OT: Today: Shriffin gold medal...UConn connection!

[Blakeon18]

Warren Witherell was a diehard UConn women hoop fans...also a regular
Boneyard reader and contributor....passed away about 12 years ago.

Google his name..tons of info on his life...especially his involvement with
skiing. Decades ago he founded a ski school for kids at Burke Mountain...
1/2 day academics...1/2 day skiing...designed to be for the best youngsters in the
country. Mikaela attended that school. Warren never coached her but got to know her well.

Cool story: Warren told me he went to a meeting up there. One of his coaches asked him to watch a video of a youngster doing a
ski run...had no idea who it was...maybe the skier was 12 or so. He watched...and afterwards Warren said he began to cry.
Not tears of unhappiness...he was just awed by what he saw...and said it was the most beautiful skiing he had ever seen...told that it was Mikaela Shriffin and she had just enrolled at the school.

Fast forward to today: She is widely regarded the GOAT of women's skiing. Despite some injuries and recent difficulties
at The Olympics she has won more gold than anybody. Maybe around 26 years old...I don't know if she will continue.
This most recent win had her beating the silver winner by one and one half seconds...an incredibly large margin.

Warren said that she was just as good a person as she was a skier. I kinda hope Warren was looking down
early this morning and watching Mikaela perform...and remembering that first time he saw her ski and recalling his tears of awe...and now seeing what she has done in her career he might be shedding tears of joy.

I wish he still could post on the board...he always had tons of advice for his favorite team.
God bless you, Warren.

 

[bantamlaker]

I remember Warren (Olde Coach) raving about a teenager who he said would be the face of US skiing for years to come. Here is what he had to say about Mikaela in 2013, a year before she would shine at the 2014 Olympics at age 18.

 

[MSGRET]

I remember Warren (Olde Coach) raving about a teenager who he said would be the face of US skiing for years to come. Here is what he had to say about Mikaela in 2013, a year before she would shine at the 2014 Olympics at age 18.View attachment 117185

Thank you for posting this.

 

[Blakeon18]

Just for the record: "Olde Coach" was Warren's Boneyard name.
bantamlaker: thanks for that long ago post by OC...had completely
forgotten about it.

 

[Kaizen]

Mikaela Shriffin

 

[cwh20]

I’m so glad Shiffrin won her gold this Olympics. It was heartbreaking watching her interviews last Olympics. She handled them with class and went way beyond in opening up about the disappointment. She’s a great person.

 

[Huskee11]

I've watched that gold medal slalom run about a dozen times now. Chills.

We tend to root for the underdog, but here it was the familiar theme of an undisputed world champion dealing with demons from past Olympic struggles, including earlier in this Olympics. Those have been emphatically put to bed and I couldn't be happier for her.

 

[fomalhaut]

We tend to root for the underdog

On this board?

 

[HuskyNan]

 

[IndyMark]

Warren Witherell was a diehard UConn women hoop fans...also a regular
Boneyard reader and contributor....passed away about 12 years ago.

Google his name..tons of info on his life...especially his involvement with
skiing. Decades ago he founded a ski school for kids at Burke Mountain...
1/2 day academics...1/2 day skiing...designed to be for the best youngsters in the
country. Mikaela attended that school. Warren never coached her but got to know her well.

Cool story: Warren told me he went to a meeting up there. One of his coaches asked him to watch a video of a youngster doing a
ski run...had no idea who it was...maybe the skier was 12 or so. He watched...and afterwards Warren said he began to cry.
Not tears of unhappiness...he was just awed by what he saw...and said it was the most beautiful skiing he had ever seen...told that it was Mikaela Shriffin and she had just enrolled at the school.

Fast forward to today: She is widely regarded the GOAT of women's skiing. Despite some injuries and recent difficulties
at The Olympics she has won more gold than anybody. Maybe around 26 years old...I don't know if she will continue.
This most recent win had her beating the silver winner by one and one half seconds...an incredibly large margin.

Warren said that she was just as good a person as she was a skier. I kinda hope Warren was looking down
early this morning and watching Mikaela perform...and remembering that first time he saw her ski and recalling his tears of awe...and now seeing what she has done in her career he might be shedding tears of joy.

I wish he still could post on the board...he always had tons of advice for his favorite team.
God bless you, Warren.

What an amazing story! Thanks so much for sharing that. Mikaela is was amazing yesterday!

 

[Dynastic]

Mikaela Shriffin

View attachment 117190

Congrats Mikaela!

 

[tomcat]

Olde Coach's posts were amazing to read. Was it really 12 years ago when he passed away? Wow.

 

[packwrap]

This was awesome. Shiffrin GOAT even more from World Cup circuit than just Olympics.

Cup wins in all disciplines. Olympic Gold at 18 and 30!

Seeing 'coach's' post here pretty special. Quite rewarding when you see talent in a kid, and they go on to greatness...even from his ski school!

 

[LesMis89]

I thought of Olde Coach when I heard of Shiffrin's gold. He certainly knew what he was talking about.

 

[Blakeon18]

I did not realize Shriffin's age....she is [kinda] olde....at 30.
Ski experts... questions : Assuming good health...at the next
winter Olympics she will be 34. Will she compete there?
Is that significantly past a skier's prime? Do you think she will
take it one year at a time?

 

[Tonyc]

Thank Blake. Olde Coach was a gem on the Boneyard. I remember before games in Hartford a group of us would meet for lunch at City Steam and tell stories and chat about possible recruits. Alot of Boneyard legends. Blake we go back along time. Some great memories.

 

[packwrap]

I did not realize Shriffin's age....she is [kinda] olde....at 30.
Ski experts... questions : Assuming good health...at the next
winter Olympics she will be 34. Will she compete there?
Is that significantly past a skier's prime? Do you think she will
take it one year at a time?

In all sports, with improved fitness knowledge, competitive age keeps going up. Lyndsay Vonn is now 40+ and she has won this year on World Cup circuit, but was unfortunately hurt and crashed out at Olympics.

If Shiffrin wants to keep skiing, she could make another 4years.

Question will be if she wants to?

She has most of the major skiing records, most wins, most overall World Cup titles etc. and while not Michael Jordan, she has earned plenty of sponsor money. Many of her deals cleverly give her equity, and she looks forward to working as a partner with those businesses post career. Also comes from close family and eager for kids.

No inside info, but if I was betting, she skis one more year, 26/27 World Cup season, with hopefully good health and then retires.