This weekend sees our last race of the 2024 GDHL season! Saturday Apres followed by the Sunday Dual Slalom.

In this newsletter:

Race #6 Recap
Standings Update
Apres - Saturday in North Lodge
Dual Slalom - Sunday on Little John
Bib Return
Banquet Tickets on sale Now!
Adult Race Training

Race 6 Recap- Who’s Afraid of Little John? (Apparently 55 of you!)

Nerves were high and racers were rightly concerned mid-week as they anxiously checked their weather apps, looking ahead to the potentially sloppy conditions for Race #6. GDHL’rs have been known to handle sketchy conditions over the years, but their fear this week that Little John would turn in mogul alley, had many racers questioning whether it was worth it. And yet 106 racers overcame those fears and showed up, because hey, it’s freaking Little John people!

The race got off to a tricky start with the Little John chair line once again wreaking havoc on racer punctuality. GDHL’rs clearly didn’t learn from the night race (and fair enough their thoughts are mostly consumed with whether they’re getting a free beer ticket or not). Vern Gomes and Andrew Turnbull were on the chair when they saw bib numbers past their own already on course and that’s when the chair came to a complete stop, so they settled in and got a great view of a few more racers. Both used that knowledge, eventually got on course, and skied nice runs.

The anxiety our racers felt pre-race turned out to be much ado about nothing, as the course didn’t turn into the terrain park some thought it might (fertilizer for the win!) and we were treated to some superb skiing from skiers like Mike Wellton who crushed it, taking the podium and now sits in 2 nd place just behind Griffin Copp (who also had an outstanding race)in the overall standings, setting up a potentially fun and nail-biting finish to the season in the dual!

And speaking of crushing it, Chris Knight had his best finish of the season coming ahead of some of his key rivals with a second run of 22.45. No wonder he had a glow on at the ‘Fire and Ice’ Fundraiser, never mind, that was just the fireball shots. Meg Ryley was the top female finisher and showed us once again why her photo is sported proudly on the Craigleith racer hall of fame. Paul Petersen’s photo is not, but don’t let that fool you, he’s skiing very consistently this season, well done Paul you are officially no longer part of the ‘shitty people’! And did anyone notice Robert Peerenboom on course this weekend? How could you not in that outfit, and he showed those gates whose boss by crushing every one of them! He will tell you he’s not happy with his time, but he was fun as hell to watch and his race times are destined to improve.

Mark Shillum at bib #42 continues his best GDHL season ever showing us he deserves more respect next season with his bib number (no problem Mark, we see you, we hear you, nothing less than bib #90 coming your way next year, and we can get you over #100 if you really finish strong this weekend!). Mike DeAngelis’s return to the GDHL has been a little underwhelming, but he’s out there battling at every race and has a potential top 80 finish in him, okay maybe a top 100 race is more realistic (and frankly he’ll need some no shows). Carrie Laurencelle’s steady improvement week after week is impressive, she’s getting the hang of this racing thing, now she just needs some slalom equipment so she can start Peerenbooming the gates (Carrie, just show this newsletter to Dan as proof if he gives you a hard time about your potential shopping spree at Squires). Jason Turnpenny (who’s name just frankly sounds fast and he proved it again this weekend) and his pal Mario Skopeck (I think we can all agree the GDHL is better off for having Mario in it) were both just happy the race was on Saturday and not Sunday as these gentlemen and their wives were the last standing at the Fundraiser. Hey, when the ladies wanna dance, they wanna dance! Some other notables, Graeme Blair (one of the hardest working racers on the hill!) had a great race with a killer 2 nd run, and Geoff Matthews coming off a tough fall in the Super G, put those demons behind him and skied like a champ, nice job Geoff. Riley Keast took more than a second off on his 2 nd try, watch out for him in the dual! Then there is Jenn Price, wow, slalom specialist, enough said. How about Stephen Jarvis this weekend? Great skiing Steve, we trust you called Doug to brag. And the strong sister duo of Meghan Robinson and Lauren Liberty both improved on their second runs (not easy to do people!) to finish very respectably. And Dave Robinson continues to fight the good fight every race and is looking better and better, you the man Dave! Ian ‘born to race’ Latimer laid down a super solid run and is quietly having himself a very nice GDHL season, but no surprise there.

This race recap can’t be complete without recognizing the Dyson brothers who continue to make their rivalry fun for the rest of us to watch. This time the younger Dyson, Pete Dyson, who must have had just a few more Wheaties in his bowl that morning, used his 2 nd run to best his older sibling, Brook Dyson by .05 seconds (hey that’s an eternity in ski racing!). Brook versus Pete in the dual, this needs to happen, just saying, give the fans what they want!

Okay, enough reminiscing about last race, it’s all about the dual slalom this coming Sunday. If you feel you haven’t lived up to your potential, you have one more chance for glory! Just try to relax, there’s nothing to worry about, sure it’s the busiest weekend of the year at the club which means the number of spectators might rival last year’s World Cup, but don’t worry about them, just go back to that calming thought that will put you in the zone, ‘I do this for the beer’.

-Mike D

Standings Update

Top five teams, with one race to go:

5766 - Vortex
5701 - Venture
5666 - Zipper
5579 - Landslide
5546 - National

The full standings through six races can be found here.

APRES - THIS SATURDAY! North Lodge!

Don't forget - the most happenin' Apres of the year - our BYOB Mid-Season APRES! 3:30pm-5:30pm in the North. Put the skis away and head over to the North.

Nicholas Pearce (npwines.com) will be pouring some fine wines and we will have some ice cold Side Launch as well. North Lodge is BYOB, so feel free to bring another beverage if you would like. We will have some chips and pizza with a rockin' Spotify playlist.

For the kids! The movie "Inside Out' will be playing on the big screen downstairs and we'll have crafts, drinks and snacks readily available.

Get your rivalries in check for Sunday's Big Finale. This one is for all the glory and gloating! We are taking rivalry requests at the Apres! Everyone will want to see if Mike Welton and Ben Williams race each other to continue on their season (read: life long) battle or if one of them will choose to race the young buck - Griffin Copp. Will brothers Gordie and Fraser Bruce race each other for the ultimate family battle? Will Kate Veer accept Carrie Lenauskas' challenge (how about it, Kate?).

This writer is also requesting that Brook and Pete Dyson race each other... things could get spic-y!

And the ultimate question - Will Dan Lacey and Trevor Jackson show up for their 1st start of the season on race #7?!?

So many unanswered questions.

We can not wait to see everyone there!

-Carrie

Dual Slalom - Sunday 1pm

This weekend sees the return of the Dual Slalom on ‘Lil John. It’s time to put on a show for a packed-Long-Weekend-Craigleith. (That’s a subtle reminder to anticipate lift lines this weekend!)

The format for this year’s dual will mirror the 2023 version. Some notes:

You will start against the racer with the closest bib to you at the top of the course. (#1 vs #2, #3 vs #4, etc.) (with an exception noted below). If we are missing numbers, you will be assigned by a GDHL Committee Member to the next closest racer.

We will be using our fancy new start gates, purchased with the assistance of the GDHL in 2022
Sunday from 9:30 to 10:30, there will be a live demo of the start gates at the top of ‘Lil John. If you have never used these gates before we recommend you go and check out the demo.
Each racer will have a run in the Blue and the Red course
Combined time determines your finish placing for Race #7
If you do not finish one of the runs, your total time will be your other run’s time with a penalty applied.
If you do not finish both runs, you will be scored a DNF
Due to time constraints brought on by scheduling, we will not have time for more than two runs.
No need for full slalom gear, though some may prefer the added protection

If the excitement of the dual slalom is not enough, you also have the opportunity to race head to head with that one racer you have been looking to challenge all season long. Put an end to all the trash talking and settle the score at the last race of the weekend. And retain bragging rights for a full year! If you would like to be matched up with a particular racer for the dual, please email cmknightrider@hotmail.com and look to have the starting list updated. Your revised starting position will be based off of the higher of the two bib numbers of the competing racers. (This is something new we are trying this season, so bear with us if we cannot accomodate 100% of the requests received.)

And if you don’t like where you bib number(s) places you, we have our last bib auction this weekend and with the dual format, you effectively get a 2 for 1 deal! If you purchase bib 10 OR bid 20, you and your dual partner both get to enjoy the pleasure of almost "fresh race tracks". And again, this auction supports a great cause with Craigleith Cares and includes a tax receipt. Similar to previous weekends, the silent auction will take place from 1030-1130am in the Main Lodge Bar area – just look for the Craigleith Cares sign.

-Brook and Chris

Bib Return

Please remember to return your GDHL bib following your second run on Sunday. Those that do not return their bib will also have the opportunity to do so at the banquet. If your bib is not in our hands by the banquet, your account will be charged and your picture will be posted in the Big John start hut.

GDHL Banquet

We are entering Ray Murakami's favorite night of the year! The GDHL Banquet. Always a good time with food, beverages, music and oh... the AWARDS!

When: Saturday, March 2nd 7pm - until all the fun has been had

Where: The Depot

Why: Celebrate the season and give out all the awards - serious and fun!

Who: GDHL'ers, Family, Fans, Coyotes & Coaches

Tickets on sale now! Cheaper than last year as well! (Thank you sponsors!) $75 - also Bring Your Own Wine and GDHL will pick up the corkage tab! Be like Barnicke last year and bring a cooler full for the team!

Transportation after the event will be available. No drinking and driving please.

Tickets must be purchased by Saturday, February 24th. We'll send out a reminder next week and on Instagram as well!

Tickets on sale now! Purchase on your account!

-Carrie

Message from Glenn Blaylock, Head Coach, Adult Race Programs

We will be training Paneled Slalom this Friday am/pm, February 16th. Check the White Board at the National Chair for the training hill.

Equipment: Slalom Skis and Forearm Guards.

Coaches Tip: Practice the action of grabbing your poles after releasing the start handles, as it is not uncommon for racers to struggle with gripping their poles after the start.

Learn how to race Dual Slalom in this Module: https://medium.com/alpine-race-method-for-adults/dual-paneled-slalom-333b03598dd8

Thank you for slipping the course and helping the coaches remove the race gates at the end of the training session.

Ski with Purpose

-Glenn