US Solid in WC Giant Slalom at Keystone

by Bryce Evans
Summit Daily News –
Sunday, February 28

Different discipline, different course, same result.

The switch from classic to giant slalom in the World Cup telemark races at Keystone Ski Resort Saturday did little to shake up the skiers that topped the podium — at least on the women’s side.

Swiss skiers Amelie Reymond and Sandrine Meyer finished first and second, respectively, in the race down the steep pitch of Keystone’s Go Devil run, marking the third straight day the two have been the top female finishers.

In third was Germany’s Suzanne Scheller.

The top U.S. finisher on the women’s side was Steamboat Springs teenager Lorin Paley, who wound up in sixth place. Paley, who has two WC classic podium finishes on the season, is still recovering from a knee injury that forced her to sit out much of the past week.

Although she couldn’t catch the swift Swiss pair, Paley skied a clean run Saturday without any penalties.

(In telemark GS, racers hit a Nordic-style jump in the middle of the course and must clear a certain distance to avoid a time penalty.)

“It’s been my goal to go the season and not have any penalties,” Paley said after Friday’s classic race in which she finished fourth. “So far, I’ve done that.”

Also with impressive finishes for the American squad were Erika Walters, who finished 11th, and 14th-place finisher Madi McKinstry.

On the men’s side, the podium was owned by the Lau brothers from France. Phillipe, Sven and Chris Lau finished 1-2-3, respectively, keeping all the men’s hardware in the family.

Steamboat’s Shane Anderson was the top American finisher for the third straight day, coming in 10th.

Although, the most promising placing may have come from Silverthorne’s Drew Hauser, who’s still regaining his form in only his second week of competition this season.

The reigning U.S. National and World Junior champ wound up 12th in the race on his home hill. Hauser, 20, had no penalties on his first run, and finished with a two-run time of 2:34.71, only one second behind Anderson.

Charlie Dresen (15th) and Cory Snyder (16th) were next for the U.S., while Steamboat teen Jeffrey Gay was 18th.

The races wrap up today with another GS competition at Keystone. The first run is slated to start at 10 a.m., with Run 2 coming at 1 p.m.

There will be a banquet, closing ceremony and medals presentation held at the Silverthorne Pavilion starting tonight at 6 p.m.

This week’s races at Keystone, which started Thursday, marked the first time a World Cup tele competition was ever held in Summit County.