Ski Racing - November 21, 2011

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First Person: “The season as a whole was amazing, and a real breakthrough for me. Coming off of a rough year — and getting cut — to coming right back and qualifying [for the 2011 World Cham-pionships] off the bat, making second runs in four World Cups and representing the U.S. in the Alpine World Championships — very cool.”

Ryan Cochran-Siegle Hometown: Starksboro, Vt.

Team Years: 1

Club: Mount Mansfield Ski Club

School: Mount Abraham Union

Equipment: Rossignol, Shred, Komperdell

Sponsors: T2, Slopeside Syrup

Catch Up: It was just two seasons ago that Ryan Cochran-Siegle skied his way to the Eastern Cup title and was elevated to the national development team. Last winter, he rolled to the NorAm super G crown (good for World Cup starts in the discipline this season) and was the top American in three of his five events at the World Junior Championships. He culminated the season with a podium finish in SG at Nationals behind Tommy Ford and Thomas Biesemeyer. And he’s still a teenager (turning 20 in March).

First Person: “Last season gave me a lot of motivation to get better. I feel like I have a lot more going for me.”

Erik Fisher
Hometown: Middleton, Idaho
Team Years: 7
Club: Bogus Basin/Rowmark Academy
School: Rowmark Academy
Equipment: Atomic, Uvex, Komperdell, Booster Strap

Sponsors: Skodeo, Mona Vie, Klymit

Catch Up: Back in December 2008, Erik Fisher was the third of the five men the U.S. put in the top 10 of a World Cup downhill at Val Gardena. Last winter, the same course rocked his season as well when a nasty crash cost him a slew of teeth. It is fair to say he struggled the rest of the season, failing to finish Wengen and Kitzbuehel, and missing selection to the World Championship team. He focused then on NorAms and Europa Cup (a pair of wins at Sarntal, Italy) before returning to the big leagues for the March downhills at Kvitfjell, scoring in both. This summer he changed up his dryland workouts a bit and took some focus off building muscle.

First Person: “My lungs work a little better. In Chile I definitely felt a difference. I weigh a little less, and there was more snap in the skis.”

Travis Ganong
Hometown: Squaw Valley, Calif.
Team Years: 7
Club: Squaw Valley Ski Team
School: Westminster College
Equipment: Atomic, POC
Sponsors: Truckee Tahoe Medica
Group, Squaw Valley
Catch Up: When Travis Ganong
gets a break from World Cup ski
racing, he heads home so he can
go skiing. He is ranked among the
top 40 in the world in downhill, and

he is at his best on the more difficult courses. His five World Cup
scoring results (all from last season) include those from Kitzbue-
hel, Wengen, Bormio, Lake Louise and Kvitfjell. He was 18th in the
World Championship super G and 24th in the downhill after shatter-
ing his hand against a gate high on the course. What bummed him
out about the injury was that it shortened his season, but he was
psyched to learn he excels on nasty courses.
First Person: “Last season I didn’t feel like I had any great runs,
didn’t think I skied to my potential. I was checking out the hills and
checking out the World Cup tour. I think now I’m used to that, so
maybe I can ski up to my potential.”

Colby Granstrom Hometown: Lake Stevens, Wash.

Team Years: 5

Club: Mission Ridge SEF

School: Westminster College

Equipment: Fischer, POC, Leki, Slytech

Sponsors: PVA, T2

Catch Up: Since he was 12 and claimed two Whistler Cup championships, Colby Granstrom has always been a little better than he had any right to be. He’s now 21 and the U.S. slalom champion. He got five World Cup starts last season in two different disciplines and was one placing away from scoring his first Cup points in a super combined at Bansko, Bulgaria. He added a third discipline with this season’s opener in Soelden. Granstrom’s summer volume wasn’t as high as most of the squad and it shows most in his GS, according to head coach Sasha Rearick. “We also know that he’s a racehorse,” says the coach, “and does better in races than in training.” For his own part, Granstrom says it was the national slalom title that boosted his confidence most. Gold medals, he says, serve as his motivation.