Caption – Ski & Snowboard Club Vail alpine FIS athlete Molly Roberts charging down the giant slalom course at last Saturday’s Colorado Ski Cup Qualifier Series hosted by SSCV on Golden Peak in Vail.  Molly went on to win Sunday’s giant slalom race in that same series. 

January 31, 2023  Vail, Colorado  Ski & Snowboard Club Vail hosted the Colorado Ski Cup on Golden Peak on January 26, 27, 28 and 29, a qualifier event not only for U18 Nationals but also US Nationals, with two days of Super G and two days of Giant Slalom racing.  Over 130 alpine racers from throughout the Rocky and Central region year of birth 2002-2006 along with a few seniors showed up to give it their all in the hopes of obtaining a coveted spot at one and or both of these two prestigious national events, dependent on their year of birth.  SSCV athletes took 13  overall podiums (includes one SSCV former athlete) and 18 U18 podiums over the course of these four days.

“It was exciting to see so many notable move up performances from SSCV athletes the past few days.  Everyone has been working hard throughout the spring, summer and fall prep periods, both on and off snow, to be ready for a great race season.  The team was ready and showed up when it counted,” stated SSCV Head Mens FIS Coach Ian Lochhead.

Lisa Perricone, SSCV Head Womens FIS Coach stated, “These girls really push each other to be their very best selves both on and off snow.  Although it is an individual sport, the support they give each other, whether a breakout run or a run riddled with opportunities for growth, truly makes them a team, in turn making each of them stronger individually.”

Highlights for the SSCV women in this series:

-Eva Croney-Ferraiuoli has not raced since U14 Champs in March of 2020 because of injuries. After almost three years of working hard to get back to the sport she loves, she raced her first FIS race on Saturday (late in the season) and moved from bib 58 to finish 30th which is really amazing.

-Kate McKenney and Nicole Begue tied for first place (U18 podium) on Saturday. Ties happen in many races, but ties for first and getting to share the top spot of the podium with a teammate is really special.

-Molly Roberts got her first FIS win Sunday in the GS. Amazing result for her and well deserved.

-Sage Sappenfield got on the U18 Podium (3rd) in Sunday’s GS. It finished off the second SSCV U18 Women’s GS podium sweep in two days.

Highlights for the SSCV men in this series:

-Hunter Salani had two great races winning both GS’s, the first one by over 1 second.

-It was awesome to see Julian Arthur get his first win in a speed discipline. He’s been working hard to improve his speed skiing and it was great to see him get a good result.

-Carson Hume had 2 really strong super g runs.

-William Zurbay (second in the January 29 GS) and Brady Malboeuf (2 big bibos) had great results both coming back from season ending injuries last season. Really proud of how hard they’ve worked to be back stronger.

-Henry Andrie and Hunter Peterson both had great GS races as well.

SSCV Alpine Program Director Brad Wall stated, “It was no small feat to pull off these races, particularly in the midst of over 13 inches of fresh snow over the course of the event and over 23 inches of new snowfall in the past week.”

“Particularly with Super G speed events, there are many days of advance preparation needed watering the hill and having all appropriate b-netting (single, double and tripled layers in relevant spots) dug out and in place to assure an outstanding surface and the necessary safety measures to create a great race venue for all.  Many thanks to Vail Mountain, the Vail Race Crew, groomers, coaches, parent volunteers and athletes for the many hours put in to deliver four outstanding races.”

January 26 – Super G Race 1

Overall Men

1 – Laiken Roth

2 – Hunter Salani – SSCV

3 – Carson Hume – SSCV

U18 Men

1 – Hunter Salani – SSCV

2 – Carson Hume – SSCV

3 – Tie:  William Zurbay – SSCV / Rhett Lindsy

Overall Women

1 – Cheyenne Brown

2 – Bobbi Jo Griffin

3 – Lily Tomkinson

U18 Women

1 –  Bobbi Jo Griffin

2 – Avery Forstl – SSCV

3 – Nicole Begue – SSCV

 

January 27 – Super G Race 2

Overall Men

1 – Julian Arthur – SSCV

2 – Grant Hagen

3 – Carson Hume – SSCV

U18 Men

1 –  Julian Arthur – SSCV

2 – Carson Hume – SSCV

3 – Jonah Fleischer

Overall Women

1 – Lily Tomkinson

2 – Fiona Sawyer

3 -Tie: Katharine McKenney/ Nicole Begue – both SSCV

U18 Women

1 – Tie: Katharine McKenney/ Nicole Begue – both SSCV

3 – Stella Sherlock

 

January 28 – Giant Slalom Race 1

Overall Men

1 – Hunter Salani – SSCV

2 – Stefan Brennwald

3 – Everett Dooley

U18 Men

1 – Hunter Salani – SSCV

2 – Everett Dooley

3 – Henry Kling

Overall Women

1 – Fiona Sawyer

2 – Katharine McKenney – SSCV

3 – Nicole Begue – SSCV

U18 Women

1 – Katharine McKenney – SSCV

2 – Nicole Begue – SSCV

3 – Kyleena Lathram – SSCV

January 29 – Giant Slalom Race 2

Overall Men

1 – Hunter Salani – SSCV

2 – William Zurbay – SSCV

3 – Stefan Brennwald

U18 Men

1 – Hunter Salani – SSCV

2 – William Zurbay – SSCV

3 – Chase Kelly

Overall Women

1 – Molly Roberts – SSCV

2 – Sarah Schleper – SSCV Former SSCV athlete

3 – Cheyenne Brown

U18 Women

1 – Molly Roberts – SSCV

2 – Nicole Begue – SSCV

3 – Sage Sappenfield – SSCV

For a complete list of results go to www.fis-ski.com.