Injury Update, the Kvitfjell Course and developing into a Speed skier

The American Downhillers caught up with Norwegian Speed Demon Aleks Kilde in a Hospital in Innsbruck for this week’s podcast ahead of Kilde’s home Downhill Kvitfjell. They first got the inside scoop on his injuries from his crash in Wengen and his honest prognosis going forward. They then talked about his skiing development from a kid who was lucky enough to ski out his door growing up to making the Team as a Downhiller next to legends Svindal and Jansrud. Finally they break down in detail the Olympiabakken Course in Kvitfjell which crowned Tommy Moe Olympic Champion, but has been dominated by Norwegians over the years! All of the boys describe it as a fun, flowy and “easy” track that you need to be perfect on as the times are always tight!

The Podcast covers a ton of excellent nuggets for Fans, Coaches, Parents and Athletes! A must listen! Here is what is covered;

-             Aleks updates us on his injuries from Wengen

-             Growing up a technical skier and then transitioned to Speed later

-             The importance of GS training for a technical base, but also training it as much as possible as a speed skier

-             How Aleks inspects DH & SG differently

-             Having Svindal & Jansrud as Mentors

-             What Aleks likes to hear in a course report and what he says to himself at the Start

-             Kvitfjell Course breakdown from the Start to Moe’s Turn into the finish straight

-             The most fun parts of this Legendary DH

-             Finally – predictions on who will win and they are interesting…

The American Downhiller Podcast is sponsored by Skiracing.com, ADL Ski Club, Wend Wax, ELITEAM and American Downhillers speed camps!

You can find the Podcast for FREE on Apple, Spotify and the ELITEAM Youtube channel.

This week on the American Downhiller Podcast we turn our attention to Cortina - the Women’s Favorite Course and interview the Stifel US Ski Team’s newest speed star – Lauren Macuga! “Cougs” is coming off a career-best 10th place in the Super-G in Altenmarkt and sets her sights on the 2026 Olympic Course this week in Italy.

Cougs is part of the US Women’s speed team which is re-building and has been having some good results lately with Keely Cashman, Tricia Mangan along with the return of Jacky Wiles and Alice Merryweather.

We talk to Lauren about her development as a speed skier from an “average” junior to her first Downhill race to her 10th place in the Altenmarkt World Cup. She shares with us her thoughts on training GS to help her speed as well as her start routine.

Other topics covered;

-             How to stay focused with the course is gnarly

-             How a focus on GS is helping her speed evolve

-             Why it’s OK to train speed with your clothes on sometimes

-             How she learns new courses

-             What she learned about herself from her injuries

-             Advice for junior racers on feeding off the success of Teammates

-             Who she watches on video

-             And advice for young ski racers who may be struggling

Thanks to Ski Racing Media for Sponsoring our American Downhiller Podcast and please listen on Apple or Spotify or watch it on the ELITEAM Youtube channel!

The King of Kitz, Didier Cuche joins Daron, AJ, Marco and LEW for a super interesting and revealing breakdown of the most famous and dangerous Downhill on the World Cup circuit. Didier won on the Streif a record FIVE times with his first coming in 1998 and the last three coming in in 2010, 2011 & 2012! He shares his thoughts and secrets to this iconic track and lets us inside his head as he preps for the race, races the course and receives the Trophy in front of thousands!

Daron Rahlves, the only American Downhiller winner on the Hahnenkamm stood on top of the podium beating Didier by just 5 hundies back in 2003 and they share what they remember of that day!

This Podcast is loaded with great insight on the course and how to watch it, as well as nuggets for Athletes, Coaches and Parents on how to train and ski and be a successful speed skier.

Topics covered;

-      Their first impressions of the iconic course

-      The importance of knowing your limits

-      How the start house at Kitz is totally different

-      The course from the Start to the Zielsprung

-      Cuche’s secret to winning on the Streif

-      The traditions of Kitz from arrival to the Londoner

-      Why Cuche was so successful on the Streif

This year’s Kitzbuhel races are Jan 19 & 20!

Thanks for listening!

Wengen's Lauberhorn is the longest Downhill on the World Cup circuit and not only presents gliding challenges, but includes legendary sections like the Hundschopf, Canadian Corner, the Kernen-S, the Hanegg Schuss and the Austrian Hole! Tune in and here Daron, AJ, Marco and LEW break down the course, share Wengen secrets and also give a tutorial on How to Glide!!!

Other Topics discussed:

• First impressions of the longest DH track in the World
• What it's like to enter the road into Kernen-S and try to make the turns
• How to ride a flat ski
• The view from the Start House
• What it's like to stand on the Canadian Corner during the race
• And the boys put out their picks for this year's podium!

Thanks for listening to the American Downhiller Podcast. Spread the word to your Ski Racing Speed friends!

World Champion and a 19 time World Cup Winner Michael Walchhofer joins the American Downhillers to share his thoughts on the Bormio Course – a course he won THREE times over his career. He also shares his experiences being on the same Austrian Team as Hermann Maier, Stefan Eberharter, Fritz Strobl and Hans Knauss. As he says, “Sometimes we worked together more than others… At the end of the day, it’s not easy to share all the info you got about equipment and other things.” Walchhofer shares some special experiences he had on his time on the World Cup including fighting with Daron and Bode Miller for the Downhill Title!

The boys also talk about:

-      How Michael grew up “bombing” his home mountain of Schladming with his buddies

-      How hard it was to get a World Cup spot on the strong Austrian Team

-      Growing up free-skiing, on XC skis and playing around rather than gates

-      Describing the Bormio course as “demanding” and you must have all the skills

-      Michael’s secret to winning Bormio which includes having CONFIDENCE at the bottom

-      Also the spots where Michael and Daron won their races at Bormio

-      Their view on Skiing with PRESSURE

-      Michael’s relationship with Bode and skiing under Pressure

-      And why he eats SO MUCH FOOD at Breakfast!

You can hear the Podcast on Apple or Spotify as well as watch it on the ELITEAM Youtube Channel.

Thanks to our Sponsors; Ski Racing Media, ADL Ski Club, WEND WAX, ELITEAM Camps and the American Downhiller Training Camps!

Thanks for listening. Contact us at [email protected].

One of the famous Canadian Cowboys, Manny Osborne-Paradis joins the American Downhillers for a hilarious and educational Podcast that breaks down this week’s World Cup Downhill in Val Gardena, Italy. Manny won on the Saslong course back in 2009 by crushing the top flats with a secret “Canadian Drift” slide technique that he explains in depth in the podcast. He also talks about what it feels like to fly 89 meters in the air over the Camels and both survive as well as crash.

This is a Podcast loaded with valuable nuggets of wisdom for racers and coaches as well as hilarious stories of what it is like on the World Cup circuit as a rookie and beyond. Here are a few of the highlights in the 50 min podcast that will make you laugh as well as take notes.

-      What finding the “Bottom of the Ski” means according to Manny & Daron

-      CAN-USA Teamwork at Gardena that has paid off for decades

-      The benefits of warming up on Slalom skis for the entire Speed season – or not

-      Why you better be good at “Left-Footed” turns on World Cup DH circuit!

-      Confidence is what finally allows racers that breakthrough race that changes everything

-      How a focused “pipeline” for development works

-      How grinding it out in the shadows before you make it into the bright lights is key!

This is a must listen for Athletes, Coaches, Parents and Ski racing FANS as it will give you such an inside look at the most FUN downhill on the circuit - one where the US and Canadians have found a TON of success including back in 2008 when they put 7 racers in the top 10!!! And because of cancellations in SUI and USA, this will be the first Speed of the season which should help the North Americans a TON!

The American Downhillers Podcast is BACK for another Season. Hosted by Olympian Speed Demons Doug Lewis, AJ Kitt, Daron Rahlves and Marco Sullivan, this podcast covers everything related to going fast on a pair of skis down the craziest “Abfarht” courses in the World. From Beaver Creek to Kitz. From steep starts to finish fall-aways. From base bevel to best beers. From rookie races to retirement realities.

In 2023-2024’s Episode 1, the Team talks about the Birds of Prey which will be the first Speed racing of the season with two Downhills and a Super-G on Dec 1-2-3! And to help them break down the course this week, they have special guest two-time Olympian and Stifel US Ski Team member Jaread Goldberg who is coming off his best World Cup season and a World Cup best 4th place at Kitzbuhel last season!

In this Episode you will hear;

-      How the Speed Team spent the summer grinding it out on Glaciers, but finished up at Copper with some focused training.

-      How retirements and new Coaches are changing the culture and feel of the Team.

-      All about Jared’s 4th place at the Hannenkahm and who yelled at him in the start.

-      What makes the Birds of Prey one of the Classics on the World Cup Tour.

-      What section of Beaver Creek’s course you HAVE to nail to be on the podium.

-      How THIS year’s Start Numbers for the first seed will change the game.

-      And Jared’s shares his BIG goals for this season!

Thanks to SkiRacing.com and sponsors ADL Ski Club, WEND Wax as well as ELITEAM and the American Downhillers’ Camps, you can listen or watch for FREE on Apple or Spotify or catch the video on Youtube!

Aspen World Cups were exciting and fun and although we did not see an American Downhiller on the Podium, we did see some excitement from the back of pack - in Super-G a couple of Americans ended up in the top 15!!!

Our guest today is one of those racers. He scored his best EVER SG result with a 14th starting 52nd!!! He is on the B Team and from Woodside, CA. He was the 2016 World Jr Champion in Downhill - a race in which Marco Odermatt was 11th! He raced four years on the NCAA circuit for the Panthers at Middlebury College. And was a 2023 Member of the World Championship team.

He is none other than Erik Arvidsson!

Erik shares a ton of great info about growing up with heroes like Kyle Rasmussen, Julia Mancuso and our own Daron Rahlves on the slopes of Bear Valley and then Palisades. Other topics we cover;

• His tactics in SG and how they differ from Downhill.
• How GS helps SG which helps DH!
• Taking risk - especially in training and how to translates into race day speed.
• Who he watches on video and why.
• Why he left the US Ski Team and attended Middlebury College.
• Why the NCAA path works for some athletes.
• Competition and betting among the American Downhillers in training
• AND finally, what Erik needs to work on to make the final step to the podium.

Thanks to our sponsors: ADL Ski Club, WEND Wax, American Downhiller Camp and ELITEAM Fitness Programs.

In this American Downhiller Podcast we are joined by Kitzbuhel Champion Hans Knauss who was also a World Champion Medalist and is now one of the main Commentators for Austria covering the FIS World Cup.

Hans and the boys talk about the original America’s Downhill – Aspen’s Aztec Course. This is a Course that played a big role in both LEW’s and AJ’s career as you will hear. They break down the course as well as the favorites to take the win on March 3rd & 4th.

Daron Rahlves was unable to join us for the podcast, but as you hear, he checks in from a Snowcat as he was working on clearing snow on the Palisades World Cup hill during the Snowmeggedon that hit Tahoe during the GS & SL!

The crew also talks about Hans’ experience on the mighty Austrian Team and what it was like to have the stress of a ski nation on your backs as you competed weekly to bring Podiums and Wins back to the alpine Nation of Austria. Hans shares what the stress of being on a team with the likes of Maier, Eberharter, Stroble, Franz and Schifferer was like. He opens up about how sometimes he wishes he could have part of the US team!

Other topics they cover;

-      The development of Speed skiers now versus then

-      Austrians now missing the power of Team

-      “If you can drink, then you can train”

-      Too much focus on the TOP and not the Juniors

-      Aspen – an Old School DH

-      AJ’s Celebration when he won at Aspen*

-      And who will win this year at Aspen as the Men’s DH returns to AJAX!

You can find the Podcast on Apple and Spotify or on the ELITEAM Youtube Channel. Links below.

Thanks for listening and watching and get the latest on the Aspen World Cup at Skiracing.com!!!

As the World Cup takes a break from racing – everyone’s attention turns to the World Championships being held in Courchevel France! Where it’s all about the top three as Medals are on the line! Gold, Silver and Bronze are up for the taking.

And our guest today won the Bronze Medal at the 2003 World Championships Super-G held in St. Moritz. She is Jonna Mendes, a two-time Olympian and presently the Director of the Sun Valley Ski Academy. Jonna shares with us not only her experience on the Worlds Podium, but her thoughts on developing Speed at the junior ranks present day.

Marco, AJ, LEW and Jonna also talk about;

-      How Jonna became a Speed skier,

-      How Jonna grew up alongside Caroline Lalive beating all the boys in the Tahoe Area,

-      How important it is to know your own skiing and how to deal with Teammates with different personalities,

-      How Picabo Street helped raise Jonna’s game and how Julia Mancuso and Lindsey Vonn also were great Teammates,

-      How Americans always seem the Underdog and feed off of that energy and rise to the occasion,

-      The difference between racing weekly on the World Cup tour and the Worlds which have a different focus.

This is a great Podcast for both Parents and Coaches as well as fans of Jonna and the American Downhillers.

If interested in being a sponsor of our Podcast – contact [email protected]