BY WILL FALLTRICK
The Alpine U14 IMD girls from the Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation ran their races. Then they had to put in some extra work climbing the podium.
The girls achieved a couple first-place finishes in their Super G races, while the boys’ race was cancelled due to poor snow conditions.
SVSEF U14 IMD Alpine athletes competed at Tamarack Ski Resort from Feb. 6–9 in a Super G series that served as an Intermountain Division (IMD) qualifier. Skiers stayed focused on continually improving their performances despite limited snow coverage affecting the course.
The event featured three Super G races per gender. While the girls were able to complete all scheduled races, the boys’ races were ultimately canceled due to challenging conditions.
“It was a good event for the girls,” said the Second Year Alpine U14 IMD Head Coach Angelica Birkner “Unfortunately, snow coverage was limited, but the weather was amazing for racing, and we were still able to see some great performances.”
The SVSEF U14 girls turned in a strong showing, highlighted by podium finishes and steady improvement across all three Super G races.
“We saw really good skiing from the girls,” said Birkner. “Our team is strong!”
Mia Huey led the way with back-to-back victories in Super G, while Savannah Pringle consistently found the podium and multiple athletes posted solid top-20 finishes.
“This is really fun,” said Huey, following the races.
The Alpine U14 IMD team will be racing in Park City, Utah, Feb. 27-March 1. That event serves as the last chance to earn qualification points prior to championship races at the end of the season.
Meanwhile, The SVSEF is hosting the 36th Annual Laura Flood Memorial Race on the Warm Springs of Bald Mountain this week. The race was founded in 1991 to honor Laura Sharpe Flood, who loved life, the outdoors and ski racing. She died in a ski training accident at 19 while racing for the University of Colorado.
The race serves as a U16 Intermountain Cup qualifier with two giant slalom races and one slalom held on Greyhawk and Hemingway.
Moguls competitors will take part in the Roundhouse Rumble today and Sunday on Roundhouse Slope. The Roundhouse rumble will feature both singles and head-to-head duals.
SVSEF Athlete Results from Tamarack:
Girls’ Super G – Race 1 (Friday, Feb. 6)
4th – Savannah Pringle
15th – Madlein Bakker
21st – Halley McGrew
23rd – Jennings Fraser
27th – Brianna Smiley
28th – Kinley Letson
30th – Ava Gilmour
31st – Stevie Crist
Girls’ Super G – Race 2 (Saturday, Feb. 7)
1st – Mia Huey
2nd – Savannah Pringle
12th – Brianna Smiley
15th – Halley McGrew
21st – Kinley Letson
25th – Maggie Leady
30th – Fraser Jennings
31st – Mable Diez
32nd – Madlein Bakker
33rd – Hope Lloyd
34th – Brady Bloomfield
Girls’ Super G – Race 3 (Saturday, Feb. 7)
1st – Mia Huey
2nd – Savannah Pringle
10th – Halley McGrew
18th – Jennings Fraser
22nd – Madlein Bakker
26th – Stevie Crist
28th – Maggie Leady
30th – Makkena Steel
31st (tie) – Brady Bloomfield
35th – Hope Lloyd