Mikaela's Giant Slalom on NBC at 8:00 tonight. Slalom on Friday

[Olde Coach]

Mikaela (age 18) finished 5th today. One half second behind the winner Tina Maze (age 31).

There were no other racers under 20 in the top 20. 5th is what we expected in GS.

She has won half the slalom races over the past two years; and is the favorite to win Slalom on Friday.

I have my fingers crossed. Expect NBC coverage again at 8:00 PM.

ENJOY.

 

[Icebear]

OC how do you think the soft conditions will effect her?

 

[Olde Coach]

OC how do you think the soft conditions will effect her?

Hard to tell. The really difficult ruts are randomly located. So lots of luck is needed for all the racers.

Mickaela has the best balance (by far) of all the slalom racers.
So -- all other things being equal, she should have the best chance of winning. But she can hit a soft rut just the wrong way and "poof" Olympics Over !!!!!

Weather is also very unstable. Can be rain or snow or fog. All three can dominate any given race.

 

[Icebear]

That is what I was expecting but there all also horses for courses among skiers and some are better on harder conditions and some on softer ones. This looks really soft all week. Slushy snow in some areas completely breaking down with deep ruts and rock hard salt snow/ice in others.

 

[Olde Coach]

That is what I was expecting but there all also horses for courses among skiers and some are better on harder conditions and some on softer ones. This looks really soft all week. Slushy salt snow/ice.

Last word on Mikaela:

One European correspondent called the snow and weather conditions "horrible."

He is right. It was more of a survival exercise than a demonstration of alpine racing "mastery".

Wet Snow on top. Fog in the middle. Rain at the bottom. Visibility awful. Light flat. Course conditions: Frozen ruts and bumps and clumps.

The top 5 or 6 finishers skied amazingly well for the conditions. Big cheers for all of the them. Their skis were chattering and bouncing all over the race course. Mikaela had the worst fog -- especially in the middle section of the course where she lost significant time. No excuses though. The four girls who beat Mikaela skied superbly for the conditions. So did Mikaela.

There are smiles all around at Burke Mountain Academy this morning.

P.S. The 4 girls who beat Mikaela were ages 30, 27, 24, and 24. Mikaela is 18.

The Slalom will be on TV on Friday night.

OC

 

[Samanthabrown3]

Looking forward to watching the slalom on Friday. I saw her last night and thought she looked pleased at the way she skied. The course was awful and still will be on Friday. Too bad the skiers can't show off their best.

 

[j66kicker]

Mikaela (age 18) finished 5th today. One half second behind the winner Tina Maze (age 31).

There were no other racers under 20 in the top 20. 5th is what we expected in GS.

She has won half the slalom races over the past two years; and is the favorite to win Slalom on Friday.

I have my fingers crossed. Expect NBC coverage again at 8:00 PM.

ENJOY.

Article about secret code on Mikaela's helmet: "ABFTTB"
http://msn.foxsports.com/olympics/s...helmet-always-be-faster-than-the-boys-021814?

 

[alexrgct]

Just goes to show she made the right choice by transferring from UConn...

 

[Icebear]

She has a wonderful balance and ease in her skiing.

 

[McHuskyFan]

There was a great write up on her in SI in the Olympic preview issue. I look forward to watching her Friday nite (i missed her first race)

Thanks for the inside info, OC. Always appreciated!!