed different. Maybe it was because by the time they had called bid number 84, I had already scared the living daylights out of myself worrying about this one run. I snarled, stamped my feet really hard on the ground and said a few encouraging words in my head to get myself ready. I felt as if I was standing on a start that towered above any other I had ever used and I was looking at the gnarliest course ever known to man kind. The starter whispered “Good luck” in my ear. A smile suddenly presented it’s self on my face and throughout my body I could feel the butterflies starting to settle down. Then she commenced the countdown… “Ten…” she said, “Five… Four… Three… Two… One” and I was off. When I reached the bottom, my team mate was waiting for me and my friends were all there as well. They congratulated me on my run and we cheered on the rest of our pals who were trying not to fly over ‘Basket Ball’ or even just finish. I realised that I had over reacted in the start: this race was not much different than any other race I had ever been in and I was wrong to have worried myself sick. So what if I came 44th instead of 5th, I already had better points by the end of the race than I had ever had before and I had fun, isn’t that what matters?
"A few days ago, a parent asked me, “What do you think you will take with you from your experience in Panorama to your race in Lake Louise?” My answer, well I am still trying to figure that out. Everything I learnt and experienced at my first race is important to me and not in a million years would I be able to decipher what helped me the most. I know I will never be as freaked out for a race as I was a few weeks ago and hopefully, I will never start that far back ever again. I guess I learnt one big lesson, though, one that will not just help me in Lake Louise, nor just in my ski racing career but in my life in general: it is the fact that it’s important that you take your every action seriously but don’t need overlook, analyse and critique it so severely. Believe in what you do and trust your decisions. Most importantly, believe in yourself and that you will put your best effort on the table every single time, whether you blow out or win the race, trust your decisions and learn from your mistakes.
"Skiing, like any other aspect in life, does have steps you must take and not unlike life there are small ones and big ones that scare you just the same. The transition from K2 to FIS could be thought as truly terrifying for the person on your right or as just a breeze to the person on your left and in reality it is neither and both at the same time for it is only as big a deal as you make it seem. I feel like it was more of a metamorphosis than a transition because I have come out of it stronger than ever and I like what has become of me. Remember your first month of high school; was it really necessary to get so worked up? Of course not! So why would you scare yourself silly about something so similar? I wish I knew that FIS was like high school when I started only a few months ago. I am guessing it would have helped me and I hope it helps every second year K2 planning on becoming a FIS athlete in the near future. All I can say is “Good luck.”
Sofi Leroux
January 2nd 2010
Thank you to the Whistler Mountain Ski Club and Sofi Leroux for sharing these insights!