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Show Thursday, January 4, 1979 Page 7 ilhlll K XOU CAN DO IT Five Picked For Tour Five of the top male U.S. cross-country skiers have been selected to continue on the World Cup tour in January. Making the three week, three nation European trip will be Bill Koch,. 23, Stan Dunklee, 24 and Jim Galanes, 22, all of Brat-tleboro, Brat-tleboro, Vermont, Tim Caldwell, 24, Putney, Vermont Ver-mont and Doug Peterson, 25, Hanover, New Hampshire. The U.S. men are coming off a strong showing at the first World Cup event in Telemark, Wisconsin, Dec. 20-21, where Koch and Dunklee placed 6th and 8th respectively in an outstanding outstan-ding field of international competitors. Caldwell and Peterson rounded out the best U.S. performance ever with 12th and 14th place finishes respectively. ' U.S. Nordic Team Director Direc-tor John Bower was extremely ex-tremely pleased with the team snowing and commented commen-ted that, "Our goal this year is to place two skiers in the top ten of each World Cup race. The Telemark results convince me that this is not an unrealistic goal." Rob Kiesel, Head Crosscountry Coach said he feels the excellent ex-cellent results at Telemark can be partially attributed to the early season camps held in November. "We were able to get excellent on-snow training in West Yellowstone that improved our skills and in the long run will greatly help our performance," Kiesel said. The U.S. team will bypass the next World Cup race in Leningrad, USSR January 6- The Lord, Not Racing Jim Hunter is one of the great all-around skiers on the World Pro Skiing Tour, with downhill his specialty. During his nine years on the Canadian National Team, Hunter collected more ski racing honors than any Canadian male in history, including a bronze medal at the 1972 Olympics. Hunter kicked off his pro career last season with a downhill victory. He went on to win World Pro Skiing's first downhill title and place third overall. His winning formula takes into account his devotion to God, often stating, "The Lord, not ski racing, is the most important thing in my "fe" . - As a pro, Hunter immediately im-mediately caught the media's attention when after his first victory, he credited the win to "Reciting Isaiah 26 : 3 in the starting gate. ' ' A large man, Hunter's thighs are the size of some people's t-iest. He skis smoothly and aggressively. His nature is aggressive, and this has earned him the nickname, "Jungle Jim." He and his wife Gail live in Calgary, Alberta, but help farm the family's 3,000 acre Saskatchewantspread in the summer where Jim maintains main-tains a vigorous dryland training program. r..'' . " ' wwmn ijm,.- -- -ir-r-THM mmm . Technical assistance provided by Eastern Professional Ski Touring Instructors. 7 due to complications of travel in the Soviet Union. Instead, they will tra 'el directly to Kastleruth, Italy for a few days of training prior to a 30k World Cup event January 10. On January 13, there will be a 15 kilometer race in Reit-Im-Winkl, Germany, and January 19-21 the men will' Ladies Chosen For X-C Races Four members of the U.S. Women's Cross-Country Ski Team have been selected to represent the U.S. in World Cup cross-country competition; com-petition; in West Germany East' Germany and Switzerland. Swit-zerland. Departing for the month long trip, selected on performances at the Gitchi Garni Games World Cup races in Telemark, Wisconsin Wiscon-sin are: Alison Owen-Spencer, Owen-Spencer, 25, Anchorage, Alaska, Pat Engberg, 28, Seattle, Washington, Leslie Bancroft, 19, Paris Hill, Maine and Lindsay Putnam, 19, West Newbury, Vermont. Alison Owen-Spencer heads the list based on her two winning performances at Telemark, making her the first woman jcross-country, ' World Cup winner in this first year of official World Cup competition. She handily' defeated Norwegian and Swedish stars who last season were in the top ten at the World Championships in Lahti, Finland. She will now go against the medal win ' . P y t - Jim Hunter HunterVumque mixture CrUsa(je of ski racing and religion has resulted in a new film and a , Hunter s successes in dual biography about his life. In sl,alom and 8iant slalm will addition, he and Gail have P'3? the maJr le his recorded a gospel album and ability toi "do the Lord's took part last summer in WiH" and win the World Billv Crah-'tn's Canadian Championship in 1979. POLE DRAG Negotiating tricky downhills at the end of a long tour can be very arduous to the tired skier. One very effective if not pretty technique is known as the pole drag. The poles are used like a hand brake on a toboggan. First, the pole straps are taken off the hands. This is very important im-portant since the baskets may catch on a root and yank backwards. back-wards. If the hand were strapped on the pole, it could be injured. The poles are then held together and placed between the legs. One hand pulls up on the handles as the other hand pushes down on the middle of the pole shafts. You may then simply regulate your speed by the amount of pressure you exert on the poles. WARNING: Only use this technique tech-nique if you have metal or fiberglass fiber-glass poles. Bamboo poles may not take the stress, may splinter, and injure you. Remembering the few cautions, you will find the pole drag to be a very effective method of controlling your speed on downhills. join the U.S. Women's Team in Le Brassus, Switzerland for another 15 kilometer event. The entire World Cup team will then return to the U.S. for the National Championships Cham-pionships at Waterville Valley, New Hampshire to be held January 27-February2, 1979. ners from the Soviet Union and Finland as well as the top skiers from East Germany Ger-many and Czechoslovakia. Head cross-country coach Rob Kiesel, who will accompany accom-pany the women's team says he doesn't expect Alison to win against the Eastern European competition, but, "If she continues to ski as she did in Telemark, she can finish in the top ten," he added. ad-ded. Pat Engberg, who took up cross-country skiing just five years ago, qualified to compete in her first major international race series by taking a strong fifth place in the women's 10 kilometer race at Telemark, for her best finish ever. For Leslie Bancroft and Lindsay Putnam, Put-nam, the trip will be their first exposure to European competition. The women will race in Neukirch, West Germany December 30, 1978, Klingenthal, East Germany January 13-14 and Le Brassus, Switzerland January 19-21, 1979. Snow: Good And Bad An article in the DecemberJanuary Decem-berJanuary issue of National Wildlife magazine has emphasized the critical relationship between snow and many species of wildlife. Although mortality is high among wildlife populations during winter, it is ironic that a blanket of snow is necessary for the survival of many species. In "There's Nothing Ordinary Or-dinary About Snow" by freelance writer Ruth Kirk, snow is discussed from its formation to avalanches to its effects on wildlife. The insluation which snow provides is essential to mice, moles, shrews and other small rodents. Without the insulating capacity of snow, reports the article, more body heat would be lost than gained. When snow reaches a depth dep-th of six inches, rodents begin tunneling near the ground when temperatures do not reach the extremes of the air above. In fact, when snow depths reach two feet, tunnel temperatures may be 70 degrees higher than air temperature. Snow poses problems, however, for animals like foxes and coyotes which prey upon these rodents. They must zigzag over the snow surface, listening for signs of life in the tunnels. "When a signal is picked up," reports the article, "the fox leaps high into the air to land stiff legged with nose and forepaws held together. The sudden pressure breaks the snow crust, and the fox's jaws quickly close on its prey." Other animals, lynx and ptarmigan among them, have densely furred or feathered feet which function func-tion much like snowshoes; and the long legs of moose and elk help them move about at least until snow becomes to deep. Grudge Game The Park City Silver Kings will take the ice against Snowbird this Sunday. The rivalry between the two hockey squads, short on tradition but long on intensity, inten-sity, will start at 5:45 p.m. in the Salt Palace. HELP PREVENT BURGLARY, HOLDUPS RAPE, THEFT SECURITY SYSTEMS that meet your individual needs Rape panic buttons Hold up alarm buttons Automatic telephone dialers Burglar alarms Iron window bars ' Closed circuit TV - photo cells C&H DISTRIBUTING 266-5591 5585 So. 320 W. No. 2 Murray, Utah m with Craig Altschul Those who have plowed through this little column on occasion have noted that the author is prone to having what is a common malady among skiers.... "the chairlift daydream." Mine was prompted when I learned via a news release that Sugarbush Valley Ski Area in Vermont Ver-mont had purchased nearby Glen Ellen Ski Area and renamed it Sugarbush North. These little takeovers have gone on for several years now.. ..things like Killington buying Snow Valley, or Alpine Meadows at Lake Tahoe buying Park City, Utah, 20th Century Fox picking up Aspen. Aspen getting Breckenridge, Boyne Country and Big Sky. And so on. Now, Sugarbush has plans to inter-connect its two areas creating what it calls "The groundwork ground-work for developing one of the largest ski complexes com-plexes in the nation." All that background behind us, my chairlift daydream day-dream began. As I dozed (right afterTeaving the on-ramp), I had a sudden vision of what alpine skiing might be like in the year 1995 (1984, you "sci fi" fans will note, is now passe) . A flash of a U.S. map washed past my oozing brain and I pictured myself boarding a chairlift at Sunday River up in the wilds of Maine. At the top of the hill was a sign: "Ski our sister area at Mt. Snow." I figured it was nice to have an inner-connecting pass, so in my daydream I schussed across New Hampshire to Mt. Snow. Up to the top I went to see another sign. "Ski our sister area at Killington. Follow Route Seven Run." So along Route Seven I went until I saw the Killington Gondola (I took the cat track known as the Route 4 cutoff). Up the gondola was another sign. "Ski our neighbors at Sugarbush Valley. Follow signs on Route 100." So, I headed into the glade and skied the twin ski areas at Sugarbush until at the very top of what used to be Glen Ellen, I hit another sign." "Ski our neighbors in New York. Pass interchangeable." inter-changeable." I dipped down through the woods on to "Turnpike "Turn-pike Run," dropped across Greek Peak's lower trails into Pennsylvania. A sign at Camelback in the Poconos said, "This way to Michigan. Your Nastar Racers Remember your race with an 8x10 Color Photo Ready in just 24 hrs. Come in to Potato John's after the lifts close. We'll be showing slides of every racer. If you like, you can order an 8xlO color print from your favorite slide. Only $101 And ifll be ready for pick-up , Just 24hrs. If you don't catch us at Potato John's, drop by the studio on Main St. and check out the slides. We're open 10am-6pm Mon-Sat. Ifs a great way to remember your race. THE i hmnA lift ticket is good." My skis whirred across Ohio into Boyne County, Coun-ty, Michigan. At the top of Boyne Mountain a sign said.. ."Ski our sister resort at Big Sky. Follow across three blizzard prone states and turn left at Montana." I did it... pausing only to rest at a base lodge known as Hojo's to the locals. At Big Sky, there was a sign saying "Ski The Rockies." So I dropped down through Sun Valley, crossed over onto Grand Targhee and over the hill into Jackson Hole, finally crashing at Aspen. My dream was moving right along with me now and at the top of Aspen Mountain I saw a sign: "Ski Snowmass." So, I skied it, carved my way across the Big Burn and over the hill to Vail. I used my interchangeable pass at Beaver Creek and wedelled over the Summit to Keystone, Breckenridge and Copper. Swinging back across the Rockies I took a long run-out into Salt Lake City. Miad a bit of an uphill climb, but cleared the Silver Fox at Snowbird, High Rustler at Alta and Widowmaker at Park City and sped across the desert into Nevada. At Lake Tahoe I circled the lake with a whoosh at Heavenly Valley, a brief swim, and then a shot at Incline Village and Squaw Valley. While bouncing boun-cing around at Alpine Meadows I saw a sign that said "Stop. Go Back. You missed our sister areas at Park City." I sneered. I hadn't missed anything except maybe Omaha. On I raced across the High Sierra, with a spinoff spin-off down Schatzi at June Mountain and a flash slide down the Mammoth Cornice. From Mammoth, Mam-moth, I saw a sign that said "Ski Friendly Souther California" and I sped down Highway 395 using my special desert skis and arrived at Snow Summit. There, where I remembered the famous sign that always used to say "The Showplace of Southland Sking" was a new one. "Have You Skied Our Sister Resort in Alaska?" Just then my chairlift clanged. I woke just in time to see the final sign of my dream "Keep your Ski Tips up," it read. Good advice in these days of conglomerate skiing. rsxixxEiLsa Happy Nert jearl 523 MAIN (Across from STREET City Hall) 649-9431 I 8 |