BARSC Indoor Championships

New to the summer race calendar and squeezed into the final slot of an already congested summer I guess it was always pretty clear that there was little chance of the race full signs going up early.

And whilst numbers were indeed slightly smaller than the organisers hoped for the undoubted success of a fantastic weekend of racing certainly made up for it.

With Saturday's programme containing an individual championship event and international dual slalom there was much expected of both Chill Factore's ever impressive race piste and a hard working course crew. And, as usual, both delivered magnificently.

The ladies event witnessed an excellent three way battle between home slope racer Sophie Ogden, Ski:MK's Amanda Alldridge and Norfolk's Nia Jenkins. Indeed with under 0.25s separating the three racers and less than a tenth splitting Ogden & Alldridge there was much to fight for in the 2nd run.

First to go was Jenkins, who in setting a time over half a second quicker than any other racer placed down a marker for the two leaders to chase. Ogden was next to leave the gate, producing a blistering run that squeezed 0.1s inside the time that Jenkins posted to claim the provisional lead. Only Alldridge could deny her now.

And deny her she did, matching Ogden turn for turn and gate for gate with a run that fell just 0.02s short of Ogden's time but sufficiently inside the 0.05s cushion she had built up in run 1 to claim the overall win by little more than the proverbial hare's breath.

In the male race Matthew Thompson posted an immediate authority on the rest of the field with a time none of his competitors could really get close to challenging. Telford racer Jordan Fellows threatened briefly but an error in the bottom section of run 1 left him in survival mode over the last few gates and placed behind home slope racers Mikey Knowles and Charles Richardson at the end of run 1.

In run 2 Fellows challenged again, producing a super run that was both 0.5 quicker than the racers who preceded him and offering a significant challenge to the three racers following. First to attack was Knowles, whose run looked fast and full of commitment. The clock eventually beat him however with the Chill Factore racer having to settle for provisional 2nd behind Fellows. Next to challenge was Charles Richardson who like Knowles looked quick and clean, however in posting a time that exactly matched that of Knowles the home slope racers was left to settle for a place nestled between his two younger rivals.

Last to go was Thompson and such was his lead he left the gate knowing a clean, risk free run would probably be enough to secure victory. This mattered little however as the Hemel racer attacked again, posting a time almost 0.3s quicker than Fellows and more than 0.7s faster than everyone else. As victories go, this was just about as commanding as it gets.

In an impressively high quality U10/U12 stubbies event Oliver Pollitt recovered superbly from a run 1 DNF with a second run time that proved too quick for his rivals. Scott McIntyre produced a super second run to claim 2nd with first-run leader Elliott Bennett in 3rd. In the girls race Maisy Burton's 2nd run overcame Anna Caldwell's mid point lead to claim victory. However Caldwell's first run time was enough to ensure Nadine Hugec would have to settle for the final podium place.

The international team dual slalom saw a young and relatively inexperienced BARSC representative team eliminated by Wales before they in turn were ousted by England C. The surprise of the competition came in the other half of the draw however as England B magnificently claimed the scalp of England A in a thrilling battle that went to the final gate. And whilst England C challenged bravely in the best of three final they were unable to halt the England B juggernaut and had to settle for 2nd, whilst England A claimed 3rd in a run off with Wales.

Sunday's Club event, a morning pro-slalom qualifier followed by afternoon knockout dual races was a very much untested format, and not just for organisers.

The jump, placed half way down the Chill Factore slope created great anticipation amongst the racers and more than a few nervous glances back up the hill during course inspection. However, once racing began and racers put faith in their abilities it is was very evident very quickly that the new format was getting a huge thumbs up from those who matter most. The buzz in the start area as nervous racers awaiting their run discussed what was awaiting them with racers returning from their first blast was both refreshing and inspiring. Running in team, rather than seeded, order on a best run counts basis every racer and every run provided essential viewing.

With the morning qualifier concluded and aggregate times calculated, BSA, Ski:MK, Midland and Manchester Ski Racing 1 claimed the top 4 seedings for the afternoon knockout. Seedings that were justified as all four teams battled through the early rounds to fill the four semi final berths. Indeed the early stages provided some really great head to head racing, not least with SZR1 & Ambition giving us that most rare of dual slalom results - a tie.

  

The semi finals saw BSA overcome a strong MSR1 challenge whilst Midland overturned their seeding with an impressive win over Ski:MK. Run 1 of the best of three final saw a relatively straightforward BSA victory and when Midland lost a ski (whilst narrowly ahead) in race 2 it provided BSA with the ideal opportunity to limit risk and coast home to win. Ski:MK claimed 3rd place with victory in the one run shoot out vs Manchester1.

In the Open Team event the superbly titled Uzbekistan Gong Squad triumphed with PP Snowsports Open in runners up spot and Telford Open in 3rd.

 Club Winners.
1st British Ski Academy - 2nd Midland Ski Club - 3rd Ski:MK

Open Winners.
1st Uzbekistan Gong Squad, 2nd PPS Open, 3rd Telford Open

The biggest winners of the day however were undoubtedly the sport itself and indoor ski racing in particular. The day proved conclusively that this is an indoor format that works both from racer enjoyment and operational points of view.

The BARSC Indoor Champs will return in Autumn 2014, expect even more smiles next time.

2013 Indoor GBR Review

Race 1 

Milton Keynes

The opening race of the Ski Bartlett and Atomic sponsored GBR indoor series saw the nation's best summer racers go head to head on the oldest indoor race slope in the country.

In the ladies event Alice Macualey stamped an immediate authority on the series with what can only be described as a very comprehensive opening victory. Laying down a first run time that only race runner up Anna Henderson could get remotely close to challenging, Macauley then extended her advantage to more than a second by nailing an equally destructive second run. The sharp end of the ladies field ran her a touch closer on run 2 but in truth the battle was only ever for the second place eventually claimed by Henderson. Sophie Ogden's terrific 2nd run proved good enough for 3rd and squeezed Megan Jenkins into 4th whilst Deborah Henery and Nia Jenkins couldn't be split in joint 5th

With a number of the males still resting after a hectic British Alpine Championships Matthew Thompson took maximum advantage to claim a win that was equally as comprehensive as the one Macauley achieved in the ladies event. An opening run saw the Hemel racer open up a 0.6 second advantage over the rest of the field and Thompson mercilessly doubled this on run 2 with an equally solid run. Elsewhere, Kieron Norris proved best of the rest by claiming runners up spot with Rory Farron, Matthew Martin and Cameron Brown finishing 3rd, 4th & 5th respectively.

Races  2 & 3

Manchester

I guess that if British Indoor Ski racing has a spiritual home, then despite its relative infancy, Manchester's magnificent Chill Factor with it's excellent snow, rock hard base and extra racing length, would probably be it. Indeed, with this being a weekend double header we were going to get a good idea of where the series spoils were likely to be going by the time Sunday afternoon arrived.

Saturday - Race 2

In the ladies event Alice Macauley continued where she had left off at Milton Keynes with another dominant display. This time however a number of her competitors pushed her close, particularly on a tight first run, however when her rivals asked the questions Macauley's second run provided all the answers as she again crushed the rest of the field. Home slope racer Beth Widdup proved best of the rest in runners up spot with Francesca Lee, Sophie Ogden and Megan Jenkins once again deservedly claiming top 5 finishes.

The male event saw a new name on the top of the podium as Glasgow Ski Racing athlete Euan Kick edged out Ashley Breese by under 0.2 seconds overall. Robert Trebilcock enhanced his burgeoning status with an excellent third place whilst expererience overcame youth for the minor placing as Marc Telling did enough to claim 4th pace and pushed Zak Vinter into 5th.

Sunday - Race 3

The following morning confirmed the old adage about the cream rises to the top as both of Saturday's overall winners Alice Macauey and Euan Kick returned again to the top of their respective podiums.

Both winning margins had been significantly reduced however, with Macauley winning the girls event by 0.3 seconds and Kick stealing the male race by the small matter of eight hundredths.

In the ladies event both Francesca Lee and Sophie Ogden continued their fine form placing 2nd and 3rd respectively, whilst Nia Jenkins did enough to claim 4th in front of 5th placed Emily Hopkins

In the male event Ashley Breese pushed Kick all the way before falling marginally short but did more than enough to overcomes Zak Vinter, Matthew Thompson and Kieron Norris into 3rd, 4th & 5th respectively

Race 4

Glasgow

With the series heading north of the border Glasgow's fantastic indoor facility played host to race 4 in the 2013 series. The move north also opened the series up to a larger number of Scottish based racers, many of whom were looking to make a mark on the series.

In the ladies race home racer Nicole Richie ensured that her mark was pretty substantial, opening up a huge lead on run 1, then equally nailing a second run to demolish her opposition by 1.2 seconds. Francesca Lee again proved best of the rest to claim the runners up spot with Sophie Ogden again claiming 3rd. Deborah Henerey claimed her 2nd top five spot of the series by taking 4th and Georgia Hallet rounded off the top 5.

In the male race Euan Kick claimed a third win of the series doing enough to win both runs and claim a half second winning margin over Matthew Thompson. Callum Henderson found himself just squeezed into third by the narrowest of margins from Thompson with Paul Henderson and Charles Richardson filling the final top 5 platings.

Races 5 & 6

Manchester

Saturday - Race 5

A second Manchester double header rounded off the seres for summer 2013 and provided plenty of thrills, spills and four more individual race wins.

The Saturday event saw Sophie Ogden complete what she had threatened to do all series as she converted two super runs into a well deserved individual race win. Francesca Lee pushed her all the way however and having to settle for another runners up spot could be pleased with another strong showing. Megan Jenkins pushed both ladies hard but had to settle for 3rd whilst Caroline Powell and Deborah Henerey completed the top 5 with 4th & 5th respectively.

The male race saw Callum Henderson use all of his racing experience to see off a number of hungry younger racers to claim victory by 0.4 seconds. Robert Trebilcock again proved his qualities with an excellent runners up spot whilst Zak Vinter fought off Jordan Fellows and Chris Corr to claim a fine 3rd. Fellows eventually finishing 4 th & Corr 5th.

Sunday - Race 6

The final race of the series played host to a fantastic head to head battle between Francesca Lee and Sophie Ogden. After a summer series where they were almost inseparable in terms of times the entire series came down to a final run battle to see who would claim the overall crown. Essentially, it was winer takes all.

In the end it was Lee who proved triumphant, holding off a second run Ogden charge to claim the race and series victory. Ogden had to settle for the runners up spot both in terms of the race and the series whilst Beth Widdup did enough on both runs to claim 3rd. The minor placings in the top 5 ended up as a Jenkins family affair as younger sibling Megan squeezed out older sister Nia to claim 4th place in both the race and the series whilst Nia had to settle for 5th place in the race and series. Both girls finishing in the series just behind 3rd placed Alice Macauley.

The male race saw a new name on the winners podium as Jordan Fellows produced a super 2nd run to leapfrog Robert Trebilcock and Zak Vinter to claim the overall race win. A victory for Vinter would also have given him the overall series crown but in the end he had to settle for 3rd in the race behind runner up Trebilcock and 2nd in the series behind Glasgow team mate Euan Kick. The excellent final weekend results for Trebilcock & Fellows ensured 4th & 5th places in the overall series respectively, just behind 3rd placed Matthew Thompson. With regard to the day's racing Callum Henderson aligned 4th with Charles Richardson in 5th.

So the series ended with names for the future battling it out with names already at the forefront of what is a strong and competitive sport. As a battleground for winter athletes to meet up, race each other and spend some time away from the pressures of winter racing the GBR indoor series has an important place within the structure of British ski racing. It also offers those dipping their toes into racing of the standards and opportunities out there And whilst it will obviously never carry the kudos of a race or series win in the mountains, success at Britain's premier summer race series still carries significant respect.  If the future of the sport lies in the hands of these racers then our sport looks to be in very good hands. Roll on 2014.

All England Champs 2013

Gloucester. Newly extended, fresh matting in place, looking resplendent on a sunny autumn Saturday morning and prepared for the biggest start list of the 2013 artificial racing season. The All England Championship was coming home.

First up was the opening run of the u10 & u12 event. With stubbies now very much the accepted route forward for the lower aged racers it was great to see our younger racers ski racing without the worry of dealing with full sized poles in a best run of two counts shoot out.

In the girls race Nadine Hugec stamped an immediate authority on proceedings, nailing the fastest run in the first run. Eva Pascoe ran her close on run 1 and whilst beating Hugec on the 2nd run it wasn't enough to overcome the BSA racer's first run. Both girls proving too good for 3rd placed Eleanor Eaves with Grace Black and Charley Fellows just edged out.

In the boys race Toby Case completed a dominant season with a comprehensive win over a field deep both in terms of numbers and future potential. Pendle racer Robert Holmes proved too good for the remainder of the field, shading a highly competitive 2nd place shoot out and nudging Joseph Thompson, 2004 born racer Jack Upton and Josef Huppach into 3rd, 4th & 5th respectively.

With the stubbies lifted and full poles in place showtime had certainly arrived. The time to deliver was now.

For the ladies it was very much a case of the race for first place being virtually over before it had barely started as Cardiff racer Emily Hopkins - the first athlete down - destroyed course 1 with a blistering run. A blur of red and blue gates brushed aside as she tore through a tough opening course only Hannah Bozier ever looked likely to get close to Hopkins' time. Jenny Davies, Bozier's Aldershot team mate, found some good speed to place 3rd on run one 0.8 seconds back but they were the only two racers within a second of the leader.

In contrast, the male race witnessed a massacre as almost a third of the field perished before their day had barely begun. Like lemmings perishing over the cliff edge, too many racers either failed to inspect properly, failed to move quickly enough or were overly reliant on ceramic prepared edges to complete a tough but rewarding challenge set by home slope coach Headley Beavis. Get it wrong and it was quickly over, get it right and the rewards were obvious.

Of the top 15 only a few got close to completing and apart from excellent runs from Michael Molloy and Stuart Riches there was no challenge within half a second of midway leader Tom Hales' magnificent opening effort.

The post lunch second run produced very much the same fare as the morning action as Emily Hopkins refused to settle for taking the percentage option for the win and went full out for a second time. Just over 18 seconds later the challenge from the rest was decimated as Hopkins majestically threaded her way to a thumping victory.

Again, Hannah Bozier provided a challenge but she was the only racer to finish with a full second of Hopkins.

Jenny Davies again proved best of the rest in 3rd whilst Francesca Lee claimed a deserved 4th just in front of Sophie Ogden, Alex Bullock and the matt returning Nia Jenkins.

In the male race things were always going to be a lot closer, given that the three first run leaders were split by just shy of three tenths. First to go was third placed Stuart Riches. Frustratingly however Riches couldn't quite repeat the smooth run he found in the morning and whilst his challenge faded somewhat it was still good enough to place him as leader, just in front of Harry Hornsby, David Hatcher and Ben Clarke as he crossed the line.

Next down was Norfolk's Molloy, who knew that if he was to challenge for the overall win he would need something a bit special down Gloucester's re-extended challenge. And special it was, nailing 23 turns in a smidgen over 18 seconds. His challenge was real and laid down in front of first run leader Tom Hales.

Stood at the top Hales took his time, snapped his bindings and buckled down, took a few deep breaths and composed himself. He knew that this was his chance - no mistakes and the title was his. His run was good, very good but when push came to shove Molloy's 2nd run proved just too good and Hales found himself nudged down into 2nd. No doubt the Cardiff racer will be as disappointed as Molloy pleased but he can take solace in the fact that if he retains his appetite then his time will surely come.

There was no denying the winners however. And whilst Molloy's win was both fully deserved and hugely impressive given the limited training due to his full time military commitments Emily Hopkins undoubtedly stole the show. Her victory was as dominant and as brutal as they come. Indeed on a day where class would ultimately tell, Hopkins proved the new undisputed queen of the matting.

CESA Skier of the Year - Alex Bullock

Congratulations to Alex Bullock on her award for CESA Skier of the Year 2011.

Presented by CESA Chair Jeff Elmore, Alex receives the award alongside Telford Head Coach Alan Ashfield

Henderson & Gould Claim Hemel Honours

So after covering the length and breadth of England ’s green and pleasant land Hemel’s shiny new indoor facility provided the final stop of the 2011 Snowsport England Grand Prix series.

Indeed like the four previous races in the series sponsored by Ski Solutions, Aosta Valley , Ski Bartlett and Atomic the final event proved to be another hard fought event.

In the male event James Greenwood looked a red hot favourite to follow up earlier indoor triumphs at the Milton Keynes and Chill Factor events. Callum Henderson would have certainly been looking to upset the form book however and did enough to earn a slight first run advantage over Aldershot racer Greenwood and home racer Matt Thompson. Indeed with 0.01 second splitting Henderson & Greenwood there was everything to fight for on run 2.

In the end however it was Henderson who prevailed, dealing with fine runs by Thompson & Greenwood in the best way possible – by cutting a quarter second out of their times – and claiming a deserved victory.

The ladies race was an equally tight affair as first run leader Caroline Powell was left to deal with a superb 2nd run charge from Charlotte Gould. Unlike Henderson, in the males event however, Powell couldn’t react to Gould’s fine run and an error half way down the afternoon run proved to be her undoing as a promising day ended in DNF territory and handed the win to the Telford athlete.

In the categories Alicja Krahelski and Finlay Davis claimed the honours in Chi 1 category whilst Megan Jenkins (an impressive 2nd overall) & Robert Poth followed suit in Chi 2. In Jun 1 Telford duo Ellen Brown and Ashley Breese proved too good for their compatriots as did Charlotte Gould and Matt Thompson in the older junior category.

In the senior and masters categories Fern Barker and Kerry Turnock claimed female honours whilst Henderson and Claude Farron followed suit in the male event.

So the sun set on another year of Snowsport England ’s premier race series. Whether it be indoors or outdoors the racing has been of an impressive quality and the series winners can deservedly feel proud of their achievements. Next stop on the 2011 calendar is Norfolk and the 36th All England Championships. If the racing is half as exciting as the GP series have been it’ll one not to miss.

In Review: SSE Grand Prix Series 2011

With the Pendle GP event missing from the calendar the Snowsport England Grand Prix series reverted to a 5 race format in 2011. Indeed with three indoor events and two outdoors the series reflected the general trend amongst the summer alpine race community towards the indoor racing surface.

The first event hosted by ERSA at the ever impressive Norfolk Ski Centre produced a feast of top racing with a number of new names and faces looking to challenge the group of established GP contenders. Experience prevailed however at old faces Andrew Watson and Charlotte Gould proved too good for their rivals, despite a series of notable challenges. Hannah Bozier, Alex Bullock and Alice Hales all looked capable of challenging at the halfway stage but a sublime 2nd run from Gould and DNF’s from Hales and Bullock proved decisive. The male race followed a similar pattern with a number of old names and faces dominating. Tom Hales, Davis Hatcher and Dan Curtis all got their GP campaigns up to impressive starts but Watson proved too good, sneaking just inside his Cardiff team mate Hales for the win.

The series then moved north for its second event with Silksworth’s immense hill providing the racers with a contoured and somewhat windswept challenge. Again Charlotte Gould was to be found looking to place herself in and around the winners enclosure but had to settle for 2nd as her Telford team mate Alexandra Bullock dominated proceedings to ease to her maiden GP overall win. Inevitably Alice Hales also forced herself into contention in 3rd, just denying Emma Peters the opportunity to complete an overall 1-2-3 for the Telford team. The male race was blown wide open by 1st run failures for Andrew Watson and Michael Molloy and in the end it was David Hatcher who capitalised, blending raw speed with consistency to take the win just ahead of Daniel Curtis and Andrew Davies.

With the outdoor events now completed the series returned back south and relocated into the oldest indoor venue on the race calendar in Milton Keynes. In the ladies race the series found its third different winner of the season as Caroline Powell produced the decisive moment of the race with a fine second run that proved too good for runner up Charlotte Gould. Francesca Lee’s stunning 2nd run proved enough for the Ravens athlete to claim 3rd with Florence Bell and Megan Jenkins completing the top 5. In the male event James Greenwood proved far too strong and quick for his opponents, and whilst Matt Thompson proved able to match Greenwood’s 2nd run time you couldn’t help but feel it was a little too late as the knockout blow had already been landed. Andrew DuPlessis flew the flag for the multi surface athletes in 3rd with James Knock & Elliot Simpson following suit to complete the top 5.

For the penultimate challenge of the series Manchester’s magnificent Chill Factor played host. Again the indoor only athletes were certainly looking to make hay upon the surface which they are most comfortable on and they again most certainly achieved this, not least Sega Fairweather who impressively marked her return to GP action by dominating the event and easing to victory with more than a second to spare. Indeed with runner up Beth Widdup, Caroline Powell and Megan Jenkins all placing in the overall top 5, only Charlotte Gould proved able to mount any kind of serious challenge from the field of active outdoor contenders. The male event also followed a similar pattern with Gerard Flahive and Andrew Davies flying the outdoor challenge but finishing well shy of James Greenwood’s impressive winning mark and Eliya Rubin-Beelaert’s second placed time.

Hemel’s rather plush and spectator friendly indoor facility played host to the final event and Charlotte Gould added a bit of symmetry to proceedings by adding victory in the final event to the one achieved at the first race of the series. Indeed only Gould denied a rampaging pack of impressive children 2 girls with the foursome of Megan Jenkins, Yasmin Cooper, Emma Peters and Francesca Lee completing a somewhat youthful top 5. In the male event Calum Henderson’s fantastic 2nd run denied James Greenwood and hat trick of overall wins and an indoor clean sweep, who in turn pushed Matt Thompson into 3rd. Andrew DuPlessis again impressed with a 4th place and home racer James Grant completed the top 5.

In the overall standings Charlotte Gould dominated the series, top five placing in each event on top of racking up two overall victories proved far too consistent for her rivals. Francesca Lee also proved a model of consistency, amassing impressive results at each event whilst a solitary mistake at Milton Keynes cost Emma Peters the chance to improve on 3rd. Andrew Davies was rewarded for a season of consistent finishes with overall victory in the male series. James Greenwood’s impressive indoor performances were enough to earn him 2nd overall with David Hatcher placed 3rd.

In the Categories Telford racer Grace Williams claimed 1st in children 1 with Megan Riley 2nd & 3rd respectively. Ravens’ Francesca Lee proved too good for the rest of chi 2 however both Emma Peters and Megan Jenkins pushed her hard. In the junior categories Telford racer Ellen Brown claimed 1st in jun 1 with team mate Alex Bullock & Sophie Ogden in 2nd & 3rd. Charlotte Gould added to Telford honours in jun 2, also edging team mate Charlotte Shrimpton and Caroline Powell into 2nd & 3rd. Loughborough’s Jemima Barnes took the honours in the senior category ahead of Emily Goddard and Rachel Bill whilst Hemel’s Kerry Turnock won the masters event in front of Vivien Hanson & Judy Read.

The two early wins from Pendle’s Declan Huppach allowed him to control the destiny of the chi 1 title with Kristofer Berglindarson and Finlay Davis completing the podium. In the older children’s category Telford’s Jordan Fellows pocketed the chi 2 overall crown followed by Robert Poth and Nicholas Phelps. Chris Yates made it 5 overall Telford GP winners with the Jun 1 overall with team mate Ashley Breese pushing him close in 2nd. Overall third place was shared between Max Baggio, Barney Lewis and James Sieber. Andrew Davies ensured Cardiff representation on the winners rostrum with success in jun 2 in front of Matt Thompson and James Grant whilst Aldershot racer James Greenwood captured the senior title ahead of David Hatcher and Andrew DuPlessis. It was a Ravens 1-2 in the Masters category as Claude Farron squeezed out Andrew Hjort with Rob Hales claiming 3rd.

This summer brings the SSE GP series to close as we look forward to the GBR race series in 2012.

All England Champs 2011

All England Championships
Norfolk Ski Centre
3rd September, 2011

With the hill at Norfolk ’s magnificent artificial ski facility absolutely swamped with racers looking for the perfect line during a hectic course inspection period it was clear that this was no ordinary day.
Indeed with almost 200 athletes primed to do battle down a brace of championship testers on a bright September Saturday, even as early as course inspection it was clear that the athletes were going to provide the lucky spectators with a battle royale. Snowsport England ’s premier summer event, the All England Championships, was up for grabs and a substantial number of racers had genuine designs on lifting the most prestigious title in summer racing.

The ladies event was a truly hard fought affair as Sega Fairweather’s return to dendix racing coincided with a rare 2011 start for Charlotte Davies and the efforts in-form trio Charlotte Gould, and Sarah Lambden. Indeed at the half way stage of the competition only 0.11 seconds separated the aforementioned racers the afternoon run promised to be an explosive affair. No breathing space, no room for error and no time in hand to play safe – it was a 13 second blast to the finish line. Suddenly the race had evolved into the All (or nothing) England.

Indeed if that wasn’t pressure enough Alice Hales turned the screw all that tighter with a fantastic 2nd run as the top four watched and waited. Gould was next to play her hand – and what a hand – cutting Hales time by half a second, heaping immense pressure on her rivals in the start and propelling herself into genuine overall contention. Could anyone better that?
Certainly both Davies and Lambden set out looking to get inside Gould’s time but mistakes for both ended their challenges and only Sega Fairweather could deny Gould. Just shy of fourteen and a half seconds later it was all over and the returning Fairweather had both denied Gould and opened up an impressive half second winning margin.

In the categories Ella Ward captured the chi 1 title, finishing ahead of Alexandra Lillywhite and Millie Jackson. In chi 2 Annie Usher squeezed out Francesca Lee for victory with Jessica Spanton in 3rd. Sophie Skipper, an impressive 4th overall, did enough to push Sophie Ogden into 5th overall and 2nd in category with Georgia Hallet in 3rd. In Jun 2 Charlotte Gould claimed the honours in front of Alice Hales and Charlotte Shrimpton. Fern Barker and Ella Slater claimed the senior category podium places behind Sega Fairweather whilst Vivien Hanson edged out Melissa Sampson in the Masters category.

The male race proved to be an altogether different affair however as Michael Molloy learned from and then capitalised upon the mistakes of his counterparts to open up an unassailable first run lead and then proceed to demolish what was left on run 2. Indeed with substantial numbers of the male racers failing to learn from each other’s failures and eliminating themselves with suicidal race lines Molloy will rarely have had it go quite so straight forward. Granted James Greenwood and Andrew Davies combined their speed and talent with experience and intelligence to mount credible challenges to the home racer but they were amongst a genuine minority on a frustrating day for male racing.

In the categories Declan Huppach claimed the honours in chi 1 with William Feneley and Thomas Rascagneres in 2nd & 3rd. An impressive 13th overall from Jordan Fellows proved too good for the rest of chi 2 category with Thomas Richardson and William Wheeler joining him on the podium. In the junior 1 category Christopher Corr’s excellent 9th overall was enough to secure victory although James Gibb and Matthew Martin pushed him close. James Mozol joined Michael Molloy & Andrew Davies on the junior 2 podium whilst Harry Hornsby and Andrew Leeson joined James Greenwood in the senior category. Joint 14th overall was plenty enough to secure the masters win for Rob Hales with Andrew Hjort and Paul Bunton claiming the minor podium places.

In the minis event scheduled for the first time between Saturday’s first run victories from Olivia Mitchell and Toby Case identified themselves as future racers to keep an eye upon. There were podium positions for Lauren Vale, Georgia Key in the girls event and from Aaron Troung and Oliver Wekks in the boys race.

The day belonged to Michael Molloy and Sega Fairweather however. Not since 2004 had Fairweather contested the All England Championships but seven years later she raised the bar and again proved that was still very much the lady to beat.

Sega Shines, Greenwood's Glory

Snowsport England Grand Prix Series
Round 4 - Chill Factor, Manchester
18th June, 2011

So just seven days after the previous round the Snowsport England Grand Prix Series headed north as Manchester ’s Chill Factor played host to the fourth and penultimate round of 2011.

As ever, the race piste in Britain ’s best indoor racing facility was prepared in tip top condition and would provide every racer with the opportunity to excel.

However it was a name from summer’s past that forced herself to the fore as Sega Fairweather returned to SSE’s Grand Prix racing with an awesome display of attacking ski racing. Indeed in generating angles and speed that none of her rivals could come close to matching the former Arrows & Team GB starlet opened up a near half second gap after run 1 and the proceeded to more than double her advantage on run 2.

Such was her dominance of proceedings that the rest of the ladies field were truly only ever racing for 2nd place.

Behind Fairweather the race was significantly tighter however with no less than four racers split by 0.2 seconds at the half way stage. Home slope racer Beth Widdup eventually prevailed in the overall runners up spot, the impressive young Chill Factor racer’s second run proving too good for Caroline Powell, Charlotte Gould and Megan Jenkins respectively.

In the male event proceedings were far more open than in the ladies race with the top six overall racers all finishing within one second of James Greenwood’s winning time. Granted Greenwood ’s opening run did sufficient damage to the rest of the field to create a smidgen of breathing space, but even with the quarter second gap generated Greenwood was still only one run 2 error away from missing out. Indeed whilst Greenwood ’s impeccable second run proved conclusive, with the top eight racers on run 2 separated by less than 0.3 seconds, the Aldershot racer’s run had to be to be faultless.

In the categories Kerry Turnock and Claude Farron claimed victories in the masters categories whilst Fairweather and Greenwood claimed the honours in the senior category. Caroline Powell’s 3rd overall and Eliya Beelaert-Rubin (2nd overall) claimed junior 2 honours with Beth Widdup and Max Baggio following suit in Junior 1. Megan Jenkins and Robert Poth triumphed in the older of the children’s categories with Olivia Ward and Finlay Davies winning the younger children’s event.

The final event of sees the series moving back south into Hemel’s indoor facility. Indeed with plenty still to fight for both in the overall and age categories the series sponsored by Aosta Valley, Ski Solutions, Ski Bartlett and Atomic looks set for a fantastic summer 2011 finale.

Another Thriller in The Chiller

Snowsport England Grand Prix Series
Round 3 - Milton Keynes
12th June 2011

The Sun shone brightly, temperatures were high. Summer 2011 was most certainly upon us. However, whilst most were looking to catch a ray or three the doors at Milton Keynes Xscape were flung open and dendix made way for man-made snow as the 3rd round of Snowsport England’s Grand Prix series moved indoors.

From a spectating perspective Milton Keynes clearly isn’t the best. Being the first built of our indoor race venues, where others learned MK have had to live with and the low roof combined with a moderately lit viewing area provides an eighties nightclub feel especially when it’s jam packed with racers, parents and officials. For that reason alone the on-piste action needed to divert the attention and reassuringly round 3 of the series sponsored by Aosta Vally, Ski Solutions, Ski Bartlett and Atomic delivered quite magnificently.

The male field dominated by big strong senior racers had a land of the giants feel to proceedings as David Hatcher, Ben Clark, Elliot Simpson, James Knock, Andrew DuPlessis and James Greenwood were joined by Junior 2 racers Andrew Davies and Matt Thompson and Junior 1 six-footer Barney Lewis. A combination of strength, power and good technique were most certainly the order of the day.

In the end however it was Aldershot’s James Greenwood who prevailed. A stunning first run created a minimum 0.3 second cushion to the rest of the field and whilst runner-up Matt Thompson managed to match Greenwood’s second run time the damage had already been done.

The ladies was an equally hard fought affair as Caroline Powell’s superb 2nd run overturned Charlotte Gould’s first run lead whilst Francesca Lee’s sublime 2nd run proved enough to leapfrog Florence Bell and Megan Jenkins into overall 3rd place. What the ladies lacked in power, strength and brute force they more than made up for with precision and technique.

In the categories Kerry Turnock and Claude Farron claimed victories in the master’s categories with Jemima Barnes joining James Greenwood as senior category victors. Caroline Powell and Matt Thompson were too good for the others in Junior 2 as were Barney Lewis and Florence Bell in Junior 1. In Chi 2 Francesca Lee and Robert Poth emerged as victors whilst Megan Riley and Kristofer Bergindarson claimed the honours in the younger children’s category.
javascript:void(0)
The series stays indoors from here on in and with Manchester’s Chill Factor being the next scheduled event the racers will enjoy another hard fought scramble for Grand Prix honours. Miss it at your peril.

Telford Club National

Smiles all round in Sunderland

Snowsport England Grand Prix Series
Round 2 - Sunderland
5th June 2011

Sunderland, or on the basis of numerous Grand Prix skiing weekends, perhaps Nosunderland or Winderland might be considered a more appropriate name for one of Britain’s newest cities. Indeed when the clouds congregate and precipitate or the wind, freshly chilled from buffeting the North Sea, decides to roll across the skyline and into the faces of Silksworth’s racers and officials then it can make the slopes of the series sponsor Aosta Valley feel positively Mediterranean. Only Pendle truly rivals Silksworth on a poor weather day.

But what a slope! A quartet of tiered dendix layers equally spaced with acceleration inducing drops and enough room to pose 17 or 18 extremely challenging red and blue questions. Unquestionably there are better all-round facilities than Sunderland, but when the questions asked completely revolve around the 180 metres or so between the start gate & finish bean then England’s most north easterly slope has no rival. This is the Carnoustie of dry slope ski racing.

In the ladies event a new name appeared at the top of the halfway leader board as Alex Bullock delivered what she had been suggesting she was capable of for a while and negotiated a tough first course with near surgical precision. Only Alice Hales mounted any sort of challenge to Bullock’s first time, the two ladies separated by less than 0.1 seconds but having comfortable advantage of more than half a second over the rest of the field.

As the two ladies awaited their 2nd run however a new contender entered the fray as Bullock’s Telford training mate converted an absolutely blistering run to both launch herself into overall contention and add a little extra pressure on the leaders. Indeed with Hales 2nd run leaving her a tenth of a second short of Gould’s combined effort only Bullock could deny a remarkable comeback win. And deny it she did with a cool and reassuringly unspectacular 2nd run that oozed maturity in doing enough to score a maiden overall victory without exposing herself to unnecessary risk.

In the men’s event David Hatcher stamped an immediate authority on the event, impressively dissecting Craig Ruddock’s feet moving challenge in his own inimitable style. Breathlessly and somewhat open eyed the rest of the field watched as Hatcher pushed the boundaries of what was achievable and posed questions that many of the big names were unable to answer.

Indeed as a number of the top ten ranked racers perished chasing impossibly direct lines you did have to wonder if any of them were learning anything from the mistakes of those in front of them. If they did then it clearly didn’t translate down to their boots.

Elsewhere Bromley’s Dan Curtis and Cardiff’s Andrew Davies justified their decisions to cover the length of the country in the early hours of Sunday morning for a smidgen over 27 seconds of racing with impressive challenges to Hatcher. And whilst there was little to split to three racers on run 2, Hatcher’s morning advantage proved decisive, whilst Curtis claimed 2nd and Davies 3rd.

Indeed whilst a number of the established racers had a day to forget one or two of the names from a little further down the field took the opportunity to make hay whilst the wind blew. Not least Telford racer Chris Yates who caught the eye with a blistering run 1 and then closed out an impressive display with a solid 2nd run through Lee Bennett's 18 gate maze to claim his first ever top 5 overall GP finish.

In the categories Vivien Hanson and Rob Hales proved victorious in the masters’ category with Emily Goddard joining David Hatcher in winning the senior category. Charlotte Gould and Andrew Davies collected Junior 2 winner’s prizes.

In Junior 1 Chris Yates joined Alex Bullock as category winners whilst Jordan Fellows and Emma Peters claimed the honours in chi 2, all four racers notably representing the Telford stable. Whilst in the youngest category Declan Huppach and Mille Jackson proved too good for the rest of the children 1 competitors.

The day however belonged to Alex Bullock. She’d been knocking on the door labelled big race win for a while and whilst the obvious frustration of waiting to covert promising challenge into overall victory was yet to show she stayed patient and believed in her ability. With the door ajar and opportunity teasingly inviting the Telford racer in she not only accepted the invitation but smashed the door off its hinges. More race wins will certainly follow but Silksworth’s fantastic rolling matting will always be where Bullock established herself beyond the role of contender.

The series now moves indoors for what will be a trio of hard fought events in the controlled refrigerated atmospheres of Milton Keynes, Manchester and Hemel but they will have to be very good to be as memorable as this one.

Yet again the Snowsport England series sponsored by Ski Solutions, Aosta Valley, Atomic & Ski Bartlett had delivered a wonderfully competitive event and Silksworth’s rolling track has, as it always does, provided us with two very worthy race winners. Who cares about the weather?

Fresh faces & Familiar Winners

Snowsport England Grand Prix Series
Round 1 - Norfolk
1st May 2011

Blue skies overhead, farmers’ fields green with new growth, a city skyline in the distance and anticipation in the start gate that inevitably arrives with a new season. Summer racing had returned. Indeed with Ski Solutions joining Aosta Valley, Atomic & Ski Bartlett as series sponsors there was much to look forward to as Norfolk Ski Club played host to the opening Snowsport England Grand Prix of 2011.

Would the cream of 2010 continue to rise to the top? Was there enough
development a little lower down the ranks to rattle last year’s champions?Or was there a new face out there that would join the battle? And whilst the opening race of the season wouldn’t definitively answer all of these questions the first race of 2011 would certainly provide us with a good idea.

And with the ladies first run squeezing six of dry slope racing’s best athletes intolittle more than three tenths of a second it became immediately clear that a battle royale awaited not only for the post lunch second run but for the season ahead. Indeed with only one thousandth of a second splitting front runners Alice Hales and Charlotte Gould through Sally Bartlett’s 16 turn challenge there was much to look forward to as they prepared to negotiate Phil Brown’s brutal 17 gate 2nd run course.

Gould’s slightly slower first run gave her the opportunity to go immediately before her opponent and she used this to her advantage by nailing a near inch perfect run whilst Hales watched from the start gate knowing that there was absolutely no room for error. And whilst the Cardiff racer looked capable of challenging Gould’s time the error she simply couldn’t afford unfortunately arrived and the battle was over. Hales exited the course and Gould entered the winner’s enclosure.

Elsewhere Hannah Bozier cemented her fine first run with an equally impressive 2nd run to claim a deserved runners-up spot whilst fellow Aldershot athlete Ellen Hathaway jumped into 3rd place following a mistake from Alexandra Bullock.

In the male race the tussle at the top end had a similar feel as the other Hales sibling, Tom, fought out a mighty scrap with 2011’s zero pointed racer Andrew Watson. Separated by 0.05 seconds after run 1, Hales’s powerful and impressive 2nd run asked huge questions of his Cardiff team mate. Watson responded superbly however and in matching Hales’s imposing effort ensured that his slender morning advantage was preserved. The third spot onto the podium went to David Hatcher, who in posting the first sub 14 second afternoon run - & only 0.04 off the times of Watson & Hales - posed a number of questions as the Cardiff duo prepared to race.

In the categories Rob Hales & Vivien Hansen scooped the honours in the master’s categories, whilst Jemima Barnes joined Watson in taking the senior honours. Charlotte Gould was joined by Andrew Davies in collecting 1st place amongst Jun 2 racers whilst Hannah Bozier was joined by an impressive James Sieber as winners in Jun 1.

The Telford duo of Emma Peters and Jordan Fellows claimed the top spot in Chi 2 category whilst Caitlin Lewington and Declan Huppach ended the weekend as victors in Chi 1.

The real winner however was the sport of artificial slope racing. In Norfolk Ski Centre the sport has a flagship venue which provides our racers with the opportunity to excel. Add in intelligent, testing courses, a pool of committed racers and some fine natural talent and the mix can be very exciting.

Round 2 of the SSE GP series takes place at Silksworth’s imposing hill in
Sunderland on Sun June 5th. If it’s half as good as this race then it’ll one not to miss.

Livestream 3

All Up For Grabs in Norfolk

All England Championships
Norwich
4th & 5th September 2010

With the hill at Norfolk ’s magnificent artificial ski facility absolutely swamped with racers looking for the perfect line during a hectic course inspection period it was clear that this was no ordinary day.

Indeed with over 200 athletes primed to do battle down a brace of championship testers on a bright and sunny September Saturday, even as early as course inspection it was clear that the athletes were going to provide the lucky spectators with a battle royale. Snowsport England ’s premier summer event, the All England Championships, was up for grabs and a substantial number of racers had genuine designs on lifting the old trophy.

In the ladies race Chatham starlet Emily Evans stamped an immediate authority upon the rest of the field with the arguable exceptions of elder sister Charlotte and Gloucester ’s zero pointed Charlotte Davies. Denied victory last summer by a mere 0.13s Evans always looked odds on to go one place better this year right from the moment she put her foot on the accelerator during the opening gates of Richard Breese’s first course challenge.

The afternoon proved a markedly similar story with Evans again proving to be the class act of the field, negotiating Sally Bartlett’s second run twister like a hot knife cutting through sun softened butter. Indeed with elder sibling Charlotte producing an equally impressive 2nd run and mid-point second placed Charlotte Davies perishing over the final throes of Bartlett ’s course the event not only had a new winner but had produced a Chatham and sisterly 1-2.

Elsewhere Charlotte Gould’s impressive season continued with a fully deserved 3rd place overall, whilst Alice Hales took full advantage of 2nd run mistakes elsewhere to leapfrog into 4th with Alex Bullock claiming an excellent 5th.

In the male event, home town racer Shaun Blythe looked likely to spring a real surprise after impressively negotiating run 1 with an outstanding effort that was bettered only by senior warhorse David Hatcher. And with eight or nine racers all within striking distance of leader Hatcher after the morning skirmishes the afternoon event always looked likely to be a case of do or die. Nail it and you were in with a chance, ski it safe and any chance of victory would be long gone.

As the race came to its climax and each of the top ten males left the gate to begin their challenge it became fairly evident that good course inspection and even better technique was likely to prove decisive. Indeed, as others tried and failed an old name emerged from the chasing pack and leapt to the fore as Nick Robinson, Grand Prix winner at the very same slope only 15 months earlier, applied every ounce of his superb technique to break out of the pack and stake an early claim to the title.

This, however, was a claim that Andrew Davies quickly proved capable of bettering. One of the stars of the 2010 Grand Prix series Davies continued where he concluded the GP series with another fine display of strength and technique that whilst it wasn’t quite as quick as Robinson it was still enough to nudge the Cardiff athlete into the lead.

A lead that was somewhat short lived as Davies’s Cardiff team mate and 2010 zero pointer Andrew Watson again reproduced the form he’s shown for a quite a while, finding a couple of tenths on Davies and snatching the lead with only Blythe and Hatcher left to race. Blythe’s impressive challenge faltered on Norfolk ’s weight shifting ridge and then Hatcher followed suit, the edge of his pants racer pushing his luck an ounce or two too far on the very same ridge and perishing into DNF territory. Blythe, however, at least managed to recover enough to ensure his name and fantastic first run time would be added to the final result.

In the categories Yasmin Cooper & Brandon Matthews triumphed in Children 1 whilst Antonia Pretty and Brodie Goddard-Jones ended victorious in Children 2. Emily Evans and James Grant proved too good for the rest of their piers in Junior 1 with Charlotte Evans and Andrew Watson prevailing in Junior 2. In the seniors Emily Goddard and James Greenwood took the honours whilst Carrie Walsh and Rob Hales won their respective Masters categories.

The successful switching of the minis race from an end of event space filler to a middle of the day spectacle provided our youngest racers with an event that their commitment and talents fully deserve.

Olivia Mitchell proved too good for the rest of the girls posting an aggregate time that was a full second quicker than runner up Grace Williams and Olivia Ward in 3rd.

In the male event Kristofer Berglindarson dominated proceedings producing a combined time that was almost a second and a half in front of runner up Ryan Llywarch and third placed Merrick Southall.

The day however no only belonged to winners Watson and Evans but also to the sport of dry slope summer racing. The Norfolk facility provides the event organisers with the perfect opportunity to showcase the sport and the talent within it to wonderful effect and with a start list brimming in both numbers and talent Evans and Watson can look back in the future and be sure that their victories were fully deserved.

Those who predict a rapid death to outdoor racing may need to rethink.

Ryding & Flahive Dominate

Snowsport England Aosta Valley Grand Prix Series
Round 5 ‐ ERSA GP, Hemel
25th July, 2010

So seven days after Sunderland played host to the penultimate round of the 2010 Snowsport England Grand Prix Series sponsored by Aosta Valley the somewhat plush and sparkling new Hemel Snow Centre welcomed racers to the fifth and final event.

With a sizeable start list only moderately effected by the fact that this was the first weekend of the main Summer holiday fortnight it was evident that many racers still had high hopes of ensuring that it was their name that would end up on top of the overall or category standings. Indeed with the balance of the 2010 series offering real opportunities for both outdoor & indoor racers to compete at the top end of the standings it was good to see a sizeable number of dendix based racers crossing over and getting a bit of snow on their boot buckles.

As with this Summer’s Chill Factor event however the ladies race was again completely dominated by Joanna Ryding. With her racing activities no longer encompassing dendix she probably never have harboured any serious hopes of recapturing her overall series crown but the margin of this and her previous summer victory continue to confirm her as the female athlete to beat in British summer ski racing. In Bethany Widdup and Jemima Barnes, Ryding found her fiercest rivals but in truth these two athletes were at least as focussed in ensuring that Yasmin Cooper didn’t improve further on a highly impressive 4th place overall as they ever were on overturning Ryding’s advatage.

In the male event Gerard Flahive’s overall victory, whilst being nowhere near as comfortable as Ryding’s, was no less impressive. In shading senior racers James Greenwood & James Knock on both John Riedy’s morning and Benn Hall’s afternoon courses Flahive looked very much the part on his home hill. And whilst the top twelve placed racers all managed to get within one second of Flahive’s overall winning time the fact that the Hemel racer posted the fastest times on both courses merely served to reaffirm Flahive’s control of both his skis and the event.

In the categories Luke Seymore’s superb second run elevated the SASA racer onto the top step of the Chi 2 male podium and whilst a top 20 overall position wasn’t as eye-catching as Chi 1 female victor Yasmin Cooper it was no less of an impressive achievement. In Chi 1 boys Joshua Penning-Lambert claimed the honours, as did Emma Peters in the female Chi 2 category. Elsewhere Beth Widdup and Samual Fairbarn earned wins in the Junior 1 category as did Alice Hales and Flahive in Junior 2. In the seniors James Greenwood and Jo Ryding proved too good for their compatriots as did Rob Hales and Lucy Newman in the masters.

The real winner again though was the Grand Prix series itself. In employing a smart combination of relatively young former racers and experienced old hands the five race series has continually posed the competitors with tough but rewarding challenges. The balanced blend of indoor & outdoor racing kept all parties involved right up until the final racers completed the final Hemel run and with a fantastic array of emotions – smiles, tears, effort and cheers – it appeared that the racers also appreciated the opportunities and challenges that the series offered.

After a short summer recess Norfolk’s mighty impressive facility plays host to the 2010 All England Championships over the first weekend in September. As one of - if not - the key calendar event the only certainty will be that, like the GP series, the event winners will be from the very top drawer. Make sure you don’t miss it.

By the sea, it’s a Telford 1-2-3

Snowsport England Aosta Valley Grand Prix Series
Round 4 - NESA GP, Sunderland
18th July, 2010
 I guess that as a course setter there can be few slopes in Britain that offer the potential to truly test racers more than the multi tiered contours of dendix that make up the main hill at Sunderland’s ski centre.

Indeed in combining a bit of local knowledge with inventive and demanding gate placements the Grand Prix courses set at Sunderland have a long tradition of moving racers forwards, backwards and generally out of their comfort zone. Genuinely testing courses that demand the racers blend brains with brawn and talent, courses that consistently produce overall winners of the highest calibre.

Round Four of the 2010 Snowsport England Grand Prix Series sponsored by Aosta Valley was no different. Amid the very greyest of skies and a blustery North Sea wind Craig Ruddock’s 16 gate challenge proved to be every bit as testing as course inspection suggested. With turns required on the underside of each of the slope’s four tier drops and a final flourish requiring quick feet and even faster thinking it was no surprise to see a fair percentage of the field fail to make it to 2nd run course inspection.

Of those who did complete Ruddock’s first run belter no-one dealt with the challenge better than senior racer David Hatcher, who in carving out an enormous lead of 0.6s left the male field in no doubt that their afternoon run was all about chasing 2nd place. Indeed with Charlotte Gould compiling a similar advantage over her compatriots the rest of the ladies field faced a somewhat similar afternoon challenge. Barring an unlikely mistake, fall or dnf we had almost certainly found our race winners before lunch time.

Clearly athletes of the calibre of Daniel Curtis, Andrew Davies, Charlotte Shrimpton and Alex Bullock would set out down Pierre Mahon’s 17 gate maze of blindingly fast foot movement looking to overturn the leaders but in truth their main focus was to retain the podium positions they’d established during the morning event.

In the ladies race the Team Telford trio of Bullock, Shrimpton and Gould metaphorically threw everything they had at each other in search of a weakness but in all finishing within 0.02s of each other all they actually managed to achieve was to create an impressive amount of daylight between themselves and the rest of the field and a status quo amongst each other.

And whilst the 2nd run of the male race was a less closely fought affair the final result followed a similar vein as Davies and Curtis extended their lead but were unable to challenge or even cut into Hatcher’s lead.

In the categories Vivien Hanson & Claude Farren claimed the honours for the masters whilst Emily Goddard matched David Hatcher’s win in the seniors. In the Junior categories Harry Rymell joined Daniel Curtis, Charlotte Gould and Charlotte Shrimpton as victors, with Chris Yates, Declan Huppach, Emma Peters and Francesca Lee claiming victories in the children’s categories.

The day however very much belonged to Hatcher, Gould and the Telford Club that in filling the overall podium in the ladies event represented quite an achievement for a club based on 70 odd metres of dendix.

Next Sunday the series reverts back under the roof and snow blowers as the Hemel Ski Centre plays host to the final event of the 2010 series. With many categories and the overall series still up for grabs there is no doubt that the fight will go on right until the final racer crosses the line. Miss it at your peril.

What More Could You Want?

Snowsport England Aosta Valley Grand Prix Series
Round 3 - WMSA GP, Chill Factor
20th June, 2010

So after an eventful and somewhat traditionally chilly Pendle round of the Snowsport England Grand Prix series the racers moved a few miles south and what felt like a few degrees warmer into the UK’s finest refrigerator, better known to most of us as Chill Factor.

As ever, the Manchester slope had been prepared in perfect condition for ski racing, hard enough to provide racers wearing later bib numbers with a course that hadn’t rutted whilst not degenerating into ice rink conditions that would have made those same later bib numbers feel like they were more involved in a lottery than a ski race. Chill Factor’s reputation for being the best racing slope in the UK isn’t misplaced.

On the hill an impressively substantial field gathered to fight out the third round of this year’s Aosta Valley sponsored series. Indeed with the Manchester location and indoor setting attracting a good contingent of racers from the other side of Hadrian’s Wall and the challenge of two fantastically flowing courses set by Benn Hall and Dave Ryding the only certainty of the day was that the overall winners would be of the very highest calibre

And so it proved.

However despite the influx of visiting challengers it was the home club who dominated proceedings as Chill Factor’s Joanna Ryding brushed aside the rest of the field to claim her latest Grand Prix victory. In opening up a substantial gap after run 1 and then doubling it on run 2 Ryding recorded her 14th Grand Prix overall victory and extended her summer racing winning streak to an impressive 19 races, a run that goes back as far as Sept 2005.

In Emily Whitelock and Beth Widdup, both co-Chill Factor team mates, Ryding found her strongest competition. In edging out her younger counterpart by 0.3 seconds on run 1 Whitelock further extended her advantage by an additional 0.2 on run 2 to comfortably and deservedly claim the runners up spot. For Widdup however, this was an impressive step up in class and with such an impressive display now behind her she has confirmed herself as a serious challenger for future Grand Prix honours.

In the male field, whilst the Chill Factor club didn’t dominate to the same extent as in the ladies they still managed to claim the name of the winner as Brad Morgan followed Jo Ryding’s lead and brushed aside all challengers. With a half second advantage after run 1 Morgan launched his imposing frame down through David Ryding’s wonderfully flowing challenge and carved another half second gap to complete what ended up as an impressive and somewhat straightforward victory.

Callum Henderson and Scott McWhirter proved to be Morgan’s biggest challengers. In the earlier run Henderson’s time marginally eclipsed his fellow countryman’s effort but the Glasgow Ski Racing athlete hit back in run two to inch in front of Henderson and claim the runner up spot in the overall standings.

In the categories Kerry Turnock proved to be the best of the ladies masters and joined Ryding (seniors) Whitelock (jun 2) and Widdup (jun 1) on the top step of the podium. Kelly Greenbank’s 7th overall proved too good for the rest of the children 2 field whilst Megan Jenkins’s fabulous 5th place overall was more than enough to prove decisive over the rest of the children 1 competitors.

In the male categories Andrew Hjort claimed 1st place in the masters category whilst Henderson and Morgan followed suit in the Senior and Jun 2 categories respectively. In Jun 1 Eliya Beelaert-Rubin impressive 5th place proved more than enough with Dan Poth and Matt Davies claiming the spoils in the children categories.

As the prize giving ceremony completed however it was clear that both the sport and the host venue also had reasons to celebrate. The magnificent facility never fails to deliver top rate racing conditions and in attracting such a substantial field of high quality athletes both the sport and the Grand Prix series can see that the long term future is extremely positive.

A superb venue, a fantastic event and two magnificent winners - what more could you want?

Thrills, Spills and Skills

Snowsport England Aosta Valley Grand Prix Series
Round 2 - NWSF GP, Pendle
30th May, 2010

Sabden Hill, historically the home of the Pendle witches but now at least equally as famous for the feats and achievements of the ski team that have shared the famous hill for the past forty odd years. And with fantastic views and scenery, rain & cloud permitting, that spans the Ribble Valley and beyond it isn’t just the skiing that takes your breath away.

With round 2 of the 2010 Snowsport England Grand Prix Series sponsored by Aosta Valley arriving on a clear but blustery late spring, the views - albeit stunning - had to play second fiddle to the thrills, spills and skills on show on Pendle’s famous rolling green dendix carpet.

The ladies race featured a three way tussle at the halfway stage as Telford racer Charlotte Gould’s sterling first effort opened up a gap of 0.1 seconds to 2nd placed Sarah Lambden with her co-Gloucester racer Emily Goddard an additional 0.1 seconds back in 3rd.

Goddard’s solid second run, expertly negotiating Carl Ryding’s forest of wind resisting short, tight turns suggested that her rivals would have to up their game in order to resist their more experienced rival. Lambden followed and after initially suggesting she was capable of at least matching Goddard’s time perished on Pendle’s 3rd roller leaving Gould as the sole competitor between Goddard and GP victory. Could Charlotte go where she’d never been before and snatch her first ever GP triumph?

Well if there was any doubt in anyone’s mind it certainly wasn’t in the head of the diminutive Telford racer. Right from her exiting of the start gate Gould looked a class above her rivals and blitzed Ryding’s challenge without a hint of an error and promptly claimed a first GP victory. Make no mistake, this was a classy performance fully deserving the victory.

The men’s race was a far less clean cut affair however with Hemel’s Gerard Flahive proving very much to be the comeback kid. In overturning a massive near half second deficit after the first run Flahive not only claimed the win but also generated an impressive amount of daylight behind himself and runner up Andrew Watson. Having played Russian roulette against the blustery wind in the run 1 start gate Flahive caught a most brutal burst on Pendle’s second roller and with his speed wiped out he completed much of run 1 in damage limitation mode. In applying the old mantle of whilst you can’t win a race on run one you can certainly lose it Flahive’s race experience and maturity kept him in a race that many others would have given up on.

So in run 2, where conditions favoured him much more that first run leader Andrew Watson and 2nd placed Sam Stephens, Flahive literally made hay whilst the sun shone laying down a fabulous sub 14 second run that none of his rivals – 4th placed William Deakin aside - could get anywhere near to. Watson’s wind restricted second run proved good enough to claim the runners up spot with Cardiff team mate Sam Stephens following suit to claim 3rd overall.

In the categories Andrew Hjort (masters), Timothy Nichol (seniors), James Grant (jun 1), Thomas Grant (chi 2) and Brandon Matthews (chi 1) joined Flahive on the top step of the male podium. In the ladies categories Beverley Anderson (masters), Emily Goddard (seniors), Stephanie Davies (jun 1), Georgia Hallett (chi 2) and Francesca Lee (chi 1) matched Charlotte Gould (jun 2) in victory.

The series now moves a few miles south and for parents at least a few degrees warmer as on Sunday June 20th the indoor facility at Chill Factor in Manchester plays host to round 3. Again, if the racing is anywhere near as good and exciting as the Pendle round was then it’s an event not to be missed.

Pendle Duo Dominate

British Indoor Championships
Chill Factor, Manchester
Sunday 25th April, 2010
 With snow hardly having time to defrost from ski boots, plenty of goggle marked faces on show and stories of Meribel triumphs still very much to the fore the British ski circus snapped closed its boot buckles, clicked into its bindings and headed to Manchester for the first big event of a new summer season.

With Chill Factore - Britain’s biggest and best indoor slope - hosting the event, the snow in prime racing condition and ski legs still full of Alpine training there was never going to be any need for excuses. The first championship shoot out of 2010 was upon us. Indeed with race full signs posted and a number of home nation selected athletes in attendance the eventual winners could be sure that they’d prevailed in a race loaded with both quality and depth.

The male race proved to be a two way shoot out between home racer Brad Morgan and Hemel’s Matt Thompson. Following the completion of run 1 only 0.02s separated the two England selected athletes and everything was still to fight for down Mark Vinter’s afternoon challenge. Indeed with the then fourth placed Andy Roose cranking up the pressure with an absolute beauty of a second run it was going to be interesting to see who of the two leaders would crack. In the end neither flinched, as first Thompson proved there was still room to manoeuvre with Roose’s time, posting 0.25s inside the mark and then watched as Morgan unleashed every ounce of strength out of the start gate and stretched every inch of his frame around Vinter’s course to shave Thompson’s mark by 0.2 seconds. A quite remarkable effort that truly deserved to claim victory.

In the ladies race a similar battle raged as England’s Jo Ryding and Scotland’s Alex Tilley squared up and battled it out. Leading the rest of the field by half a second after run one but only separated by 0.08s the two ladies locked horns at the business end of run 2. Tilley’s time of 13.40 – a full second quicker than any of the other ladies – looked like it might just be enough but Ryding reacted and in undercutting Tilley’s time by 0.43s Ryding retained the title she claimed 12 months earlier.

In the categories, Kerry Turnock, Caroline Powell, Florence Bell and Megan Jenkins joined Ryding and Tilley as respective winners amongst the ladies. Whilst Andrew Hjort, Eliya Beelaert-Rubin, Ashley Breese and Zak Vinter joined Morgan and Roose as winners of the males categories.

The day belonged to Brad Morgan and Jo Ryding however. Following team mate David Ryding’s Vancouver appearance in February these two Pendle trained races proved yet again the impressive depth of talent that has emerged from the North West club in recent times. With Ryding & Morgan collecting indoor National Championships we’ve witnessed another impressive chapter for a club with a proud and impressive pedigree of producing racers of the very highest quality.

If the rest of this summer lives up to the quality of this race then we’re all in for a bit of a treat.

Home Sweet Home

Snowsport England Aosta Valley Grand Prix Series
Race 1 – Norfolk Ski Centre
Sunday 2nd May, 2010
How sweet it is to sit beneath a fond father's smile,
And the caress of a mother to soothe and beguile.
Let others delight amid new pleasures to roam,
But give me, oh, give me, the pleasures of home.
Home, home, sweet, sweet home!
There is no place like home, oh, there is no place like home.

And for Norfolk racers Michael Molloy and Sophie Skipper home soil proved especially enjoyable as they swept to impressive victories in the first race of the Snowsport England’s Grand Prix Series for summer 2010.

Following the wonderful news of Aosta Valley’s sponsorship agreement for the Grand Prix Series and the All England Championships for the next 2 years, Norfolk’s magnificent artificial ski complex – the finest in the UK - was the perfect location from which to launch the 2010 series. And whilst the weather appeared to refuse to acknowledge the fact that May had arrived even those gunmetal grey skies overhead and a bitterly cold wind that raced across the start area couldn’t cool the action happening on the hill.

In the men’s race Cardiff stable mates Andrew Watson & Andrew Davies, Hemel’s Gerard Flahive and co-Norfolk racers Stuart Riches and Shaun Blyth all found themselves within 0.3 seconds after run 1 and looking to overturn Molloy’s slender first half advantage in run 2. Indeed as each racer attacked John Riedy’s 2nd run course Molloy kept his nerve at the top of the hill before blasting out of the start gate and magnificently dissecting Riedy’s 18 gate challenge to not only hang onto his slender lead but to build a buffer into the final result. Behind Molloy, Watson’s 2nd run proved good enough to claim the runners up spot in the overall rankings with first year junior Shaun Blyth claiming a very impressive 3rdoverall.

Placed 2nd after run 1 in the ladies race Sophie Skipper’s fabulous afternoon run proved decisive as 1st run leader Alice Hales and 3rd placed Caroline Powell perished whilst chasing Skipper’s challenging mark. The Telford junior 1 duo of Alexandra Bullock and Charlotte Shrimpton eventually proved Skipper’s main challengers and whilst both were the only other ladies under the 16 second mark in the afternoon run, neither could quite steal the day from the Norfolk based junior, placing 2nd & 3rd overall respectively.

In the categories Beverley Anderson, Emily Goddard, Claire Brown, Georgia Hallet and Francesca Lee joined Skipper as category winners in the ladies race whilst Robert Hales, Stuart Riches, Shaun Blyth, Ashley Breese and Nathan Breese joined Molloy in claiming category victories in the male field.

Race 2 sees the series move north from Norfolk’s lowlands to the weather carved hills of Lancashire as Pendle plays host to the nation’s finest young racers. If that hill provides half the excitement that the Norfolk one did then it’ll be an event not to be missed. Who will add their names alongside Michael Molloy and Sophie Skipper as winners in 2010?

Sunday May 30th is the date and whilst there may be no place like home, there equally are few challenges quite like Pendle Hill. If it isn’t yet in your diary then add it.