This blog post and opinion is written by Dak Steiert. Dak was born and raised in Vail, Colorado and ski raced at Ski and Snowboard Club Vail for much of his life. After racing FIS for several years, Dak is now building his own small business and trying to be a marginally productive member of society.
After a great day of racing at the Beaver Creek Birds of Prey downhill, all the attention is focused on American Bode Miller pulling together yet another fantastic win- and well it should be.
Bode said he felt apprehensive all morning while contemplating the degree of risk he would need to take in order to beat the competition on one of the most difficult and intimidating tracks in the world.
Yet the untold story of the day from the American press will be that of Beat Feuz, a young Swiss racer who 10 months ago had barely scraped into the top ten of a world cup race, but today managed a razor close second place in the face of the same intimidation.
Coming from seven-tenths behind Bode at the middle of the course, an often insurmountable gap, Feuz managed to carry significantly more speed than Miller from the steep upper section into the flatter final portion of the course in order to make it a near dead-heat at the finish line, almost edging out Bode in the last few feet of the run. Having traveled 1.7 miles at an average speed of 60 miles per hour, only a meter would have separated the two at the line. A great race delivered by the match up between Bode’s leave nothing on the hill approach that had him taking what he described as the fastest lin e he’s ever skied at Beaver Creek, and the come-from-behind tactics of the emerging Swiss racer who made an advantage out of a portion of the course where most racers assume there is little time to gain.
Feuz has been on fire since last March, and a result like this on a very challenging hill will certainly bring confidence to carry him forward to a fantastic year. He’s already planning to work on his English so he can better accommodate the press conferences that come with his increased success.
- Dak
After a great day of racing at the Beaver Creek Birds of Prey downhill, all the attention is focused on American Bode Miller pulling together yet another fantastic win- and well it should be.
Bode said he felt apprehensive all morning while contemplating the degree of risk he would need to take in order to beat the competition on one of the most difficult and intimidating tracks in the world.
Yet the untold story of the day from the American press will be that of Beat Feuz, a young Swiss racer who 10 months ago had barely scraped into the top ten of a world cup race, but today managed a razor close second place in the face of the same intimidation.
Coming from seven-tenths behind Bode at the middle of the course, an often insurmountable gap, Feuz managed to carry significantly more speed than Miller from the steep upper section into the flatter final portion of the course in order to make it a near dead-heat at the finish line, almost edging out Bode in the last few feet of the run. Having traveled 1.7 miles at an average speed of 60 miles per hour, only a meter would have separated the two at the line. A great race delivered by the match up between Bode’s leave nothing on the hill approach that had him taking what he described as the fastest lin e he’s ever skied at Beaver Creek, and the come-from-behind tactics of the emerging Swiss racer who made an advantage out of a portion of the course where most racers assume there is little time to gain.
Feuz has been on fire since last March, and a result like this on a very challenging hill will certainly bring confidence to carry him forward to a fantastic year. He’s already planning to work on his English so he can better accommodate the press conferences that come with his increased success.
- Dak
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