SÖLDEN

Last weekend, the Audi FIS Alpine Ski World Cup opener was held on Rettenbach Glacier in Sölden, Austria. A lot of firsts happened during this race, including the Park City local, Ted Ligety, placing 10th in a race that he had won for the past three years.

Ligety pulled into the finish after his first run in second place, with a .40 second lead over Alexis Pinturault. In his second run, he made a mistake on the pitch before the flats and lost those crucial milliseconds, giving him a 2:31.11 to end the day in 10th. Alexis Pinturault finished third with a 2:30.15, Fritz Dopfer grabbed the silver with a 2:29.67, and Marcel Hirscher topped the podium with a 2:28.09. (Result times courtesy of FIS.)

Hirscher shredding this weekend in Sölden.
Photo courtesy of Yahoo

The women also had an interesting race. Mikaela Shiffrin, a 19 year old prodigy US skier, took the lead after the first run with a .09 second lead over Anna Fenninger. After the second run, Mikaela came through with her first Giant Slalom victory with a 2:39.85. Co-victory, that is. Fenninger clocked in the exact same time as Shiffrin, stepping up on top with the teen. Fellow Austrian teammate Eva-Maria Brem took the bronze with a 20:30.10. (Result times courtesy of FIS.)

Although the tie did upset me, I was so happy about this race. Mikaela is a phenomenal skier and I'm so excited to see where she goes from here. The fact that she is winning world cups at 19 years old is crazy!

Stay tuned for the opening World Cup Slalom race! Coming up this November in Finland.

Women's podium this weekend in Sölden.
Photo courtesy of http://www.longines.com

Tryouts!

Lacrosse tryouts are coming up! Wednesday November 5th and Saturday the 15th from 7-9 at Basin Recreation Fieldhouse. Tryouts consist of many different drills and tests, including a timed mile timed sprints, wall ball routines, and defense and offense drills.

Here are some great drills and practice things do to at home in preparation for tryouts...

1. WALL BALL

In my opinion, this is the most important aspect of lacrosse- stick skills (catching and throwing). All you need is a flat wall or bounce back, and you're set! 50 right, 50 left, see how high you can go! I also time myself and see how many I can get in a minute. Keep clear of windows, animals, and people all together while wall ball can get intense.

2. Shooting

Shooting is an important part of lacrosse for attackers. Most fields (City Park, Basin Rec, etc) have lacrosse goals, so bring some balls and work on placement and power. Just make sure nothing is behind the goal that you wouldn't want your ball to hit. I've had some bad experiences with balls running into people, glass, and well, things they shouldn't....

3. Ground balls

Get with a friend and roll some balls to each other. Mix it up and throw them to the side, bounce them, and more. If your friends are busy, you can always do this against a wall or to yourself. You can also invite your enemy and throw some "oops sorry my hand slipped" throws.

4. Go for a run!

Cardio is extremely important in lacrosse. Running back and forth across the field gets tiring, so build up your endurance and speed. Throw in some sprints and dodges while on your jog. A lot of coaches also tell you to bring your lacrosse stick to cradle while you run. This is a great way to become more comfortable with your stick in your hands.

Overall, your attitude during tryouts is most noticed. Stay positive, confident, and work well with your teammates and coaches.

Jeni Gordon, photo courtesy of parkcitylacrosse.org

Let's Get Physical, Physical

Working out. It's something we all dread yet know we need to do in order to get those bikini bodies and Channing Tatum abs.  Everyone thinks it takes hard work and time commitment, but a lot of the time you can fit it into your daily schedule seamlessly.

Most of the time, high school and club team sports contain some type of conditioning. For lacrosse, we run. Cardio cardio cardio. As for ski team dryland, work outs consist of anything to benefit our balance, endurance, and power while on skis. I've got my workouts covered, but if your'e struggling with getting active everyday, here are some tips to help you out.

1. Take the stairs

Yes, everyone has heard this before, but it can benefit you more than you think. Take the initiative to work your legs and lungs without having to go to the gym later. Other daily decisions can help improve your fitness, such as taking your bike or walking instead of driving.

2. Break it up

Doing homework? Baking a cake? Reading The Fault in Our Stars? Give your brain a break and take 30 seconds to do some push ups, crunches, or squats. "TV watchers" are a popular workout at dryland. They're just normal planks, but they're named what they are to motivate us to do them while watching TV. Even if you do them during commercials, your abs with thank you.

3. Toe taps and calve raises

These are some of my favorites. You can do these during class, waiting in line, almost anywhere. To do toe taps, keep your heels planted on the ground and raise and tap your toes as fast as you can. You can do these while sitting or while standing. Calve raises consist of starting flat footed, rising up onto your toes, coming back down, and repeating.

Trying out the drawing thing

Another important aspect of fitness is diet. Last year I took Journalism as an elective, and we published some of our articles onto an online newspaper, TMJH Park City Post. I happened to write a short article about sports nutrition, some tips about what to eat before and after working out. You can check it out here.

Update

This past two months have gone by crazy fast. Fall ball, ski team camping trips, Super 7s, and all of the dryland training began one day and seemed to end the next. 

Park City fall ball consists of one practice a week and a couple scrimmages to finish it off. Last Monday was our last official practice, and tonight will be our first scrimmage! Be at Matt Knoop Field at 5:30 pm to watch the upcoming PC lacrosse team take on Jordan. You might also catch a glimpse of me flailing around in goal.

Super 7s pick up games ended last week. These were fun scrimmages against the other HS teams, with just 7 girls on the field from each team (not including the goalie). Coaches weren't allowed to be there and parents weren't allowed to advise the players. This was the time for teams to bond and build their teamwork! Park City had to split into two teams since we have a large number of players- you can view the rosters here. Both teams played great, but Park City Black won the championships against Brighton!

Super 7s is also a great time to try new things and practice plays or moves in low-stake games. For me, this was practicing goalie. Coming into the spring lacrosse season at Park City High School, the position of goalie is currently vacant. And since I played goalie in the Junior league last year, I'm looking to split the position with Madeline Komisar, a new-comer to lacrosse. We'll see how that all works out...

Dryland training led up to USSA Testing (held at the CEO) last Sunday, the 12th. This was a standardized test for ski team athletes, and included tests like movement ability, vertical jump, tri-jump, box jumps, and a pacer test. The pacer test was a bust because of the rain- it was moved inside to the gym, where tennis shoes slide all over the place while pivoting. As for PCST dryland, it will continue into the winter season with indoor workouts. 

PC Lacrosse teammates Ellie and Hannah with assistant varsity coach, Kass Lemons