By USSA

PARK CITY — Two weeks after locking down their Olympic spots, Shaun White (Carlsbad, CA) perfected his double McTwist 12 and Kelly Clark (Mt. Snow, VT) bested the women’s field Friday night during the Sprint U.S. Snowboarding Grand Prix victory at Park City Mountain Resort

“It was just the run of my life, I don’t know how to say it,” White said. “I’ve basically been practicing this trick for as long as I can remember, and I don’t think I’ve crashed as much (as I have) in the last couple years I’ve been learning it.”

White stole the show with a historic second run where he dropped double cork, double cork, 540 into double McTwist 12.

His reward for going so big on the 22-foot megapipe? An astronomical score of 49.

“I’m just going to keep dialing it in and keep practicing,” White said. “You know there’s always room for improvement. The judges are looking for big air and style tricks, that’s why I keep the 540 in there as a break in the spin madness.”

But the new tricks are what distinguish White from the rest of the world’s best, and painful memories didn’t stop him from pushing himself to his limits.

“The wild part about that trick is, the way I’m spinning the double cork hasn’t really been done before by anyone except myself,” White said. “Kevin Pearce (Norwich, VT) was the only one trying something similar in a way, he was doing a double front flip – which is like a 900 but just spinning that way is really difficult.”

Pearce is still in a Salt Lake City hospital recovering from a severe head injury sustained in training three weeks ago.

“I mean, it’s just tough,” White said. “You have to think about your friends, obviously, and it’s just unfortunate. He’s one of our best friends, it’s just strange not to see him here, so when you see the banners, you see the stickers and it feels like he is still around. It’s good. I’m hoping to visit after this event.”

Scotty Lago (Seabrook, NH) went huge on his second run, proving that he can continue to be consistent while throwing monster tricks as he finished second. Greg Bretz (Mammoth, CA) landed two perfect double corks on his way to third.

“Words can’t describe this,” Lago said after readying himself to challenge for an Olympic spot. “It has been a goal of mine for the last two years, and it’s been a dream of mine. I’ve got the chills all over, I’m pretty excited.”

Clark edged U.S. teammate Hannah Teter (Belmont, VT) for the win, falling in her first run before making up the ground in a solid final performance.

“I’ve always loved competing in Park City,” said Clark, who won Olympic gold in the same pipe in 2002, “They build amazing halfpipes, and it’s always fun for me to come back to get to compete and do well.

“I think I will need a tougher run than tonight in Vancouver. I’m definitely working my way up to it.”

Teter entered competition with a second and a third, putting her strong position to contend for the U.S. Team, which Gretchen Bleiler (Aspen, CO) will certainly belong to after fourth place Friday to accompany a victory and two second-place results.

“It feels really good,” Teter said. “I want to go and represent the U.S. in the biggest contest in the world.”

Not to be forgotten in the Olympic picture, Ellery Hollingsworth (Stratton, VT) was third under the lights.

“I’m really excited I landed the run I wanted to land,” Hollingsworth said. “I wanted to bring my 9s into my run, and all week I’ve been trying to do it, and I landed it in practice, then in my run. So I’m really happy.”

Saturday night’s race marks the final chance for U.S. halfpipe athletes to make the 2010 Olympic Team, starting at 6:30pm.

After the halfpipe, 30 Seconds To Mars will play a concert before three men and three women are announced as members of the 2010 Olympic Team. The full Olympic roster will be announced Jan. 25.

Park City, Jan. 22, Halfpipe

Men

1. Shaun White, Carlsbad, CA, 49.00

2. Scotty Lago, Seabrook, NH, 47.70

3. Greg Bretz, Mammoth Lakes, CA, 46.70

4. Elijah Teter, South Lake Tahoe, CA, 44.00

5. Luke Mitrani, Mammoth Lakes, CA, 44.00

6. Louie Vito, Sandy, UT, 43.30

7. JJ Thomas, Golden, CO, 43.00

8. Danny Kass, Portand, OR, 42.70

9. Steve Fisher, Breckenridge, CO, 42.00

10. Dylan Bidez, Minturn, CO, 41.30

Women

1. Kelly Clark, Mt. Snow, VT, 45.20

2. Hannah Teter, Belmont, VT, 44.80

3. Ellery Hollingsworth, Stratton, VT, 43.60

4. Gretchen Bleiler, Aspen, CO, 42.50

5. Elena Hight, South Lake Tahoe, CA, 40.00

6. Kaitlyn Farrington, Sun Valley, ID, 39.20

7. Maddy Schaffrick, Steamboat Springs, CO, 31.40

8. Kelly Marren, Hillsborough, CA, 29.40

9. Clair Bidez, Minturn, CO, 19.30

Overall Standings

Men

1. Shaun White, Carlsbad, CA, 1000

2. Louie Vito, Sandy, UT, 800

3. Scotty Lago, Seabrook, NH, 700

4. JJ Thomas, Golden, CO, 550

5. Greg Bretz, Mammoth Lakes, CA, 525

6. Zack Black, Breckenridge, CO, 525

7. Elijah Teter, South Lake Tahoe, CA, 475

8. Luke Mitrani, Mammoth Lakes, CA, 475

9. Steve Fisher, Breckenridge, CO, 400

10. Jack Mitrani, Mammoth Lakes, CA, 340

Women

1. Kelly Clark, Mt. Snow, VT, 1000

2. Gretchen Bleiler, Aspen, CO, 900

3. Hannah Teter, Belmont, VT, 800

4. Elena Hight, South Lake Tahoe, CA, 650

5. Ellery Hollingsworth, Stratton, VT, 600

6. Maddy Schaffrick, Steamboat Springs, CO, 475

7. Clair Bidez, Minturn, CO, 425

8. Kaitlyn Farrington, Sun Valley, ID, 400

9. Kelly Marren, Hillsborough, CA, 305

By USSA

KITZBUEHEL, Austria — Bode Miller (Franconia, NH) was ninth in the 70th year of the legendary Hahnenkamm Audi FIS Alpine World Cup downhill, the final chance for American speed skiers to earn their U.S. Olympic Team start. Switzerland’s Didier Cuche won for the second day in a row as five Americans landed in the top 26.

“From top to bottom, it was a challenging race,” said U.S. Men’s Head Coach Sasha Rearick.

“Everybody was coming out to win today. The slope was perfect, bluebird sun, and every single one of the guys in the top 30 was out there with one mission: to win this race.”

Miller, who had been the fastest in training Thursday, took an early lead but lost it about a third of the way down the hill in the only major World Cup downhill the two-time overall champion is yet to win.

“Bode skied very aggressively up top, but he lost some time in the middle,” Rearick said. “On the bottom he didn’t quite ski as aggressively on a fine line as he normally can do.”

Making a final statement for the coaches before Vancouver picks, Erik Fisher (Middleton, ID) tied Marco Sullivan (Squaw Valley, CA) for 18th.

“It’s fun to be here, but I feel like it’s time that I start doing some things,” Fisher said. “I had a big mistake and was able to make up a lot of time at the bottom. I know the speed’s there, I’ve just gotta put a full run together.

“I usually make a mistake after I have one, because I’m trying to go to hard,” Fisher said. “I was able to pull it together and have a clean bottom half.”

For his part, Sullivan also finished 11th in the super G, and is showing signs he’s rounding into top form.

“It was really fun,” he said of the downhill. “Not the best result I was looking for, but even coming through the finish, I had a big smile on my face. It’s such a pleasure to run this course.”

More than 40,000 fans were on hand for Scott Macartney’s (Crystal Mountain, WA) first downhill start in Kitzbuehel since his famous crash two years ago. Macartney recovered last year only to tear his ACL in Wengen, one week before his return.

“It’s good to be back,” Macartney said. “It was tough the first day, tough to really wrap it up on this hill, but I kept getting better, and every day I was faster. I had a couple of mistakes today and was out of the points, but it was nice to get back to Kitzbuehel and charge down the hill again.

“You’re always nervous at Kitzbuehel. The very first day, I was probably as nervous as I’ve ever been for a World Cup. I was more relaxed today.”

Sunday’s slalom concludes competition at Kitzbuehel, where there will be a podium for the top three slalom racers and another for the fastest combined racers from Saturday’s downhill and Sunday’s slalom. It is the only traditional combined of the World Cup season and does count toward the discipline title.

Together with Saturday’s downhill, Miller, with his top 10, will have a shot in the combined. The slalom skiers then head to Schladming for Tuesday’s night race.

The Olympic Team is expected to be announced Monday.

Kitzbuehel, Austria – Jan. 23, Men’s Downhill

1. Didier Cuche, Switzerland, 1:53.74

2. Andrej Sporn, Slovenia, 1:54.02

3. Werner Heel, Italy, 1:54.13

4. Mario Scheiber, Austria, 1:54.25

5. Aksel Lund Svindal, Norway, 1:54.42

–

9. Bode Miller, Franconia, NH, 154.90

T-18. Marco Sullivan, Squaw Valley, CA; and Erik Fisher (Middleton, ID), 1:55.49

24. Steven Nyman, Sundance, UT, 1:55.70

26. Andrew Weibrecht, Lake Placid, NY, 1:55.83

41. Ted Ligety, Park City, UT, 1:57.16

44. Scott Macartney, Crystal Mountain, WA, 1:57.52

By USSA

CORTINA D’AMPEZZO, Italy — Lindsey Vonn (Vail, CO) continued her ascension into the elite ranks of women’s skiers Saturday, notching her eighth win of the season and career 30th Audi FIS Alpine World Cup victory – including a sweep of all five downhills this season.

“It’s a phenomenal achievement,” said U.S. Women’s Head Coach Jim Tracy. “It’s something that, when you start your career, you dream and you wonder if you can ever get to be that good. All of us are extremely proud of her.”

German rival Maria Riesch was second, 0.42 seconds behind in a slightly closer affair than Vonn’s 0.67-second super G win on Friday.

“You can’t just cruise down and have a solid run and be in the lead,” Vonn said. “You have to really risk something but also ski smart. I feel like I found that rhythm and know what to do. It’s nice when you have the confidence in yourself to know exactly what you have to do every day. It helps so much.”

In typical Vonn fashion, she started fast and ended faster, eclipsing Riesch’s early pace as five U.S. women found themselves in the points.

Vonn’s win knotted her with Croatian great Janica Kostelic at eighth on the women’s all-time wins list. She has three wins and eight career podiums in Cortina.

“It’s a pretty special place, and we’re all involved with a pretty special athlete right now,” Tracy said.

2006 gold medalist Julia Mancuso (Olympic Valley, CA) grabbed her best finish this season in eighth place, just more than a second back of Vonn and 0.2 seconds behind third-place Anja Paerson of Sweden.

“I just wanted to be faster,” Mancuso said. “I think it was good. I was slowing down on the bottom. That’s where I lost all my time. If I didn’t lose so much on the bottom, I would have been in there.”

The eighth place finish was vital for team selection as it moved Mancuso one spot ahead of Stacey Cook’s (Mammoth Mountain, CA) ninth in Haus, Austria a week ago. It puts Mancuso into the top two for downhill selection. In addition to Cook’s ninth, Alice McKennis (Glenwood Springs, CO) also has a top 10 from Lake Louise, AB in the season openers.

After making a small error and taking 20th in the super G, Leanne Smith (Conway, NH) rocketed to a season-best 15th Friday and to hopefully keep herself in the running for the U.S. Olympic Ski Team, to be named Monday.

Cook also was in the points at 25th, McKennis was 28th, and Chelsea Marshall (Pittsfield, VT) tied with Slovenia’s Marusa Ferk for 30th despite going up on one ski on the difficult course.

Sunday is the final race before the Olympic Team is determined.

Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, Jan. 23, Women’s Downhill

1. Lindsey Vonn, Vail, CO, 1:37.70

2. Maria Riesch, Germany, 1:38.12

T-3. Anja Paerson, Sweden, 1:38.56

T-3. Nadja Kamer, Switzerland, 1:38.56

T-5. Fabienne Suter, Switzerland, 1:38.58

T-5. Ingrid Jacquemod, France, 1:38.58

–

8. Julia Mancuso, Olympic Valley, CA, 1:38.76

15 Leanne Smith, Conway, NH, 1:39.54

25. Stacey Cook, Mammoth Mountain, CA, 1:40.00

28. Alice McKennis, Glenwood Springs, CO, 1:40.14

T-30. Chelsea Marshall, Pittsfield, VT, 1:40.28

DNF – Keely Kelleher

By Scott Willoughby, Denver Post

LAMOILLE, Nev. — Awaiting the return of the ship, it was time for our daily lesson in “Rubonics.”

“We’re looking for ‘porn’ snow,” Ruby Mountains Helicopter Skiing guide Tom Carter explained without a trace of irony. “But we’ll settle for some greasy powder.”

Over three days here last March, we had come to expect such titillating imagery. Here in this isolated alpine realm of the Ruby Mountains, it seems folks just talk that way. Colloquial in the dialect of heli-skiing the American hinterlands. Proud, self-proclaimed, Rubonics.

Read the whole story

By Ron Judd, Seattle Times

Freestyle skiing venues are the most manmade of all sites for snow-sports events, with ski jumps constructed of wood and steel and then covered with snow, or deep moguls carved by machine and shovel into hillsides. But the results are spectacular, with enough big-air thrills—always set to rock music—to make the event a fan favorite at every Olympics.

Read the whole story

By Gamaliel Ortiz, Sacramento Bee

If you love to play outdoors in the winter, consider a class in how to survive if something goes wrong. Here are some options:

What: Winter travel safety with Doug Huffman

Read the whole story

Scattered snow showers continue in the Lake Tahoe Basin throughout the day. Curtis Fong, the Guy from Tahoe, delivers his ski report for the day.

By USSA

CORTINA D’AMPEZZO, Italy — Two-time defending World Cup champion Lindsey Vonn (Vail, CO) retook the overall lead Friday, notching her second consecutive super G win and first victory in the discipline at Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy.

“I’m really happy,” Vonn said. “It couldn’t be going any better for me right now in the speed disciplines. It’s nice to have the confidence back and have a more positive race after the last week of technical races.”

Vonn, who hasn’t missed a super G podium in four tries this season, surpassed Germany’s Maria Riesch atop the 2010 Audi FIS Alpine World Cup leaderboard after the dominant .67-second margin romp.

Rest assured, she was plenty fast in her seventh World Cup win of the season. In addition to her 56-point overall lead over Riesch, Vonn holds an iron-clad 170-point lead in the super G.

Fabienne Suter of Switzerland finished second, followed by Sweden’s Anja Paerson.

After tearing her ACL in a Cortina downhill last season, Leanne Smith (Conway, NH) crossed 20th for her third-best finish ever in the super G and added some more intrigue to next week’s Olympic team selection

Her 20th matched teammate Keely Kelleher (Big Sky, MT) for the third best U.S. super G result of the year behind leaders Vonn and Julia Mancuso (Olympic Valley, CA). It was the final super G before the Olympic Team is named next week.

Stacey Cook (Mammoth, CA) landed in the points in 30th, while Alice McKennis (Glenwood Springs, CO, 32nd), Mancuso , 33rd, Kelleher , and Chelsea Marshall (Pittsfield, VT) gave the U.S. Ski Team seven finishers in the top 40.

Vonn will go for career win No. 30 in Saturday’s downhill, for which she was fastest in training Thursday after Mancuso held that distinction Wednesday.

Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, Jan. 22, Women’s Super G

1. Lindsey Vonn, Vail, CO, 1:21.74

2. Fabienne Suter, Switzerland, 1:22.41

3. Anja Paerson, Sweden, 1:22.48

4. Tina Maze, Slovenia, 1:22.79

5. Andrea Fischbacher, Austria, 1:22.84

–

20. Leanne Smith, Conway, NH, 1:23.66

30. Stacey Cook, Mammoth, CA, 1:24.15

32. Alice McKennis, Glenwood Springs, CO, 1:24.23

33. Julia Mancuso, Olympic Valley, CA, 1:24.39

39. Keely Kelleher, Big Sky, MT, 1:24.95

40. Chelsea Marshall, Pittsfield, VT, 1:25.09

By USSA

KITZBUEHEL, Austria — Andrew Weibrecht (Lake Placid, NY) and Marco Sullivan (Squaw Valley, CA) stepped up their game in the Olympics hunt, tying for 11th Friday in Kitzbuehel, 0.70 seconds behind winner Didier Cuche of Switzerland.

The pair missed the podium by little more than half a second in a tight field, and Bode Miller (Franconia, NH) made a slight mistake but finished 17th, just .11 seconds back.

“It was a good day today for the team,” said Men’s Head Coach Sasha Rearick. “Maybe not the best results, but the guys stepped it up with their skiing.”

Weibrecht’s finish ties a career best in super G set in Kitzbuehel last year, and it also equals his best result this season.

“It was solid, nothing fancy,” Weibrecht said. “A decent run. I just stuck to my game plan and skied well.”

It also marked the best result of the season for the veteran Sullivan, who was 10th in the super G and 6th in the downhill at Kitzbuehel in 2008.

“I had a good start number (2nd), and the track was in great shape,” Sullivan said. “I’ve been frustrated by a lot of crap going on, but I just stopped thinking about it and had a solid run.”

Despite the speedy time, Sullivan bobbled coming across a traverse at the bottom, leading him to struggle for a few gates.

“Looking at the splits, I think I lost about three-tenths there,” he said. “Overall, it’s OK. I’m just happy to be in the finish and have a decent run.”

Ted Ligety (Park City, UT) was 24th, while Steven Nyman (Sundance, UT) landed just outside the points in 33rd.

“I was pleased to see him charging, balanced on his outside ski,” Rearick said of Nyman.

Miller won Thursday’s training run in the downhill and is coming off a victory last weekend in the super combined at Wengen, so expectations are high for Saturday’s speed test.

The pressure is weighing on everybody, however, as skiers try to make an impression before the selection of the U.S. Olympic Team early next week. Friday was the final super G before the Olympic Team announcement.

“Again tomorrow in the downhill, the bottom section is critical coming across the traverse and down onto the Zielschuss and up top coming off the Steilhang which leads onto the long road,” Sullivan said. “I’ve kind of blown that in training, so that’s where I need to improve. I just need to make good, solid turns up top and have good aerodynamics in the middle.”

Kitzbuehel, Austria, Jan. 22, Men’s Super G

1. Didier Cuche, Switzerland, 1:17.94

2. Michael Walchhofer, Austria, 1:18.22

3. Georg Streitberger, Austria, 1:18.23

4. Andrej Jerman, Slovenia, 1:18.30

5. Erik Guay, Canada, 1:18.33

–

T-11. Andrew Weibrecht, Lake Placid, NY; and Marco Sullivan, Squaw Valley, CA, 1:18.64

17. Bode Miller, Franconia, NH, 1:18.75

24. Ted Ligety, Park City, UT, 1:19.12

33. Steven Nyman, Sundance, UT, 1:19.79

DNF – Erik Fisher, Middleton, ID; and Scott Macartney, Crystal Mountain, WA

Tahoe City’s Shannon Bahrke was second in the World Cup moguls at Whiteface Mountain, N.Y., on Thursday.

The U.S. women took the top four spots. Hannah Kearney was first, then Bahrke, Heather McPhie and Michelle Roark.

Michael Morse finished fifth behind winner Guilbaut Colas of France in the men’s event to move into contention for a spot on the U.S. team for the Vancouver Olympics.

The U.S. team will be officially announced Tuesday in Park City.