SKI CROSS:

Ski cross: Canmore's Tafel wins Nor-Am, targets Blue Mountain Grand Prix next

Jan. 22, 2011 — Canada Ski Cross

MOUNT HOOD MEADOWS, Oregon — Tristan Tafel took a big step toward realizing his dream of competing on the World Cup circuit Friday with a stellar debut at the first ski cross Nor-Am of the season.

Tafel, of Canmore, Alta., was second in Wednesday's opener at Mount Hood Meadows, Oregon, and followed it with victory in Thursday's race at the same venue. The results mean he's earned the right to compete in his first World Cup race next month, at Blue Mountain, Ont.

"I've been looking for a World Cup experience for a long time," said the 20-year-old Tafel, who was a member of the Raymond James Alberta Ski Team before joining Alberta Ski Cross. "It's a big goal of mine but I'm still just taking it one run at a time. Every run is a learning experience for me."

In Wednesday's final, Tafel was involved in a battle with Jamaica's Errol Kerr, who finished ninth at the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Games. Kerr got the upper hand, with Tafel coming in second and Trevor Ricioli of the USA third. Geoff Massing of Calgary, Alta., was sixth.

On Thursday, Tafel got revenge by winning ahead of Ricioli and Kerr. Massing was fourth and Robert Lepine, of Edmonton, Alta., came in fifth.

"His starts were a little bit better than anyone else's but he did have a good fight with Kerr," ski cross veteran and coach Stan Hayer said of Tafel. "Tristan and Geoff, they are 20 and 23 and the rest of my guys are 15 to 17, so the learning curve for the young guys will be steeper."

Canada Ski Cross planned to use the first few Nor-Ams of the season to help determine which athletes will take part in the World Cup races that form part of the Rockstar Ski Cross Grand Prix at Blue Mountain, Ont., from Feb. 9-11. With first- and second-place finishes already in the bag, Tafel has effectively locked up his spot.

"It's not a huge jump — just getting used to guys that are a little bit faster," said Hayer of the task that awaits Tafel at the World Cup level, where he'll compete alongside the likes of Canadian Chris Del Bosco. "The qualifying is going to be the challenge right now. There are also a lot of features that are different to what you see in alpine. It's just a case of getting used to it."

Tafel, who made the switch to ski cross in part because he hoped it would enable him to compete at the World Cup level, admits he's still getting to grips with his new sport.

"It was an eye-opener for me," he said of the Nor-Ams. "It's a lot of fun. There's a lot of camaraderie on the team. We are helping each other all the way to the finals."

Massing, of Calgary, Alta., also performed well, with two top-10 finishes at Hood. Like Tafel, he has a background in alpine skiing and wants to make the step up to the national team and World Cup competition.

"It's different but I'm really enjoying it," said Massing, 23. "It's definitely exciting, especially getting in the gate like that at the start."

On the men's side, 11 Canadians started each race, including Hayer himself. Most of the athletes are young and relatively new to the sport, so the goal is to use the Nor-Ams to help them develop into ski cross stars of the future.

"This sport's really hard to coach," said Hayer, who took part to get a better feel for the course, finishing 18th in both races. "We need to build the (program), that's for sure."

Catriona Blair of Whistler, B.C., was one of only two women competing at Mount Hood. Blair won separate duels with Whitney Gardner of the USA on Wednesday and Thursday and is another athlete who might make the step up and compete at Blue Mountain.  S-Magazine