pretty amazing what he did...

this is the 1st season that the atheletes have been forced to adopt new skis, and new ski dimensions, in an effort to 'slow down' the racers...

the skiers all hated the skis at first...
but have been working all summer to adopt to them...

ted ligety, won by the largest margin in 33 years.
a huge margin.

so what does it mean for everyone else?
well, that's the fun part.


SOELDEN, Austria --  Ted Ligety took the season-opening men's World Cup giant slalom on Sunday by the biggest winning margin since 1979.

In difficult conditions due to fog and snowfall, the American GS world champion won the race by 2.75 seconds ahead of Manfred Moelgg of Italy.

"It's pretty phenomenal," Ligety said. "I didn't think this was possible. This is an unbelievable gap, a once-in-a-career margin."

According to the International Ski Federation, the time difference between winner and runner-up in a World Cup GS has only been bigger six times before -- all in the 1970s. Sweden's Ingemar Stenmark holds the record with a gap of 4.06 seconds.


The American put in a risky yet error-free final run to claim victory in impressive style. Overall World Cup champion Marcel Hirscher came third, 3.12 seconds behind.



It was Ligety's 12th career win, all in GS. The American won the race here last season as well but ultimately lost his GS title to Hirscher, who was full of praise for the winner.

"My position is super, but this margin is almost insane," Hirscher said. "The top in GS is only Ligety, then comes the rest of the world. This is a big blow for us. It makes almost no sense racing against him. We have a lot of work to do."

Second-place Moelgg said it was Ligety's outstanding technique that set him apart.

"Ted is focusing on making smooth turns and completing them," Moelgg said. "Even if it's rough or bumpy, he keeps doing that to perfection and that's why he stands out."

Ligety's achievement came in the first GS under new equipment rules, which force racers to use longer though narrower skis designed to slow them down.

A year ago, Ligety led a group of racers who were fiercely critical of the FIS when the federation announced the changes in an attempt to make the sport safer and reduce the number of injuries.

"I have been working really hard on these new skis to get to the point where I knew I was going to be among the best," Ligety said. "They are not as bad as a lot of us thought they would be. There is still a challenge as you get tired on them more easily. The argument we had last year is still very valid as I don't think they are any safer."

According to Ligety, racers "have to be a lot more solid technically, the skis don't come around as quickly so you really have to be on top of the turn."

Former overall champion Aksel Lund Svindal added that the new skis "are pretty good on hard snow but they are awful on soft snow."

"FIS might have a problem to make fair conditions at the end of the season," the Norwegian skier said. "At Lenzerheide, you have 10-plus degrees and the snow melts between first and second run. You can end up in a situation where your start number for the second run is more important than how good you ski."

Svindal and other favorites like Cyprien Richard of France and Andre Myhrer of Sweden, who was third after the first leg, failed to finish their final run. First-run leader Fanara took fourth, 3.23 seconds behind Ligety.


http://espn.go.com/olympi...up-giant-slalom-opener

<iframe width="853" height="480" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/C7HtEUEfzTE?rel=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=C7HtEUEfzTE

http://warnernickerson.com/2012/10/24/athlete-review-of-35-meter-radius-gs-skis/

How fast was he going?

How much faster do you go on the faster skis?


best regards,
mike

the benchmark for raw speed, would be the Downhill...

those events have not been run yet.

these guys measure their gains by the hundredth of a second..

so i don't know if 'actual speed' is really that relevant.

the WAY they have to ski them, is really more relevant.

Having never ski'ed down a hill, the raw speed is pretty much all I have to relate too... but I get your point about slalom not being the best format to ask about speed.



I'm learning about the radius stuff. I assume that is a arc along the length way? 35 and 40 meters seems like it is almost flat. 

What was the previous standard?

well, the history of skis in the last 20 years has been one of progress...


bigger sidecuts, shorter lengths, being able to make a ski 'carve and arc' by putting it on edge, versus putting a long skinny straight ski up on it's edge, and forcing a turn out of it.


the athletes that have grown up on these more modern shape skis, and now forced to go backwards in time and re-learn their entire technique, because a group of table jockys thinks they have a better way.


this season will determine, and unfortunately whether it is ultimately better or worse, these pros are going to learn how to use them because their careers depends on it.


folks argue that governors on NASCAR car engines makes the races safer.

others say 'what's the point of a race, if you aren't going to lay it all on the line'?

this is the chart for the new criteria for Giant Slalom only.......




The rules for Men’s Giant Slalom Skis: 

Length (minimum) 
  2009-2012 season  185 cm 
2012-2013 season
195 cm 

Radius
R > 27
R > 35 
Width
65 cm
No minimum 
*Originally F.I.S. wanted to make the skis have a 40 meter radius, which made arcing a turn nearly impossible.  F.I.S. made a compromise with the Ski Racing Suppliers Association (SRS) of 35 meters.   The F.I.S. has also changed the dimensions and length requirements of Men’s and Women’s Giant Slalom, Super G, and Downhill skis for the 2012-2013 seasons. 
The most dramatic change was to Men’s Giant Slalom skis as these skis must be 10 cm longer and much straighter making them much more difficult to turn.  Although F.I.S. claims these new skis are “scientifically proven to enhance athlete safety and reduce risk of injury,” the jury is definitely still out.

http://warnernickerson.com/2012/10/24/athlete-review-of-35-meter-radius-gs-skis/

This..... is what the guys have been training on with the new skis (it's a glacier)


yes, that's raw ice.










and this is what the race course looked like on sunday:

I drew up a quick scale drawing of the radius so I might be able to visualize the difference.