A great coach once told me, “I’d rather have a good surface than a good coach.” Coming from a good coach, that is saying something. One thread here: training on a challenging hill can often teach a kid more than instruction from a coach.
I just spent a week in Austria with the U16 NTG group (including Tatum and Patrick) and saw first-hand the effects of “a good surface.” Tatum is pictured here training slalom at Hinterreit, Austria (Nice fog below!). The trail is prepped like a World Cup hill and many World Cup teams train here. It was a steep slope with a demanding set. The kids often fell hard; but they also felt what they needed to do. As I stood at the top, I asked: “what do you think?” Without prompting they would answer, “I have to square up” or “I need to move more between the turns” to ski this hill. The “good surface” exposed their flaws and pushed them forward. They felt and the KNEW what they had to do.
As the days progressed, they figured it out. Patrick ripped some mad angles on the pitch and Tatum took control of some of the difficult transitions. When they did it right, they were fast….all pushed by a good surface.
Working on a “good surface” is one of the main points of the trip. The Austrian Alps are a good surface in the bigger meaning of the phrase. Competing on the Hahnenkamm slalom hill, inspecting the Steif, training next to other Word Cup teams, traveling across borders, eating different food in a different language, and competing against strong competition from around the world are all part of creating a good surface for those kids. It was great to watch them grow.
Jory - January 29, 2016
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