Ski Racing - February 27, 2012

THE CHAMPIONSHIPS WINTER PARK 2012

in her age category, constantly checking online to see how she measured up. Wayne says this initially helped motivate her in ski racing. “The system really works in allowing kids to get feedback and see what they’re doing wrong,” says Wayne. “NASTAR allows you to dip your toes in the water and still provides ncredible ski racing experiences.” As her enthusiasm grew, Brianna also grew more eager to see how she stood up against other racers across the country. “If you really want to find out how good you are, you can go to the championships,” says Wayne. They headed to Steamboat in 2007 for that year’s championships.

“If it was not for NASTAR and that original experience, I have no doubt in my mind that her path in ski racing would be very different and it would not be as meaningful for her as it is now,” says Wayne.

At Steamboat, 6-year-old Brianna sported her pink puffy ski outfit while much of the other competition had full-on race suits and race skis. Out of the 40 girls from the 5/6-year-old category at the end of the weekend, Brianna was crowned the fastest in North America. “It’s really cool because you walk up the stairs and there’s Olympic athletes to lift you up,” says Brianna, now 11, with a laugh about her first trip to the podium. “Or, back then they lifted me up, but now I’m old enough to walk up there on my own.” Racing with her sister is special, says Brianna. “Whenever I get an opportunity, whenever we get a day off from school we go [run the Nastar course],” Samantha, who is now 9 years old, is also an up-and-coming skier at Vail.