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New for 2010: email news updates! Yes, we've finally gotten our "email blasts" working
so we can send out news updates to members, along with others interested
in receiving email messages with news and race updates.
All current and recent members who've provided email contact information on their Far West Masters
membership application have been automatically added to the news mailing list.
If you'd like to be added, just visit news list information page and sign up!
Got News?!
If you have information you think is appropriate to post on the Far West Masters news page
and circulate to our members, send your message in an email to news@farwestmasters.org.
The moderators will review your request to ensure that the information provided is appropriate
and relevant to our members.
- FWRA Silent Auction
Barbara Bryant (FWM racer along with husband Don) is holding an online auction to sell several items left
from their Silent Auction held April 10th at the FWRA championships at Mammoth.
Auction bids will be accepted though May 6.
Items include ski trips and lodging deals, heli-skiing, lift ticket offers,
Mt. Hood race camp, and a Granite Chief hot-box/race tune.
There are some great deals here and a portion of the proceeds goes to the FWSA Athletic Scholarship Fund
If you need more information, please contact Barbara by email at membership@fwsa.org or
phone 530.550.9452. A portion of the proceeds will go into the Far
West Ski Association Silent Auction.
[03-May-2010]
- FWM Suggestion Box
If you have an idea for improving Far West Masters or suggestions about how we could do things differently
to make our racing better and more appealing,
take advantage of our new Suggestion Box and
send an email message to suggestionbox@farwestmasters.org to share your ideas.
Please sign your message with your (real) name so ideas can be properly credited and we can follow up on your input.
You'll receive an acknowledgement message when your suggestion has been recorded by the system.
All suggestions are reviewed by Far West officers and we will do our best to respond and incorporate
good ideas into our program.
[26-Apr-2010]
- General Meeting and Elections
Our 2010 General Membership meeting was held of Thursday Apr. 15 at Mammoth
following the SG races.
This was our annual open meeting for all members where everyone is invited to raise issues
and make suggestions.
The primary topic that came up for discussion involved logistics of the Open class; several
good ideas were brought up and the board intends to consider all these factors over the summer
as part of planning next season's competition schedule.
The meeting also provided the forum for electing officers
for 2-year positions on the board, with the president, secretary, treasurer, and officials
positions due for re-election this year. Nominees Mark Mirviss (President)
along with incumbents Sandy Hogan (secretary), Mark Smallhouse (treasurer),
and Don Smith (officials) were elected by acclamation.
Meeting minutes are posted on the Board documents page:
[25-Apr-2010]
- Mammoth Season Finale
Mammoth put on a wonderful event for our season finale, featuring spectacular spring weather
for the final three days of racing in the 2010 season. After a surprise late-season storm brought
nearly 2 feet of snow on Monday, forcing cancellation of the downhills, the weather went back to
full-on spring with warm 40/50 temps, sun, light winds, and great skiing all over the mountain.
Many racers headed for the top as soon as racing wound up each day and raved about the free skiing!
Thursday opened the series with 2 SG races from Hair Jump at the base of Cornice Bowl onto World Cup
and lower St. Anton. Great racing and lots of smiles all around! Friday's GS started by Chair 23 and
followed the lower St. Anton course, the first time we've raced there, and presented some interesting new
challlenges with the different race terrain from our usual venue on Fascination.
The final day of SL racing was another incredible spring day, with two runs of challenging course sets
complemented by the need to cool down, hydrate, and apply sunscreen!
Once again, the Mammoth Race Department worked hard every day to prepare and maintain
the race courses and their efforts to stay ahead of the softening snow each day
were appreciated by all competitors.
Saturday night a good crowd gathered for the season banquet, with
season age class and leader bibs for next season announced. Special recognition
awards went to Kelly Akins as rookie of the year and Don Merritt for most improved racer.
Defending leader bib holder Kurt Belden reclaimed his #1 bib for another year,
while Deb Lewis edged out Julie Rolfe on the women's side with a tight race
whose outcome was only settled in the final SL race of the season.
Outgoing Far West Masters president Marietta Frinell also gave out several appreciation
awards to recognize some of the people who contribute so much to making our race
events come together, with a special thank-you to Mike Kennedy who along with Elizabeth show up to handle
race registration and keep us in line with USSA requirements.
See the Race Results page for complete weekend results
and the final Season Standings.
The complete list of  season awards is
included with the final Season Standings.
[18-Apr-2010]
- Seccond SG Race added Thursday
Due to the cancellation of our scheduled dowhnill races at Mammoth on Tuesday/Wednesday,
we are changing the Thursday schedule to hold two Super G races.
The originally scheduled training run will be cancelled, and
your training run checks will be torn by the Race Department.
Competitors entered in the Super G will have the option of paying
at registration on Thursday morning to enter the second race.
[14-Apr-2010]
- Mammoth DH's cancelled
The Downhills (training and race runs) scheduled for the 13th and 14th have
been cancelled due to snow accumulations. I would not be possible to groom
and set up the courses in time to race on Wednesday. This is due not only to
the snow currently on the course, but due to the fact that Mammoth can not
groom the course without doing avalanche control above the course.
Current conditions on the mountain have not allowed patrollers to even begin
avalanche control at this time. It is unlikely that any avalanche control
will be able to be preformed today.
As of now, the remainder of our schedule for this week (SG, GS, SL and
Duals) does look like a go, and we are not predicting any weather
interference with those events.
[12-Apr-2010 [9AM]]
- Season Finals, Banquet, Silent Auction
The final races of the 2010 Far West Masters season will be held this coming week
at Mammoth Mountain. A full calendar of disciplines is on tap: DH, SG, GS, and SL,
with Saturday nights season banquet followed on Sunday by a dual fun race.
For details, see the event information announcement,
which includes information about group rate lodging packages and discounts available to the Far West Masters.
Saturday evening's  season banquet
will include a silent auction to raise funds for the junior athlete scholarship fund program.
Items include ski passes (Mammoth, Northstar), training program passes (Mammmoth, Northstar, Squaw), lodging deals,
gear and services from shops (Footloose, Start Haus), ski gear and tuning supplies from program sponsors,
and much more!
You may submit bids directly to Eddie Mozen prior to the banquet or be there for the live bidding at the banquet.
For details, see the
silent auction info flyer from Eddie Mozen.
[11-Apr-2010]
- Mt. Rose Results
The 2010 McKinney Cup results from the Mar. 27-28 SL/GS races at Mt. Rose are now posted.
(apologies for the delay, the results data files had to be obtained from the race computer)
The McKinney Cup is sponsored by Tamara McKinney in memory of members of her family, Steve, McLane, and Frances McKinney.
The McKinney Cup is a perpetual trophy on display over the mantle of the fireplace in the Mt. Rose lodge
and is awarded to the man and woman racer with the fastest total time for the entire weekend.
The 2010 McKinney Cup winners are Caroline Labreque (W03) and Jason Christopher (M01).
See the Race Results page for complete weekend results
and the updated Season Standings.
[10-Apr-2010]
- April Events
The final races of the Far West Masters 2010 season
will be held next week at Mammoth Mountain. Our season finals
will feature the full range of disciplines - DH, SG, GS, and SL - and
wind up with the season banquet on Saturday Apr. 17 and a Sunday "fun race" dual.
See the Mammoth Season Finals Updates news item
for details.
Please get your entries in this week if you haven't already - you can
print your entry form and mail or fax
to the Mammoth Race Department (see the Season Schedule page
page for contact info) or register online
at AlpineReg.com.
Banquet reservations can be made on your entry form, with payment to Mammoth Mountain
as for your entry fees.
Downhill competitors: please call (760) 934-0642 or email the Race Department
at racedepartment@mammoth-mtn.com by Friday Apr. 9
if you are submitting your entry this week - we need to get a head count of the DH field
by the end of this week.
If you're coming from the Tahoe or the Bay Area, consider attending the Pam Warman fundraiser
event at Sierra-at-Tahoe on Tuesday April 13th, 2010,
with fun races, dinner party and auctions, including items donated by current and former US Ski Team members,
friends and local businesses. Former PSIA Team Alumni Sean Warman and Kevin
Mitchell as well as current PSIA-W Tech Team members will be leading
clinics. Current and past Olympians and US Ski Team Members attending are Steve
Nyman, Scott Macartney, Jake Zamansky, Marco Sullivan, Eric Fisher, Jeremy
Transue, Josh Transue, and Bryan Friedman.
Pam set some of our Far West Masters courses last season, and was a
(the first female) tech on the world cup.
Details and signup form can be found at http://pamwarman.webs.com.
[05-Apr-2010]
- Sun Valley Nationals
After opening with some "west coast" weather on the first two days that
forced the organizers to scramble and readjust the SC and SG race schedules,
the national championships at Sun Valley finished with three days of
outstanding racing. The sun came out, the courses were firm and fast
and beautifully prepared, and the competitors were challenged by both the courses
and the large field of racers from all over the country and some Canadian friends.
Far West had 30 competitors who put out a number of excellent performances.
Kurt Belden won the SL in M06, perhaps the strongest of all the men's classes,
while Pierre Jeangirard came back from a near-season-long layoff due to knee problems
to win the GS in M07 (and barely missed taking the overall combined title by less than a smidge).
On the women's side, Deb Lewis swept W07, backed up on the podium by Linda Crowell
in second overall, while Julie Rolfe (W06) and Sandy Hogan (W09) also climbing
on the podium to collect hardware.
The Group D men were led by Gate de Mattei who dominated M12 with fabulous skiing
all week.
Many other outstanding performances came from our Far West racers in all classes - with so many
strong racers in the field, a great race might not get you on the podium but nonetheless should
be savored and appreciated. Rees Palermo had the experience of a lifetime, drawing the #1 start
in the Group B GS after patiently waiting years to work up to an age class with an early start
on a clean course. Julie Rolfe won the "good karma" award - after finding Deb Lewis's lost
SL race skis that another competitor had mistakenly taken and carrying them to the starting line,
she was rewarded on the next day when Elizabeth Kennedy had an extra helmet for the GS
after Julie got to the hill without that vital piece of equipment.
Complete results are available on the ussamasters.org Nationals page.
[04-Apr-2010]
- Mt. Rose
Mt. Rose results - coming!! Apologies for the delay
in posting the Mar. 27-28 Mt. Rose race results. The Scoring Director was
on the road all week for the national championships at Sun Valley and didn't have
time to track down the results data files from Mt. Rose. We'll get the results
posted as quickly as possible this week.
[03-Apr-2010]
- General Membership Meeting
Far West Masters will hold its annual end of the season General
Membership meeting at Mammoth Mountain Ski Area on Thursday, April 15
at 3 pm, following the Super G race. The meeting will be at the west
end of the cafeteria, followed by a racer reception and awards for the
Downhill and Super G races.
At the meeting, elections will be held for four offices. A nominating
committee headed up by Don Smith canvassed members to stand for
election, with the following candidates nominated:
President: Mark Mirviss
VP Officials: Don Smith
Secretary: Sandy Hogan
Treasurer: Mark Smallhouse
Additional nominations will be accepted from the floor. If there are
no additional candidates, a voice vote to confirm the nominees will be
held.
[25-Mar-2010]
- Mammoth Season Finals Updates
Updated information on the April season finals races and banquet at Mammoth has been
posted on the Season Schedule page.
We're making one change in the race schedule: a second DH has been added on Wednesday 4/14,
so there will be two DH training runs on Tuesday and two DH races on Wednesday.
(Reminder: training runs are mandatory for USSA DH competitions)
For details, see the event information announcement,
which includes information about group rate lodging packages and discounts available to the Far West Masters.
The season banquet will be Saturday Apr. 17 at the Mountainside Conference Center in the Mammoth Main Lodge.
This is a nice room that we've used before and provides a pleasant setting for the evening's buffet dinner,
season award, and raffle and auction activities.
See the
banquet info flyer for details.
Sign up for the banquet along with your race entries to make your reservation; indicate number of tickets, bring family and friends!
Note: banquet payment should be made to Mammoth Race Department,
just like your race entry checks.
[23-Mar-2010]
- Mt. Rose McKinney Cup Info
Our next race and the penultimate event on the 2010 Far West calendar is the
Mt. Rose McKinney Cup on Mar. 27-28. Saturday will be a SL, followed by
a full-length GS Sunday; both races will be on the Slide Mtn (east) side
of Mt. Rose. Morning registration will be at the Mt. Rose base lodge.
Mt. Rose is always a popular race, where racers receive a warm welcome
and a breakfast buffet at morning checking followed by fun racing and
an apres sk party. Please send your entries in!!!
Race entries will be accepted anytime this week. If you haven't yet sent
your entry but would like to compete this weekend, please give race coordinators
Rees and Dani Palermo a call at (775) 345-6709 - leave a message
with your name, bib #, age class or year born, and your phone number so
you can be reached if needed.
[22-Mar-2010]
- Squaw Bernard Cup
The 2010 Bernard Cup race weekend at Squaw Valley was a spring-fest of GS racing
on the always-challenging Exhibition race hill. With delightfully warm and sunny
spring racing conditions, competitors started the day with a firm first course
which gradually softened without getting sloppy. Our scheduling experiment with
holding 3 races in 2 days by taking 3 runs each day turned out very well,
as the Squaw race crew worked continuously through the weekend to maintain
good conditions.
A good turnout of competitors was leavened with a welcome dash of new faces
and a weekend with lots of smiles all around.
The key tactical decisions of the day were (a) sunscreen and (b) The Road.
Spectators at the mid-course crossing were treated to a wide variety of styles
on the transition onto the steep middle pitch of the course
(and thankfully no serious crashes, just a few "fly-bys" of the gate below
the breakover).
The weekend wrapped up on Sunday with awards on the deck and the presentation
of the Bernard Cup trophies to the fastest overall man and woman racer of the weekend,
using the age-handicapping formula created by founder Bob Bernard to "level" the
competition across age groups. Hometown boy Kurt Beldon once again demonstrated
speed and consistency to take the men's title in a close battle, while Deb Lewis
led the women's field. Special recognition goes to the hard-charging
Gate de Mattei, who posted phenomenal runs all weekend out of class 12 to finish
a very close third in the final standings - that's 80 years and and still smoking hot!
See the Race Results page for complete weekend results
and the updated Season Standings.
[21-Mar-2010]
- April Season Finals
The final event of the 2010 Far West Masters season will be the
season finals at Mammoth Mountain on Apr. 13-18.
This year we're making this a complete event (just like the World Cup Finals, almost!),
starting with DH on Tue/Wed, a SG on Thu, and GS/SL technical races on Friday and Saturday.
Come for as much of the week as you can, it should be a fun week.
Saturday will wind up with the annual season banquet. Banquet details will be posted
next week and you'll be able to put in your reservation along with your race entries
on our usual Race Entries form.
Beat Hupfer is organizing the banquet through the Mammoth events department,
so you can sign up for everything at once to simplify registration.
(Please check back next week for the updated event entry form for the
Mammoth finals, along with banquet details that will be posted here on the web site)
Sunday will be our now-traditional dual "fun race", where we put together teams
mixing up masters, family, friends, and some of our junior scholarship athletes
and tackle some head-to-head competition.
[17-Mar-2010]
- March Events Update
At the midpoint of March, after a week break following our very successful weekend
of SG/SC racing at Mammoth, we've got a busy event schedule
for the remainder of this month.
This coming weekend of Mar. 20-21 is the Bernard Cup GS races at Squaw Valley.
Always a good event on the challenging Exhibition run, this year we're adding
a new wrinkle of 3 races in 2 days - 3 runs per day! The weekend weather looks
likely to bring some lovely spring racing conditions, so this should be a lot of fun.
Squaw Valley will be offering GS training on Friday, March 19, 2010 from
9:30 - 12:00 on the same race hill where we will be competing Saturday
and Sunday. The coaches for this training will be Kurt Belden, who
needs no introduction to us, and Barry Thys, former US Ski team member.
The training will also include timed runs, (thus simulating actual race
conditions) and video recordings of your runs. Price for this training
will be $49.00. Check with the Squaw Valley Race Department for details
and to sign up.
The next weekend of Mar. 27-28 will be the popular McKinney Cup
stop at Mt. Rose, with a SL race on Saturday and GS on Sunday.
The following week of Mar. 29-Apr. 2 the USSA Masters
National Championships will be held at Sun Valley ID. Far West is sending a good-size
crew of about 30 competitors and this should be an outstanding week of
racing on Sun Valley's Warm Springs race venues.
The preliminary competitor list is posted on the
2010 nationals event page on ussamasters.org.
There are still slots open before the field size is filled, so if you're able
to make a late decision to compete you can still get your entry in.
(see the nationals web page for details and a link to the entry form)
[16-Mar-2010]
- Pam Warman Fundraiser
Some of you may have met Pam Warman at our Sierra at Tahoe races, where she's worked as a starter on our races
(or Sean Warman, the Competition Services director). The word has been spreading rapidly
through the ski racing community in recent weeks that Pam is battling cancer and
efforts are being organized to help with fundraising for medical bills.
Pam was a successful WC tech for the USST for a number of years - actually the only women ever to be a WC ski tech - and
many US team athletes are stepping up to help out (Bode donated his Olympic helmet to auction on ebay)
along with others in the racing and ski communities.
There's going to be a fundraiser event in Tahoe on April 13th to help her with medical expenses.
She'll have tons of current USST athletes there, as well as many from the PSIA demo team,
and the day will include a fun race, ski clinics, and dinner with auction of donated items.
For more about Pam and the April fundraiser, please visit the pamwarman.webs.com web site
that's been put together by her friends and supporters.
[15-Mar-2010]
- Mammoth Speed Weekend
The outlook for the Mammoth speed weekend wasn't promising when a foot of fresh snow
fell on the preceding Wednesday, with another storm forecast for the weekend.
But Thursday was a bluebird powder day, the weather forecast shifted to scattered
showers, and the grooming and race crews set to work to produce some Mammoth magic.
Thanks to the outstanding work by the Mammoth Race Department to prepare
and maintain the courses, along with some excellent course setting by Pierre Jeangirard
to accommodate the conditions, we had three very good SG races on Friday and Saturday.
Although many were disappointed that the start was moved down from the
traditional Hair Jump start at the base of Cornice Bowl, by the end of the weekend
most agreed that it was a good call to run on the shortened course given
the soft conditions.
The weekend wrapped up on Sunday with a Super Combined - 1 run each of SG and SL.
The SL run rapidly became bouncy, but racers attacked in good spirit with varying combinations
of quick feet and dynamic recoveries to put on an exciting show for spectators
and fellow competitors.
See the Race Results page for complete weekend results
and the updated Season Standings.
[07-Mar-2010]
- Mammoth SGs Update
Thursday update:
Friday's schedule has been revised to a single race run - inspection at noon, race at 1pm.
Regrettably, no training run will be possible due to the amount of new snow
this week - the cats have been scheduled to pack Fascination, but the race crews still have a
lot of work remaining to reset the safety fencing and they will be out working Friday
morning doing the necessary preparation. The upper mountain has not been
accessible due to avalanche control, so the start will be moved down to the back
of Chair 1 and we will run the West Wall/Fascination course.
The weekend schedule currently remains as originally planned, we hope to be
able to run both SG's on Saturday (using the shortened course) and the Sunday SC.
Wednesday afternoon update on schedule for this weekend's SG races at Mammoth:
with today's forecasted snow arriving on schedule late this morning, there will
NOT be SG training available on Thursday as originally planned.
The Friday training run for all competitors prior to the first SG is still
on the weekend schedule.
The current weather forecast calls for a break with clearing weather
on Thursday and Friday, with a chance of snow on Saturday.
The weekend storm does not currently appear to a major one at this time.
Conditions will be assessed on a day-to-day basis. We will do our best
to get the races off, subject to safety considerations of course preparation,
fencing, and evolving weather conditions.
Any updates will be posted here on the web site and broadcast on our news mailing list,
or check directly with the Mammoth Race Department for the latest conditions.
[3:3pm Wed 03-Mar-2010; updated 2pm Thu 3/4]
- Bernard Cup Race Info
This year's Bernard Cup races at Squaw Valley on Mar. 20-21 will provide a weekend of challenging GS racing
on Exhibition. And we're trying something new with our schedule for this event: 3 races in 2 days.
To make it all a bit different, we're going to do this by having 3 runs each day,
rather than trying to complete 2 full races on a single day. So the second race will start on Saturday afternoon,
after the completion of the first race, with the second run of the second race held of Sunday morning
prior to the third race of the weekend. (got it?! right then!)
We think this could be a lot of fun - plenty of time to plan your second run tactics, including an opportunuty to psych out
the competition at the Saturday party! It also gives travelling racers more "bang for the buck", with 3 races
to make the travel investment worthwhile.
A little history: Bob Bernard was a great supporter of Masters racing (sometimes known as "the father of masters racing"
for the key role he played in the 1980's and 90's in the growth of masters ski competition).
Recognizing that even the best 60 and 70 year olds weren't likely to beat 40 year olds head-on, Bob came up with
an age handicapping system to level the competition by giving more advantage to the older racers.
So the overall weekend Bernard Cup trophy
is awarded to the fastest man and woman overall for the weekend, based on age-handicapped adjusted time.
You can print a race entry form to mail from the Race Entries page,
or register online at AlpineReg.com.
If you can only compete on one day of the weekend, be sure to enter only the first race (Saturday) or the third race (Sunday);
as described above, the second race will be split across both days of the weekend.
Check the Bernard Cup event information announcement
posted on the Schedule page
for details on the weekend schedule.
[28-Feb-2010]
- March Events
The March competition schedule opens with a 3-day speed weekend at Mammoth,
with 3 SG's and a Super Combi (1 run each of SG and SL). The Friday SG and the
first of the two Saturday SG's count in the National Speed Series
(NSS). Friday morning will include a training run open to all competitors prior to the race;
participation is strongly encouraged to allow all racers an opportunity to familiarize
themselves with the race venue.
Mammoth will also offer SG and SL training on Thursday Mar. 4 for a special training
fee of $60. SG inspection will be 8:30-9, with SG training from 9-11
followed by SL training from 12-1pm. Stop by the Race Dept. office to sign up.
Continuing with the March schedule, the classic Bernard Cup GS weekend will be
held at Squaw Valley on Mar. 20-21, followed by the McKinney Cup SL/GS event
at Mt. Rose on Mar. 27-28.
The 2010 National Championships will be held Mar. 29-Apr. 2 in Sun Valley, ID.
The event will open on Monday with a Super-Combined, followed by the SG/GS/SL
events of the technical nationals. All division entries were been submitted
to USSA on Feb. 15. There are still slots open if you are interested in competing.
Visit the nationals page on ussamasters.org
for more information and links to the printable entry form.
Late fees of $10/race apply for entries received after Feb. 25, so get'em in now!!
Contact the Race Secretary at nationals@ussamasters.org
with questions.
[23-Feb-2010]
- Northstar Races
Although weather forecasts had predicted weekend snow, the Northstar
race weekend went off without a hitch. Both days offered a mix of
overcast, light snow, and sunshine breaks, but overall the racing conditions
were excellent. The Challenger/FollowMe race hill was in outstanding
shape, providing a long (minute-plus) course with a mix of terrain features
to challenge the competitors.
The Northstar race crews put on an excellent event, with the race hill
well-prepared and maintained each day, and we appreciated the warm welcome
we received from the Northstar staff. Saturday's post-race party featured copious
quantities of Mexican food for all, along with some great raffle prizes
and a chance for everyone to unwind at the end of the day.
See the Race Results page for complete weekend results
and the updated Season Standings.
[22-Feb-2010]
- Georgene Bihlman
Georgene Bihlman passed away Sunday evening after a long struggle with Parkinson's,
only 10 days before her 85th birthday on Feb. 24.
Georgene was a lifelong ski racer and a fierce competitor.
In addition to her numerous championships and many years as
a member of the National Masters team, Georgene was inducted into the
National Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame
in 2002.
Georgene's career as a ski racer spanned 50 years. Her competitive career
began in 1949 in the Far West. Missing an opportunity to compete in the Olympics
due to a serious auto accident, she went on to compete in Veterans and Masters racing
in the US and internationally. In 2009, the Far West Ski Association honored
Georgene with its top award, the Hans Georg award. Georgene passed away after
a long struggle with Parkinson's at her home in Truckee. A private funeral was held
at her request.
Georgene Bihlman obituary
[16-Feb-2010]
- Northstar Race Info
We are scheduled to hold our GS races this weekend at Northstar on Challenger, and down onto Follow me.
This is a very good GS hill(s) and should be fun and challenging. This race venue is FIS homologated
and in fact will be hosting FIS University races the day before we arrive, and the day after we depart.
Check the Northstar event information announcement
posted on the Schedule page
for details on the weekend schedule, Northstar Village map showing registration location,
and lodging packages.
Race Director Mark Mirviss (aka Team Mirviss, with assistance from Annette) have put together
some additional information and maps for finding
parking, registration, and race hill access
[15-Feb-2010]
- Weekly News 2/8
February opened with a break in our division schedule as the Western Regional championships
were held Feb. 4-7 at Park City. While host divison Intermountain dominated the field
of 168 competitors, a strong team of 20 Far West racers represented us well.
Congratulations to Tim Stewart (M07), Matt Savage (M01), Gate de Mattei (M12), and Linda Crowell (W07),
who came away as regional champions in the overall standings.
Discipline winners also included Kurt Belden, Don Merritt, and Julie Rolfe (SL),
while many others had excellent results against strong competition.
Complete event results as well as links to weekend GS and SL race photos are
posted on the  ussamasters.org WR page.
Our next Far West races are GS races at Northstar the weekend of Feb. 20-21.
(Note venue change from the original preseason schedule - our Northstar and Squaw GS race weekends
swapped their original Feb. and Mar. dates).
Be sure to check out the Northstar event information announcement
posted on the Schedule page
for details on the weekend schedule, Northstar Village map showing registration location,
and lodging packages.
One other note on Northstar: our discounted racer lift tickets do not allow
for special access to the ski school entry in lift lines. However, if you are interested
in expedited lift access, as crowds can sometimes be a factor on race day,
Northstar does offer a "fast pass" that can be purchased at race registration for $15
and provides access to Northstar's "vertical plus" line.
The discounted group rate that Northstar is providing us with for lift plus fast-pass access
that is less than the standard daily lift rate.
Although we were not able to get our own masters online registration service available this season
(we're working towards that for next year!), there is online registration available
for our upcoming race weekend at Northstar as well as the March Mammoth SG's on Mar. 5-7
and the Squaw GS's on Mar. 20-21 through a commercial service that some of our organizing areas are using.
If you would like to register online for these races, go to
AlpineReg.com
and click on the Masters tab. Ater entering your USSA masters license number, you will find
our races listed under the California section - select the area and the races you wish to enter.
Please note that you will be responsible for paying a small processing fee for each race entry (a little over $2).
Be sure you understand their terms of service and the entry processing and cancellation policies if you use this service;
Far West Masters is not directly involved and cannot assist in your use of this service.
Race photos from the Sierra at Tahoe GS races have been posted by Tommy Comptom and Sash Glushenko - visit
the Photos page for links to their photo galleries.
[09-Feb-2010]
- Sierra at Tahoe Races
After a stormy mid-January, the month closed out with the rescheduled
Sierra at Tahoe GS races held on the final weekend of January
with good weather and snow conditions. Competitors loved the race hill
and raved about the friendly and enthusiastic effort of the Sierra race crews
to make us welcome and put on a great event.
See the Race Results page for complete weekend results
and the updated Season Standings.
(Coming soon: race photos from Sunday's GS by Tommy Compton)
Next up on the season race calendar is the Western Regional championships
at Park City this coming weekend Feb. 4-7. Results will be posted daily on
ussamasters.org/2010/wr.
On a very sad note, Dave Phillips suffered a heart attack after the
Sierra at Tahoe GS race on Sunday.
Dave was a new racer with us this year. His first race was at Mammoth and he had
come to compete in the Sierra at Tahoe GS races from his home in Las Vegas.
We all share the sadness of his family and friends at this loss and will miss
having him with us.
Please take a moment to visit the Photos page
for a great race photo of Dave from Sunday's GS - on a beautiful sunny day, Dave's
looking good and going for it!
[-2-Feb-2010]
- Weekly News 1/27
The January Forerunner newsletter is out!
Newsletter editor Ingrid Braun has pulled together all the news
and lots of photos from our December and early January races,
so head on over the Newsletters page
where all issues are posted of
or click the link below to view now:
Sierra at Tahoe is going to provide free training to all of the competitors
racing this weekend. The training will be from 11:00 to 2:00 Friday on
"Clipper." This is the hill we will be racing on, and timed training runs
will be available. Sierra at Tahoe is going to provide tickets for training
to the competitors for $40.00. To purchase tickets at that rate, go to the
Season Ticket office and tell them you are there to train for the weekend's
races. If you have not yet signed up for the race, you may also do so Friday
at the Season ticket office. Also, there will be a competitors line (the ski school line)
for all racers this weekend. The weather looks good for the coming weekend,
after last week's storms, so this should be a fantastic event!
Far West Sking is once again putting on their Hoedown fund raiser for Far West athletes
on February 6 at the Squaw Valley Lodge. Far West administrator Lucy Schram says
"Some of the great offerings we have thus far for our silent auction
are: hand carved wooden ski bear, Squaw Valley Season pass for 10/11, ski backpack and ski bag,
skis and bindings, Descente and Mountain Hardware jackets, priceless art work, just to name a few."
For information and ticket order, visit the FW division web site at fwskiing.us
More race photos! Sasha Glushenko has posted race and party pictures from the Jan. 8-10 Heavenly and Squaw races,
to add to the photos from Tom Compton that were posted earlier this month. Links are available
on the Photos page. When you're checking the Results page look for thecamera icon
decorating the entries for all races where photos are available.
[28-Jan-2010]
- Sierra at Tahoe Races Rescheduled
The Far West Masters GS races scheduled for the weekend of Jan. 23-24 at
Sierra at Tahoe have been cancelled due to weather and snow conditions, as
the fourth in a week-long series of storms rolling through the
Sierras moved in Thursday.
Sierra at Tahoe has a storm total of over 50" of new snow by Thursday morning,
with over a foot on Wednesday and more coming on Thursday. Although a weather break is
forecast for the coming weekend, the race organizers and jury officials
concluded that there was too much new snow to be able to prepare
the race venue for a safe competition.
The races are being rescheduled for next weekend Jan. 30-31.
While we realize this is short notice for competitors, Sierra at Tahoe would like to go ahead
with the event and the last weekend of January was the best solution to finding an
open date.
All race entries will be carried over for next weekend.
If you were entered but cannot make it on the rescheduled date,
please contact Sierra at Tahoe Competition Services by email
to cancel your entry: swarman.st@boothcreek.com.
If you were not previously entered but would like to compete,
by all means send your entry in! we'd like to get as many competitors
on the hill as possible.
On short notice, it would also be
a good idea to contact Sierra at Tahoe to confirm entry.
There will also be training available
on Friday Jan. 29 - contact Competition Services for details.
[21-Jan-2010]
- Weekly News (1/18)
The MLK holiday weekend is bringing us the opening round of an expected sequence of El Nino storms
stacked up on a strong jet stream to roll through California this week with widespread snow and rain.
We have GS races this weekend at Sierra at Tahoe, so competitors should watch the weather this week
Any updates on weather and conditions that might affect our race schedule
will be posted on the FWM web site and broadcast on our news mailing list.
Entries are due next week for the Western Regional championships at Park City on Feb. 4-7.
Entries can submitted by mailing the entry form or by email, with payment due at registration.
For entry form and instructions visit the western regionals page on ussamasters.org
or use the Western Regionals Entry button on our own Race Entries page.
Entries for the Sun Valley national championships Mar. 29-Apr. 2 should be submitted to Far West president Marietta Frinell
by Feb. 1 - send by mail (address on Contacts page) or deliver at the next race.
For entry form and instructions visit the nationals page on ussamasters.org
or use the Nationals Entry button on our own Race Entries page.
Please write one check for all events, as described on the entry form.
To be eligible, you must have a USSA Masters competition license and be a current member of Far West Masters.
Because each division has a quota based on their USSA memberships, our Far West team selection criteria
is that you should have raced in four FW Masters races in the current 2010 season or six in the prior season.
We do expect additional entry slots to be available after the initial submission from all divisions under
their quota limits on Feb. 15, so by all means send an entry if you'd like to compete. If you don't make the initial
Far West team selection you'll be placed on a waiting list that we will draw from after the first round of division entries
are completed on Feb. 15.
For those of you who enjoy speed events, Mammoth is holding a 3-event open SG series this season.
Races will be held on Monday Jan. 15, Thursday Mar. 4 (the day before our 3-day masters SG race weekend),
and Monday Apr. 19 (the day following our season finals weekend).
This is an open race series held in conjunction with scheduled speed events that Mammoth is hosting, when
the SG venue will have course preparation and fencing in place suitable for the competition.
Anyone with suitable skills, equipment, and $25 can enter! See the info flyer or contact the Mammoth Race Department for details.
[18-Jan-2010]
- News Mailing List
To help get the word out when we have news and information about our Far West Masters
program and races, we have created a news mailing list that we will use
for sending out news messages and announcements. You can always come here to the
web site for the most complete and current information, as always, but now with the
news mailing list you can also receive notifications through your email.
We think the news mailing list will help to keep members and competitors
informed, especially during the course of the competition season when there
are schedule changes and weather news that we need to get out to everyone
quickly. The list will be "low traffic" - it will only be used to send
messages which have been approved by the list managers as relevant and appropriate.
Usually this will consist of a weekly news post during the season, occasional messages
from the president or other board members, and breaking news on our race calendar
during the season.
All Far West Masters competitors who have been active members in the past few season
and who have indicated on their membership application preferences that email contact
is acceptable will automatically be added to the news list. (You can remove
yourself at any time - instructions are included with your welcome message and
help is available from the list information page.) The list is open to anyone
interested - just sign up!
To subscribe to the list, browse the messages archive,
edit your subscription options, or remove yourself,
visit the news list information page:
[14-Jan-2010]
- Squaw/Northstar Schedule Changes
***SCHEDULE CHANGES*** In response to changing conditions,
we have arranged a "venue swap" between the GS race weekends originally scheduled
for Feb. 20-21 at Squaw Valley and on Mar. 20-21 at Northstar.
The Bernard Cup GS weekend originally scheduled for Feb. 20-21 at Squaw Valley
will now be held on Mar. 20-21. The Northstar GS races originally
scheduled for that weekend will now be held on Feb. 20-21.
(There will be no DH at Northstar this season)
The Bernard Cup GS race weekend will also feature a scheduling experiment
that we hope will be fun for competitors as well as giving us some additional
flexibility in putting on the races. We will have 3 GS races over the two days,
with three runs each day. Eh, you say?! Right - we'll have the first run of
the second GS race on Saturday afternoon; the second run will be on Sunday morning.
Plenty of time to plan your second run strategy and work on psyching out
your competitors! It'll be a little different, but we think it'll be fun
to try something a little different.
[13-Jan-2010]
- Regionals and Nationals Entries
The Western Regionals will be held on Feb. 4-7 at Park City UT.
This is a 4-event championship, starting with SG and SC on Payday
on Thursday/Friday, with the weekend GS/SL races held on CB's and Picabo's
at the Eagle Race Arena.
For event schedule and lodging information, visit the
WR event page on ussa.org.
Entry form and instructions on submitting by mail or email are posted on the
western regionals results page on ussamasters.org.
Entries are due by Wed. Jan. 27 and should be submitted directly to the PCMR Race Department.
The Downhill National Championship will be hosted by Rocky Mountain division thsi season as part of the Aspen speed weekend
on Feb. 13-15, the weekend following the regionals. (Sun Valley is not able to hold the championship downhill in conjunction
with the nationals, which is the preferred scheduling arrangement when possible).
Event information and online registration is available through the
Rocky Mountain Masters web site.
The National Championships will be held Mar. 29-Apr. 2 at Sun Valley ID.
For event schedule and lodging information, visit the
nationals event page on ussa.org.
Entry form and instructions on submitting are posted on the
nationals results page on ussamasters.org.
Entries are due by the end of January and should be submitted to Far West president Marietta Frinell.
[12-Jan-2010]
- Heavenly & Squaw SL Races
The new year brought warm weather and 3 packed days of SL racing to the Far West.
On Friday Jan. 8 Heavenly hosted a double-header race day on World Cup for the Viva Italia
SL, with sponsor John Gianotti in fine form encouraging the competitors on the hill
and organizing a great post-race party with food, prizes, and a special surprise to celebrate
another great performance by our oldest race Teddie Cantanho.
The overall Viva Italia trophy winners this year were defending champion Kurt Beldon,
with Deb "I love slalom!" Lewis reclaiming the women's title.
Shifting from the south shore up to the northwest corner of Lake Tahoe, the weekend brought
two more days of SL racing at Squaw Valley on Exhibition. With warm conditions and thin snow cover
on the race hill, the start was moved down from the road and the course setters diligently plotted
lines to challenge the racers and make best use of the hill. Some exciting runs resulted among the
younger men's classes, but all competed in good spirits. Saturday's post-race party featured
some fine catering provided by local chefs Eddie Mozen and Mark Mirviss, and with plenty of great
raffle prizes following well-executed speeches by scholarship athletes, everyone went home happy
and well-fed.
A big thanks to the race crews at both Heavenly and Squaw for putting on excellent events.
Both organizers worked hard to prepare the race hills and had good crews out working our races,
and their efforts paid off with well-run events.
***Schedule updates*** We will be posting some changes to our season schedule
this week, with a "date swap" between the originally scheduled Feb. 20-21 Bernard Cup GS races at Squaw
and the Mar. 20-21 GS weekend at Northstar. Details will be posted in a few days. Regionals and nationals
entry forms will also be posted.
See the Race Results page for complete weekend results
and the updated Season Standings.
Also, be sure to check out the race photos from the Viva Italia races and Sunday's SL by Tommy Compton.
[10-Jan-2010; updated 12-Jan-2010]
- Henry Kristaponis
It is with great sadness that we share the news that Henry Kristaponis passed away today.
We do not yet have any details, but will pass on further news when it becomes available.
Henry was a distinctive character and known to many of us for his passion for ski racing
and downhill. Always dapper, Henry was hard to miss on the hill or off!
Born in 9120, Henry was 89. He will be missed.
[06-Jan-2010]
- Happy New Year!!
Happy New Year to all, and welcome to 2010!!
Sierra ski areas celebrated the holidays with good weather and good snow conditions,
so hopefully everyone got a chance to do some skiing as well as spend time with
family and friends.
We have a good set of races coming up in January.
The weekend of Jan. 8-10 opens on Friday Jan. 8 with a SL doubleheader
on World Cup at Heavenly - this is the famous Viva Italia race,
with a great party afterwards as well as good racing, so don't miss this!
Saturday and Sunday we move to the north shore for a pair of SL races
at Squaw Valley. Squaw did an outstanding job putting on our December
race weekend before Christmas, so this should also be a great event.
It's not to soon to start planning your winter major events schedule!
The Western Regionals will be at Park City the first weekend in February,
providing a 4-event SC/SG/GS/SL race meeting. The regionals SG is also
the opening event of the 2010 National Speed Series.
The following weekend the traditional Rocky Mountain Masters Aspen speed events
are also the national championship DH this year. And not least, this year
the national championships will be hosted at Sun Valley the week of Mar. 29-Apr. 2.
Sun Valley has great race venues and is offering some very attractive lodging
packages for competitors. Entry forms for regionals and nationals will be available
on the Race Entries page the first week of January.
[03-Jan-2010]
- Squaw SL Races
On the last weekend before the holidays, Sierra ski areas celebrated
the recent snowfall and Far West masters racers gathered at Squaw Valley
for a pair of SL races. Competing on the lower section of Exhibition,
which will also host a challenging GS race for the Bernard Cup in February,
provided a good test of the skill and endurance of competitors early
in the season.
Our thanks to Squaw Valley's Race Department for putting on an outstanding event!
See the Race Results page for complete weekend results
and the updated Season Standings.
Also, be sure to check out the race photos from Sunday's SL by Tommy Compton.
[20-Dec-2009; updated 04-Jan-2010]
- Mammoth Opener
The 2010 race season kicked off with a GS weekend at Mammoth Mountain,
following the annual masters traning camp week that Mammoth has offered for many season.
A nice Thanksgiving weekend snowstorm provided a welcome addition to the early season
snowpack and a week of clear, sunny weather provided excellent conditions for
the season warmup.
Saturday's GS was held in clear but breezy conditions on the re-christened
Andrea's Double Gold race hill (formerly Far West), honoring the memory and
accomplishments of Andrea Mead Lawrence. The firm race conditions provided
a consistent racing surface for the field of over 80 competitors.
A good turnout for the post-race party at Giovanni's featured plenty of pizza
and lots of great raffle prizes for the scholarship athlete fund.
Sunday's race was regrettably cancelled as the leading edge of a strong
winter storm brought high winds and dropping temperatures. The jury's decision
on the safety of race conditions given deteriorating visibility was sealed when
lift operations shut down, leaving travelling competitors plenty of time
to get on the road before the evening arrival of snowfall.
[06-Dec-2009]
- Happy Thanskgiving
With the arrival of the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, it's a nice time
to reflect and appreciate the good things that so many of us are blessed
to enjoy. Ski areas are opening for the season, with the first races of the
2010 Far West masters season a little over a week away. Having the opportunity
to participate in this sport and enjoy the athletic challenge and comradery
is certainly something we can all be thankful for. Hope everyone has
a healthy, happy holiday with family and friends!
Race entry form printing for the December race weekends at Mammoth and Squaw
is available on the Race Entries page.
(Additional race events on the schedule will be added for entry printing
in early December.)
A new option this year is online registration,
which will be available for selected events. All Mammoth races
this season can be entered online and we anticipate other areas
will also be making their races available through this service.
If you would like to enter online rather than printing and mailing
an entry form, go to alpinereg.com
and click on the Masters tab in the upper right, and select the
California event listings.
(Note: you must hold a current USSA competition license to use
the online entry service provided by Alpine Reg).
If you haven't yet joined USSA or renewed your masters license,
you can do this online at ussa.org.
Note also that this year you can only use a temp (weekend) license
one weekend. The weekend license is a great
option if you're new and would like to try masters racing before
making a commitment to the full license.
See the How to Join page for more information
and links to forms and the USSA web site.
[11-Nov-2009]
- Web Site Remodel
The Far West Masters web site has embarked on a new phase in its life!
In preparation for the upcoming 2009-2010 season, the site has been completely rewritten
and is now being relaunched on a new technology platform which will enable us to provide
more effective content and improved services to our racers in the Far West.
The site has come a long way from its creation in the late '90's thanks
to the pioneering efforts of Archie Monica in the early years of the internet.
In the ever-changing world of the internet and modern technology, the site was
beginning to show its age, however, and its early-generation web infrastructure
was no longer able to keep up and allow us to explore the new ideas and features
that we'd like to support.
For you technical cognoscenti out there, we have moved
from a first-generation Microsoft web technology called ASP to the
modern open-source web platform Ruby on Rails.
Please be patient for the next few weeks while we work out any glitches
and finish converting a few remaining areas of the current site.
Some of the features you may be used will be temporarily unavailable - the archive
of race results and standings from previous seasons has been taken offline for now
(but they're coming back!!), while the Member Lookup and user accounts features
are closed until renovation of the membership database features are completed.
And now back to our regularly scheduled ski racing action...
Race Entry printing is now open for the December races, with our opening
race at Mammoth on Dec.5-6 only a few weeks away now!
[15-Nov-2009]
- Weekly News (11/08)
**Schedule Update**
Due to scheduling issues, the Jan. 9-10 SL weekend at Heavenly on the preliminary 2009-2010 race schedule
has been changed to 2 SL races at Heavenly on Fri. Jan. 8,
with the weekend races moved to Squaw Valley on Sat-Sun Jan. 9-10 (SL each day).
Please note that final details of the Northstar event in March are not yet confirmed; the schedule
will be updated when final arrangements are confirmed.
Race entry form printing for the December races will be available in mid-November. (Please be patient!
The site is currently undergoing a major rework to enable improved services for the coming season.)
We are also working out arrangements with Mammoth to provide online registration for the opening Dec.5-6 race weekend;
details will be posted here when available.
[08-Nov-2009]
- November News
Halloween and the DST time change have come and gone, and as November opens
with a high pressure system over the Sierras and snow in the Rockies
it's time to start planning for preseason camps and the upcoming
race season.
The Training information page has been updated with information on training opportunities
for masters in the 2010 season. Training programs provide a range from season-long programs through single-day "drop-in" sessions.
Many of these are well-established season programs, while others are more recent additions that we are glad to welcome
and hope to see grow and be successful.
New this year is a free drop-in program at Sierra-at-Tahoe, where we had a very successful inaugural event last season and will be returning to in January.
Also new this year is a program at Tahoe-Donner started by Rich Aprile, who's been involved in racing in the FW for many years.
The Mammoth Race Department is once again holding a week-long race camp the week prior to our first Far West Masters
races. The camp is Mon-Fri Nov. 30-Dec. 4, with daily as well as week-long participation options, leading init the season opening races the weekend of Dec. 5-6.
(Note: the dates for the opening weekend races that were originally published in the Masters Comp Guide are not correct; corrected dates of Dec. 5-6 are
published here on our FW Masters site as well as on the Masters Schedule page on ussa.org.
As always, be sure to check here for news updates and on the Season Schedule page throughout the season for updates and event details on our race calendar.)
[02-Nov-2009]
- October News
October brought an early winter storm to the Sierras and Mammoth celebrated the first taste
of winter by opening on Friday Oct. 16, their earliest since the mid-90's
Although they've closed again as another round of high pressure and warm temps has settled over the west coast,
it's a nice reminder that winter is on its way. Hopes are high for El Nino and good snow year.
Far West Masters sponsor Granite Chief
will be holding their annual Team Day on Sat Oct. 24
at the Truckee store. Coaches and reps will be there, with team pricing
on race equipment and special offers on orthothics and boot work.
Be sure to stop in if you can!
Also coming up this weekend is the fall board meeting and officials clinic on Saturday Oct. 24, hosted by Mark Smallhouse. And on Friday evening Reno Mountain Sports will be holding their annual Race Night event. All masters are invited and owner/racer Dave Garner says "Industry techs, coaches,
and the RMS staff will be on hand for advice, fitting, or just a friendly
chat."
For those in Mammoth area, the Mammoth Ski Education Foundation (MSSEF) is hosting a tuning
clinic by renowned tuner Willi Wiltz on Saturday October 24 from 3:30 to 7:00 at the Mammoth High School.
Also, Command Performance will have race reps at the shop this weekend from 10-4 Saturday and Sunday
and masters racers are invited to come in for equipment advice and season preparation.
[18-Oct-2009]
- Fall News
The preliminary 2009-2010 race schedule is now available and membership renewal forms are being
mailed to all recent Far West Masters members in September with the fall issue of the Forerunner
newsletter. If you've joined FW Masters anytime in the past 5 seasons, you'll be receiving the
program information and membership application.
Complete information including links for the USSA masters alpine license and our Far West Masters membership
are provided on the How to Join page.
The Fall FWM board members meeting and the officials training clinic is tentatively scheduled for Sat Oct. 24
and will be hosted by Mark Smallhouse in Reno. Details will be posted when available.
Minutes from the summer board meeting held July 11 at president Marietta Frinell's home in Mammmoth are posted on the
Board records page (see link at left in the FWM Documents section of the site).
Passing on some sad news, Seth Joslin, son of long-time racer and former Squaw Valley race program director Toot Joslin, passed away last week.
A memorial gathering is being planned, tentatively scheduled for Sept. 26, at the Cedar Flat Lakefront lot and pier where Seth and Rachel were married.
[15-Sep-2009; updated 05-Oct-2009]
- Scholarship Program Application Available
Far West junior athletes interested in applying to the scholarship fund program
can obtain the 2010 application form here:
2010 scholarship application
Please read the instructions and be sure to submit your application before the deadline
of Sept. 15, 2009.
(That's a firm deadline, we really mean it! In fairness to the other athletes and our volunteer review committee who work hard to consider everyone carefully, applications submitted after the deadline cannot be considered.)
Contact Eddie Mozen at mozen@concentric.net if you have any questions.
[17-Aug-2009]
- Summer Meeting
The summer board meeting will be held Saturday Jul. 11 at Marietta Frinell's home in Mammoth Lakes.
The meeting will be at 3pm, with food and drink, and anyone interested is invited to attend.
There's a lot of summer activities to participate in and Mike Braun is organizing golf.
Please RSVP to Sandy Hogan so we can plan for refreshments.
Click for meeting agenda.
Agenda items include awards parties, increasing membership and race participation, scheduling,
newsletter and communication, next year's schedule, and ideas for improving our program.
[03-Jul-2009]
- 2009 Season Wrapup
With the completion of the 2009 competition season, everyone is moving on to spring skiing and other activities.
News will be posted here on the web site occasionally through the summer, when there are summer activities
to mention and in the fall when we have next season's schedule and membership information available.
The spring issue of the Forerunner newsletter is here!
This season's newsletters are all available online on the Newsletters
page.
(Printed copies are mailed to all current members of the Far West Masters.)
Click here for the April newsletter:
April Forerunner
(note: be patient if slow to appear... this issue has a lot of great pictures)
Take a few minutes to visit to the the  Pictures page for more race photo links that have been added recently.
Lisa Lill and Sasha Glushenko have posted photos from the Mt. Rose weekend, to go with the great GS shots from Tom Compton.
Note that races where photos are available are decorated on the Race Results page
with a
photos icon
when we have photos available.
The annual summer board meeting will be held on Saturday July 11 in Mammmoth Lakes.
The board meeting is tentatively scheduled for 4pm to allow folks to spend the day
and evening in the many summer activities available (golf, biking, hiking, Jazz Festival).
Details will be posted before the meeting on location, lodging options for visitors,
and activity recommendations.
[29-Apr-2009]
- Season Finale (04/06)
The 2009 race season came to a close with the final weekend of competition at the Mt. Rose McKinney Cup.
In a change from the traditional SL/SL format, this year's event featured a Friday/Saturday GS/SL combo.
Following Saturday's racing,, the annual season finale banquet was held with raffles, auction items
whose proceeds support the junior athlete Scholarship Fund, and the presentation of season awards
and the 2010 men's and women's leader bibs. On Sunday a "fun race" dual was held with masters, family
and friends, and some of our junior athletes all mingling and competing.
See the Race Results page for complete results
and the final Season Standings.
We also have photo contributions from the Mammoth SG races and the Mt. Rose GS, thanks to racer Sasha Glushenko
and Reno photographer Tommy Compton. Sasha's been sharing his photo albums from a number of our races this season,
as well as from the Western Regionals at Park City - be sure to visit the Pictures page to find
links to his race pictures.
Tommy Compton of Reno came up to shoot the GS at our season finale weekend at Mt. Rose
and came away with some great race photos posted on his AlpenGlow Images web site
at www.thomascompton.com.
Check'em out to enjoy the racing action and get in touch with him through his web site if you'd like copies.
[07-Apr-2009]
- Weekly News (04/01)
The weekly news returns after a brief hiatus while the webmaster was back east at Sunday River competing in the 2009 national championships...
The second half of March featured a busy race schedule in the Far West, with the classic Bernard Cup GS races at Squaw on Mar. 21-22 followed
by a makeup weekend of SG racing at Mammoth on Mar. 27-29.
In the face of an incoming storm coming through the Sierras on Saturday night into Sunday, the Bernard Cup organizers responded with some creative schedule
adjustments and successfully held both races on Saturday, leaving Sunday open for some great powder skiing.
The 2009 Bernard Cup winners, awarded to the fastest man and woman overall based on an age-handicapped total time, are
first-time winner Liesl Panke (W40) and defending men's champ Kurt Beldon (M50).
With only a small team of Far West competitors travelling to Sunday River ME the last week of March for the national championships,
Far West Masters organizers and the Mammoth Race Department agreed to reschedule the weather-cancelled SG races
from January for the weekend of Mar. 27-29 to provide a competition opportunity for those racers unable to travel east.
Friday offered a morning training run followed by a SG race, with two SG races on Saturday. After two days of great weather
and racing conditions, a fast-moving Saturday night cold front rolled in and the ensuing high winds made it impossible to
hold the final SG and super-combi races on Sunday.
See the Race Results page for complete results
and the updated Season Standings going into the final race weekend at Mt. Rose.
The national championships at Sunday River featured an excellent week of racing, with good weather, great race conditions
for most of the week (albeit with some fog and soft snow on the final two days), and outstanding operations
by the Sunday River race crews.
Complete results are available at ussamasters.org/2009/nationals.
This coming weekend of Apr. 3-5 is the final weekend of racing in the 2009 Far West Masters season.
The McKinney Cup trophy races at Mt. Rose consist of the GS on Friday and SL on Saturday, with a "fun race" dual GS on Sunday
open to racers, family, and friends as well as a number of our junior scholarship athletes.
Saturday night will feature the season finale banquet, with season awards presentations, raffles, and a silent auction
whose proceeds support the scholarship program.
The Scholarship Program organizers have assembled some great items for the silent auction -
click here for details.
If you are unable to attend the banquet but would like to place a bid, contact Eddie Mozen by phone or email (see flyer).
[02-Apr-2009]
- Weekly News (03/16)
With spring arriving officially on Friday and a good snowpack in the Sierras after a snowy February,
our final three weekends of racing this season are coming up with the Squaw Bernard Cup GS races
followed by the rescheduled SG's at Mammoth, and finishing off the first weekend of April
with the finale weekend and season banquet at Mt. Rose. Spring racing is often a real treat,
with warm sunny weather and plenty of snow, so come on out if you can and enjoy some racing
competition.
Please be sure to RSVP to Linda Crowell for the season finale banquet on Saturday April 4.
click here for season banquet details....
The March issue of the Forerunner newsletter has been mailed to all current members, along with
with a copy of the membership roster included. The membership roster with contact info for
other racers is only available to current members of the Far West Masters.
This season's newsletters are also available online on the Newsletters
page. Click here for the March newsletter:
March Forerunner
The winter board meeting and general membership meeting was held on Saturday Mar. 7 following the Alpine Meadows race.
The primary topic was to consider changing from 10-year age classes to the 5-year national age class system
now used by most other masters divisions as well as for all regional and national USSA masters competitions.
This is an important decision that has been under consideration for several years, with considerable
discussion within the board and a number of factors considered included input from members as well
as operational considerations and perhaps most importantly the effect on competition.
The decision was made that Far West Masters will change to 5-year national age classes for the 2009-2010 season.
We will continue to have the Open class, but all races and season scoring will change next season
to compete within 5-year age classes.
All board meeting minutes are published online for availability to the membership
on the Board page. Click here for the Alpine winter meeting minutes:
March 2009 board meeting minutes.
Ballots for our annual election for 2010 board positions were available at the March board meeting and a voice vote was taken.
If you couldn't make it, print a copy and mail by the end of March:
2009 FWM Ballot.
[16-Mar-2009]
- Weekly News (03/09)
After a stormy early week which brought snowfall amounts of multiple feet of snow to the Sierras,
the weather cleared mid-week. There was considerable concern about whether we would be able
to hold the scheduled GS races at Alpine, but on Friday afternoon TD Don Smith met with the
Alpine race crew and the decision was made to proceed. Saturday's weather was spectacular - warm,
sunny, great skiing all over the mountain. The course was soft, so several breaks in the running order
were made to allow for course maintenance and slipping, with many competitors coming around after their
runs to assist. The morning run was a technical set challenging both brain and skiing skills, while
the afternoon run was a high-speed flowing fun-fest. Very different, but both good courses.
Sunday's weather was cloudier with a cold wind blowing straight up the top pitch, just the thing to chill down
competitors waiting at the start! The course again was soft and got quite bumpy, as the regrettably high DNF count testifies,
but everyone did their best with the conditions and went home happy that we were able to have
a race weekend with two long GS's.
See the Race Results page for complete weekend results
and the updated Season Standings.
This coming weekend is an off weekend on our race schedule, but our FW season then winds up with 3 great
events coming up. On Mar. 20-21 is the annual Bernard Cup GS races at Squaw. The following
weekend is a 3-day SG event at Mammoth, rescheduled after the original January event had to be cancelled
due to stormy weather. There will be SG training on Friday, with 4 SG races over the 3 days and
Sunday winding up with a SL run added onto the morning SG race for a SC. And last but certainly not
least is the season finale 3-day weekend at Mt. Rose on Apr. 3-5. The final scoring races of the season
are a GS on Friday and SL on Saturday, with a fun-race dual on Sunday that many of our scholarship
athletes will participate in. Saturday evening following the SL will be our season banquet,
with season awards, along with food, conversation, and raffles and auctions of some great items
with the proceeds going to the junior athlete scholarship fund.
Please be sure to RSVP to Linda Crowell for the season finale banquet on Saturday April 4.
click here for season banquet details....
Competitors entering the Mammoth SG should send entries as usual; the original entries from the cancelled
January event have been torn up, so you must re-send your entry for the rescheduled March event.
If you're interested in getting in some GS training prior to the Squaw races, check into the 2-day GS
clinic being put on at Sugar Bowl on Mar. 19-20 by Evan Weiss, head coach of the UNR ski team.
Details and contact info to reach Evan are in the info flyer -
click here for details.
Several masters who participated in the January SL clinic gave it great reviews, so this should be a
good training opportunity for those who can make it.
[10-Mar-2009]
- Weekly News (03/02)
After a week of scrambling by the Northstar organizers along with representatives of FW masters and Sierra League
to work out arrangements to accommodate rescheduling our masters SG races alongside the previously scheduled
SG clinic and race event of Sierra League, the races this weekend came off and were acclaimed a success by all.
In a break from the snowy weather of "Fab Feb", masters racers who joined the Saturday morning training clinic
were treated to several good training runs before the afternoon race.
In anticipation of possible weather difficulties on Sunday as another storm approached, a second race
was held on Saturday to take advantage of the good weather and the hard work of the Northstar race crew to prepare
and maintain the hill.
Although Sunday's field was diminished as apparently some competitors were discouraged by the forecast,
the weather held off through the morning and a third SG race was successfully held.
Many thanks to the Northstar crew and the cooperation of the Sierra League for making this event happen.
We hope the Sierra racers who joined us enjoyed the competition and come back to race again!
See the Race Results page for complete weekend results
and the updated Season Standings.
(Note:
the second race added Saturday was announced as a provisional race run in case Sunday's
race could not be completed as scheduled. Since the Sunday race was successfully held,
the Sat SG #2 is not included in the overall season standings scoring.)
This coming weekend brings the Preb Motley GS races at Alpine Meadows.
On Saturday afternoon following the race an open membership and board meeting will be held.
Please come and take the opportunity to exchange ideas and suggestions on how to improve
our racing program and bring more participants into this sport that we all enjoy.
Ballots for our annual election for 2009 board positions will be available at the meeting.
If you can't make it, print a copy and mail:
 2009 FWM Ballot.
[02-Mar-2009; updated 3/4 for season standings]
- Weekly News (02/23)
February "speed week" in the Far West features the annual Mammoth DH's on Mon-Thu, with the Masters race running as a separate field
after the scheduled FW juniors competitions with whom we'll be sharing the hill space and course crews,
and the rescheduled Northstar SG's next weekend on 2/28-3/1, with a training and race run each day.
The first 2 of the 3 downhills at Mammoth, scheduled for Wednesday following 2 training days, will be scored as part
of the National Speed Series.
Northstar Details
All entries that were sent in for last week's race have been kept and will be used for the rescheduled event.
New entries should be sent as soon as possible.
If you were entered for the original 2/21-22 weekend but can't make it this coming weekend, your check will be torn up.
However, please call Northstar and cancel if you cannot compete.
Scheduling director Mark Mirviss will review the hill conditions and weekend schedule with the Northstar
Race Department as well as Sierra League officials on Wednesday and any further news will be posted following their decisions.
 Northstar race details [Wed 9pm]
Remember that we are sharing the Northstar race hill with the Sierra League racers, who already had a Saturday SG clinic and Sunday SG
race scheduled. Far West Masters appreciates the willingness of both the Northstar organizers and Sierra League to allow our races
to be rescheduled "on top of" their existing event.
We would love to have any Sierra League competitors who are interested double their racing fun and participate in our masters race!
A $25 weekend USSA temporary license
is required of all racers who do not already hold a USSA competitors license. (insurance, it's important!!)
Masters competitors have also been welcomed by Sierra - visit their web site at
www.sierraleague.com for information on entering their race.
Rescheduling details for the cancelled January SG weekend at Mammoth have also been confirmed. We will again have a 3-day race weekend,
rescheduled for the last weekend in March on Mar. 27-29. Friday will have a training run in the morning followed by the afternoon SG race run, with 2 SG races
following on Saturday. The weekend will wrap up on Sunday with a morning SG race, followed by an additional SL run that will
be combined with the morning SG as a scored SC race.
Competitors on Sunday who enter the morning SG have the option of adding on the SL run to participate in the SC.
While we still have quite of bit of great racing still ahead of us, it's not too late to start thinking about the
season finale McKinney Cup at Mt. Rose on April 3-5 and the season awards banquet that we hold annually to celebrate the completion of the racing season. Please RSVP to Linda Crowell if you will be able to attend the season banquet on Saturday April 4.
click here for season banquet details...
[23-Feb-2009; updated Tue 2/24, Wed 2/25]
- Northstar SG Updates
It was determined on Wednesday afternoon that this weekend's Northstar SG races are cancelled.
Far West Masters scheduling director Mark Mirviss met with the Northstar Race Department
out on the hill and despite the recent snowfall accumulations in the Sierras there are
areas on the Challenger race hill that did not receive adequate coverage
needed to safely conduct a SG race at this time.
We are exploring the possibility of rescheduling the races for the following weekend
and will update this posting as soon as new information is available.
The Northstar SG races have been RESCHEDULED for the following weekend of
Feb. 28-Mar. 1. There will be a training run and a race run both days.
There may also be some joint arrangement with Sierra League, who also have a SG scheduled on Sunday that
weekend along with a training clinic on Saturday; details to follow when available.
The Race entry form printing service will be updated on Sunday 2/2 with provide an entry form for the rescheduled Northstar SG races,
along with addition of entry form for the rescheduled SG races at Mammoth at the end of March.
Masters competitors who will be in the Tahoe area this weekend and would like an alternative
racing opportunity are invited by Pavel Bosin, Sierra League Race Director as well
as a FW master, to come to this weekend's Sierra League slalom races
on Feb. 21-22 at Sugar Bowl.
Pavel says ""
All Masters racers are welcome to participate.
Registration is 7:30 - 8:30 am in Judah Lodge (3rd floor).
To speed up your registration please pre-register online at
www.sierraleague.com."
[2pm Thu 19-Feb-2009; updated 5pm Sat 2/21]
- Weekly News (02/16)
President's Day weekend in the Sierras brought several feet of new snow to most areas,
breaking a long spell of dry, warm conditions and adding a healthy layer to the snowpack
everywhere. The storm was beginning to clear out on Tuesday with sunny conditions
returning for the second half of the week.
Far West racing resumes this weekend with SG races at Northstar, followed next week
by DH races at Mammoth with the masters field competing following the USSA juniors races.
If you are competing at Northstar this weekend, please take note of the registration location
in the Northstar base village featured on the
Northstar Race Services Village Map.
Reminder to Open class competitors: you must elect to race in OP class for speed events.
If you forgot to mark OP on your entry form, please contact the race department asap to request
the change from your usual age group (saves extra work and confusion on race morning of last-minute changes).
[16-Feb-2009]
- Weekly News (02/11)
The Western Regionals at Park City featured four days of challenging racing.
with 20+ Far West racers in the field of over 160 competitors from all over the west.
The opening day's super-combi (SC) had great weather and was enjoyed by most competitors,
with the morning SG run on Payday followed by a SL run on the lower pitch.
Friday's SG was challenged by overnight snowfall and fog throughout the morning,
but after course slipping and several postponements the race was held on a good track.
The weekend GS and SL events on the challenging CB's and Picaboo's race hills
were held with intermittent snow and fog, but the Park City race crews did an
outstanding job preparing and maintaining the courses.
Check out the complete event results on
ussamasters.org Western Regionals page.
There's still time to submit entries for the National Championships in March at Sunday River, ME.
Entries should now be submitted directly to the Race Secretary - see instructions on the
printable entry form on our our Print Race Entries page.
Here in the Far West, February is bringing some welcome storms to the Sierra.
This coming weekend (President's Day weekend) is shaping up to be a good time to get out for some
fresh snow and powder skiing. Our next races are a weekend of SG racing at Northstar on Feb. 21-22,
followed immediately by 3 DH's at Mammoth on Feb. 23-26 (2 training days and 2 race days).
The first two downhills, scheduled for Wed. Feb. 25, will be included as part of the
masters National Speed Series.
(Open class competitors: remember to elect OP class on your entries for these races)
[12-Feb-2009]
- Weekly News (01/28)
The Far West racing schedule takes a short break on our division calendar in February
for competitors travelling to Park City next week for the
Western Region championships,
hosted by Park City and Intermountain division on Feb. 5-8. Expanding from the
traditional SG/GS/SL trio, the championships opens on Thursday with a super-combined (SC)
that will be included in the overall combined scoring.
If you're in the Tahoe area the first weekend of February, check out the
Far West Hoedoewn
fundraiser being held by Far West Skiing at Squaw Valley on Sat. Feb. 7.
The event features a BBQ and silent auction, with all proceeds going to scholarships and travel
funds for FW USSA athletes.
Racers following the National Speed Series
will be disappointed to hear the news that the Soldier Mountain DH's scheduled immediately following
the regionals cannot be held this year. Organizer Ken Corrock says "I am sorry to say that we will
not be able to hold the Soldier Mountain Downhill this year. We do not have enough snow on Monument to hold the event."
FW organizers and the Mammoth Race department have tentatively agreed to reschedule last weekend's cancelled races
on the last weekend in March (Mar. 27-29). Details will be posted here as soon as confirmed (notably whether
the weekend will conclude on Sunday with a GS or a SC race). We are also talking with the Speed Series organizers
about possible addition of one of our February speed events (Northstar SG's or Mammoth DH's) on the NSS schedule
to replace the lost January race at Mammoth.
[28-Jan-2009]
- Weekly News (01/20)
This coming weekend features 3 days of racing at Mammoth, with 3 SG races on Friday/Saturday
followed by a GS on Sunday. Friday will offer competitors a morning training run, so everyone
has a chance to get on the race hill and up to speed, followed by the first of 3 SG races.
Saturday will be a double-header, with the morning race counted as part of the
2009 National Speed Series.
Entry reminders: the Friday SG training run is $5, in addition to the usual race entry fee.
Apologies, but we forgot to include this on the printable entry form (though it was
noted on the schedule page entry), so please have an extra $5 at registration on Friday if you
didn't include that with your race entry. Open class competitors: remember that you must
elect OP class on your entry for the SG races - if you forgot,
contact the race department by phone or email so they can put you in the correct class on the start list.
(And for that you get the privilege of starting following all other competitors of your gender)
See the Mammoth SG weekend entry on the Season Schedule page
for links to the race announcement and detailed weekend schedule. Our weekend social get-together
will be at 3:30pm Saturday afternoon at Giovanni's.
Race photos from the Heavenly and Sierra at Tahoe races have been posted by Sasha Glushenko.
Visit the Photos page or follow the camera links
from the results page to reach his picture gallery.
The Western Regionals and deadline for National Championship entries are almost here.
National chairman Keith McCauley reports from Intermountain:
"The snow and conditions at Park City are excellent", so the regionals should
have great conditions.
If you plan to compete, get your WR entries sent to Park City and your nationals entries to
FW president Marietta Frinell. Entry forms are available on our
Print Race Entries page.
The event schedules are in your USSA Masters Comp Guide and posted on ussa.org
in the Masters Events section.
Additional news and the race results will be posted on ussamasters.org.
[20-Jan-2009]
- Weekly News (01/12)
January racing kicked off with great weather for the classic Viva Italia SL at Heavenly on Friday Jan. 9.
Firm conditions on the World Cup race run provided a challenge to both the skiing skills and edge tuning
of competitors. The 2009 Viva Italia trophies, awarded to the fastest man and woman in the race
based on an age handicapped overall time, went to defending 2008 champ Julie Rolfe (W50) and Kurt Belden (M50),
back on the race hill and still fast after being knocked out last spring by a serious motocross crash.
The weekend SL and GS races at Sierra at Tahoe were a new venue for the Far West masters
and competitors came away with rave reviews about the event. The weather was great, the race hills
provided excellent conditions, and Sierra at Tahoe did a fantastic job putting on a great event.
Racers are already looking forward to returning next year, so spread the word that this is one to
watch for on next year's calendar.
See the Race Results page for complete weekend results
and the new Season Standings.
Next event will be a 3-day race weekend at Mammoth Mountain, with 3 SG's and a GS. Friday will offer a training run
before the SG race, so all competitors will have a chance to experience the race hill and get "up to speed".
We have 2 SG races on Saturday, with the morning race scored as part of the
2009 National Speed Series,
and wrap up on Sunday with a GS.
Another race preparation opportunity is the rescheduled UNR GS clinic, which will be at Sugar Bowl on Wed. Jan. 21st.
[12-Jan-2009; updated 15-Jan-2009]
- Weekly News (01/06)
Happy new year!! Far West Masters racing resumes this weekend with the classic Viva Italia SL at
Heavenly on Friday, followed by a SL/GS weekend (note order) at Sierra at Tahoe.
Please contact the organizers and submit your entries asap if you haven't already done so!
We now have race photos from the Dec. 20-21 Alpine SL races, thanks to Sasha Glushenko.
Watch for the photos link on the Race Results page when you check for race results this season.
We'll post links whenever we have photo contributions.
January is also time to start planning for the Western Region Championships, hosted on Feb. 5-9
by Intermountain Division and Park City this season, and the National Championships at
Sunday River Maine the week of March 23-28. The Western Regional entry form is now available
on the Print Race Entries page; Nationals Entry form
will be available by next week. As with our Far West division races, FW members can enter their
bib number or USSA number to have entry information automatically filled in; log in to your web account
to have your complete contact information also provided on the printable form.
In other schedule news, the UNR race clinic at Sugar Bowl original planned for Dec. 18-19 has been
rescheduled for Wed. Jan. 21st. UNR Head Coach Evan Weiss says: We'll train GS in the morning
from 9-12 and we can free ski/and talk racing in the afternoon.". As before, participants
are responsible for purchasing a lift ticket; donations will be accepted for the clinic to support
the UNR team.
The 2009 National Speed Series also kicks off this month, with the opening SG race this coming weekend
hosted by Northern at Big Sky. The next two races on the NSS calendar is our own Mammoth SG on Sat. Jan 24,
followed by Intermountain stops at the Western Region SG at Park City and the Soldier Mountain DH's in February.
Visit ussamasters.org/2009/nss for details and series results.
[06-Jan-2009; updated 08-Jan-2009]
- Weekly News (12/30)
Happy holidays and best wishes for the new year to all! Skiing is wonderful throughout the Sierras
thanks to the Christmas blizzard. Get out and play if you have a chance!
Racing resumes the second weekend of January with a 3-day Tahoe schedule:
the classic Viva Italia SL at Heavenly on Friday, followed by a SL/GS weekend at
Sierra at Tahoe. Please send your entries in to the organizers if you'll be competing
so they can plan properly to host a good event for us. Remember that you can always cancel
with no penalty up to 24 hours before the event (our "torn check" policy), so sign up even
if you're a "maybe" - it's better to have to cancel than to put in a late entry at the last minute,
as late entries create more work for the organizers and make it harder for them to prepare.
Schedule update: the Friday Feb. 20 DH originally scheduled at Northstar has unfortunately been dropped from
our race calendar due to a scheduling conflict at the area. Northstar is also hosting the Winter Dew tour
that weekend, which is a major action sports event, and have decided that they simply cannot put on a quality
DH event for us at the same time. We regret any inconvenience, but remind everyone that the weekend SG's are
still on (as well as the DH races at Mammoth the following week), so there's still plenty of action.
[30-Dec-2008]
- Weekly News (12/21)
Winter finally arrived in the Sierras with a mid-month pattern change
bringing a string of storms and snowfall to the high country just in time for
the upcoming holidays. The Far West masters were granted a perfectly-timed break
between storm systems, allowing us to celebrate a pre-holiday SL weekend at Alpine Meadows.
The Alpine race crew did a great job putting on the race as the area re-opened for only its
second week of operation this season; we appreciate their efforts and the support
of Alpine management for pulling of this event so early in their own operating season.
See the Race Results page for complete weekend results
and the new Season Standings.
With more snow forecast for the coming week, best wishes for a joyous holiday season to all!
Our masters competition resumes the second weekend of January with a 3-day race weekend.
The new year kicks off with the classic Viva Italia SL at Heavenly on Friday Jan. 9,
followed by a GS/SL weekend at Sierra at Tahoe. Get your entries in early to help the
organizers prepare, see y'all next year!
[21-Dec-2008]
- Weekly News (12/15)
It's mid-December and winter is rolling through the Sierras!!
After a relatively dry and warm early season, the jet stream has dropped down on top of us
and a big arctic cold system with wind, cold, and snow has broken through the high pressure
to bring winter conditions for the upcoming holiday period.
Our next race is a pre-Christmas holiday SL weekend at Alpine Meadows this coming weekend Dec. 20-21.
Alpine opened this past weekend, but is closing again for a few days this week to prepare their slopes
during this stormy period so they can reopen on Friday Dec. 19.
Get your race entries if you haven't already - details are available on
the Season Schedule page and
then use Print Race Entries to print your entry form.
Training opportunities this week include Alpine's daily clinic sessions, offered at a discount to registered
race competitors - details are available in the Alpine SL's entry on
the Season Schedule page.
Regrettably, the two-day SL clinic led by Evan Weiss and the UNR coaching staff planned for
Sugar Bowl on Thu-Fri Dec. 18-19 has had to be cancelled.
Evan's note on Monday morning said
"Unfortunately, even with the nice storm we will be forced to cancel the
Masters Clinic January 18th and 19th. The race hill will not be ready."
Registered clinic participants have been contacted and Evan is exploring a possible
reschedule date in January for the SL clinic.
For news on the Wolf Pack skiers and western college skiing, check out
Nevadawolfpack.com
and [15-Dec-2008]
- Weekly News (12/07)
The 2009 Far West Masters season opened with a great weekend of racing at Mammoth.
Despite the dry and relatively warm conditions throughout the region, Mammoth has
a significant portion of the mountain open with good coverage. We were treated to two
days of good weather and excellent SL racing conditions on Fascination.
While some of the competitors had the opportunity to participate in the preceding week's
training camp to tune up their turning skills, others arrived for the weekend races to get in their
first days on snow of the new season. Regardless, everyone was happy to be back on the hill
and to have an opportunity to race.
Saturday's post-race party was well-attended by both competitors and junior athletes participating
in the scholarship fund program, as Mammoth's hard-working race crews ran a USSA open race with
200 junior competitors alongside the 80-strong masters field on adjacent hills.
See the Race Results page for complete weekend results
and the new Season Standings.
The good news announced at the Saturday party is that Alpine Meadows will be opening next weekend,
so the outlook is good for our next scheduled race weekend, featuring 2 SL races at Alpine
on Dec. 20-21. Be sure to get your race entries in this week so the organizers can properly
prepare to host our races. Discounted training will be available at Alpine the week before the race,
so this is a great chance to get on snow and train at our next race venue.
Check the Season Schedule page for training details.
In addition to Alpine's daily race training clinics, a special 2-day SL clinic is being put on by
Evan Weiss, head coach of the UNR ski team, and his coaching staff on Dec. 18-19 at Sugar Bowl.
Donations will go to support the UNR team, so this is an opportunity to train with
experienced coaches and also support ski racing in the Far West.
[07-Dec-2008]
- Weekly News (11/17)
The opening races of the 2009 Far West season are only a few weeks away!
Please remember to get your USSA masters competition license
and send in your Far West membership application if you haven't already,
it makes it much easier for our volunteers at race registration
when our racers are current and we don't have to deal with day-of-race
membership processing.
Mammoth got a early start thanks to a Halloween weekend snowstorm,
opening 10 days ahead of their scheduled date on Nov. 3.
Once again they'll be hosting a week-long masters training camp
the week following Thanksgiving
(click here for details)
, and the season-opening races
the weekend of Dec. 6-7
(details)
. With good snowmaking, Mammoth has an
outstanding record of succesfully hosting early-season races
even when the natural snowfall conditions don't cooperate.
For those planning on the Dec. 20-21 SL races at Alpine, a special training clinic will be held
on the preceding Thursday and Friday at Sugar Bowl. This is an exciting new opportunity this
year that's being offered by the UNR ski team. Head Coach Evan Weiss, a former US Ski Team member,
along with assistant coaches (who bring Olympic and All-American experience to the hill)
will be putting on two days of race training (with a second clinic planned for March prior
to the GS race weekend at Alpine). Get in touch with Evan for details and to reserve a spot -
click here for details
and contact info. This is a great opportunity for the Masters and UNR to help each other out - they're
offering experienced coaches and training, our donations for this clinic will support the UNR ski team.
Sounds like a win-win deal, so check it out!
[17-Nov-2008; updated 11/18]
- 2009 Preseason News
A new ski racing season is coming soon!!
The 2009 race schedule is available -
 click here for printable schedule
The Season Schedule page contains the complete race calendar schedule
for the season, with details on where to send your entries and how contact the organizers.
Whenever possible, a race announcement with detailed information on race location,
registration, entries, and awards parties will be posted with the event description
a few weeks before the race - look for the details info link:
details
Race entry form printing is available on the
Print Race Entries page - if you are a FW member,
type your FW bib number or USSA license number into the form before clicking
Print Race Entry for an event and your registration information will be filled in automatically
from our membership records.
(Be sure to log in if you have a web account and your personal address info will be filled in as well!)
The Fall issue of the Forerunner newsletter with membership application and season news
was mailed in early September to all competitors who have been members within recent seasons.
If you've forgotten to renew, be sure to get your USSA masters competition
license (online membership now available online this year for the first time
at ussa.org)
and visit our How to Join page for
2009 Far West membership info and application.
Our Far West membership records as of 25-Oct-2009 have been posted on
our online Member Lookup page.
Check your entry there to confirm if your application has been received and processed.
Updated records will be posted by Thanksgiving.
[16-Nov-2009]
- 2009 Race Schedule
The draft 2009 race schedule is now available -
DRAFT 2009 schedule.
Once again scheduling chief Rees Palermo has worked hard to try to put together the
best possible race calendar for the coming season.
It's a tough job trying to balance the competing pressures of an "ideal" schedule
with the needs and availability of facilities at the areas which host our events.
The season kicks off with 2 race weekends in December, the "traditional" season opener
at Mammoth following their annual masters training camp week after Thanksgiving,
followed by Alpine Meadows prior to the holiday break.
Recognizing the uncertainty of early season snow conditions, which make it difficult
to plan for adequate terrain for a quality GS competition, the December
races this season are all SL events. So kick off your season with some quick turns
while getting your legs in shape for longer events later in the season!
Following the holidays, January returns with a 3-day race weekend featuring the classic Viva Italia SL
at Heavenly (note the Friday date) followed by a SL/GS combo on the weekend at Sierra at Tahoe,
a new venue for the Far West Masters.
Prepare for the Western Regionals at Park City in the beginning of February with a challenging
tuneup weekend of Mammmoth speed on Jan. 23-25, featuring three days of SG racing with a final
Sunday GS race.
February opens with the Western Regional Championships, hosted by Intermountain Division and Park City
this season. This is likely to be a well-attended event, providing a quality championship event
for those competitors who may be unable to travel back to Eastern Division for the national championships
in March. The month ends with a concentration of speed events.
Northstar will host a DH for the first time on the same Challenger run that will host the SG races on the
weekend. This is a good venue for those new to speed events, providing plenty of challenge but not
overwhelmingly intimidating for the first-timer. (Speed events are a blast, but they are different
than the technical events and the kind of everyday skiing most of us can do!)
March is GS month, balancing the December SL schedule with GS races in the peak of the season when
we can expect to have access to adequate terrain for great competition.
Alpine Meadows and Squaw Valley both have exciting GS venues, so both should be great events.
This is a special but sad year for our Bernard Cup classic at Squaw, as sponsor and masters
inspiration Bob Bernard passed away last spring. He is very much missed, but his legacy is with us
in many ways.
The 2009 national champships will be hosted by Eastern Division Sunday River ME the week of Mar. 23-28.
Although travelling back east with race gear is always challenging, perhaps more so than ever this season,
those who have the opportunity should be in for a great week of racing.
Sunday River has outstanding race hills and did a fantastic job hosting the 2007 nationals,
so we know they have the venues and staff to put together a great championship.
The Far West season will wrap up with a 3-day weekend on Apr. 3-5 with the McKinney Cup at Mt. Rose.
In a change from the traditional SL/SL format, this season will be a GS on Friday and a SL on Saturday
for the final scoring race.
The season awards banquet will be Saturday evening, with a dual GS fun race on Sunday to celebrate
spring and the completion of another race season in the Far West.
[01-Oct-2008]
- Bob Bernard
Ski racing and the masters community has lost a great friend this week.
Bob Bernard is gone and his passing is a great sadness.
Bob was an enormously influential member of our racing community.
The masters racing programs we enjoy today are in large part due to the
passion and organizational skills he brought to our sport.
Coming to ski racing later in his life, Bob found challenge and joy
in the sport and became a worthy champion.
In his own quest for excellence, his standards were high and he set his goals
to pursue the best - while he might not have beaten Alberto Tomba, he
saw no reason not to try to reach that level!
Beyond the enjoyment he found in his own racing, Bob supported the sport of ski racing
with his involvement with USSA, the US ski team, and in the Far West.
He was one of the founders along with Joe Lausmann of the Far West Masters
scholarship fundraising program, which has grown into a very successful
and appreciated program that helps support junior ski racers in the Far West.
For many years, no masters championship event or race in the Far West was complete
without Bob setting the standard for all us younger folk both on the race hill and off.
In recent years he raced less often after health problems knocked him off the hill for a period,
but he continued to have an active and satisfying life with family and travel as well as
continuing to ski.
He will be deeply missed, yet his legacy lives on with all of us and he will not be forgotten.
Bob was a fierce competitor, a good friend, and a true gentleman.
For more on Bob's life and contributions, visit
Bob's page on the farwestmasters Google group.
The farwestmasters group on Google is open
to racers, members, and friends interested in USSA masters racing in the Far West.
Feel free to join the group and share memories and stories about Bob Bernard.
[23-May-2008]
- Summer Events
The Far West Masters summer board meeting and social get-together will be Saturday, July 12 at Teddy Cantanho's
in Gardnerville (Carson Valley) - see the summer meeting news item for details and directions.
Mt. Hood ski/golf with US Ski Team athletes - as some of you may know,
over the past year some of our US Ski Team athletes have been asked to fund
some or all of their training and competition expenses.
Affected athletes include well-known veterans as well as "up and coming" competitors,
with some of our Far West competitors and scholarship athletes among them.
Travis Ganong has
gotten in touch to let us know about a Ski/Golf tournament that some of the US men's team
athletes are organizing for July 19-20 at Mt. Hood to help raise funds.
They will be running clinics with drills, gate training, video, and timing with a fun race at the end,
along with a golf tournament the following day.
Travis notes "I think that a lot of Masters might be interested in skiing and training with the best ski racers in the country".
Details are available at mensalpine.com.
[22-May-2008]
- Scholarship Program Application Available
Far West junior athletes interested in applying to the scholarship program
can
click here for the 2009 application form.
Please read the instructions and be sure to submit your application before the deadline
of Sept. 15, 2008. (That's a hard deadline, we really mean it! In fairness to the other athletes and our volunteer review committee who work hard to consider everyone carefully, applications submitted after the deadline cannot be considered.)
Contact Eddie Mozen at mozen@concentric.net if you have any questions.
[15-May-2009]
- 2008 Summer Meeting
The annual summer board meeting will be held on Saturday July 12 at Teddy Cantanho's home in Gardnerville, Nevada.
The board meeting will start at 2PM, with food and socializing to follow at 5PM.
Directions to Teddy's and additional info about related activities in the area (golf, Walley's Hot Springs)
are provided here in the summer meeting announcement.
Meeting minutes of board discussions from past meetings are available on the
Board Records page
[17-Apr-2008; updated 22-May-2008]
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