"Aude Volare" -- Dare to Fly! New Heights, Online the electronic newsletter of Eastern U.S. Ski Jumping Spring 2003 Issue

East Meets (Far) East

The whole culture was new and different for me. It was great to jump in a country that loves ski jumping. The crowds were big and loud everyday, and there was TV coverage for a few of the competitions. On a drive to the hill the first day in Sapporo, I realized why there are so many good skiers that come out of Sapporo. From the city center the big hill, normal hill, 60m and 40m are visible. Zao was very different from Sapporo. Zao was in a little mountain resort town. There was no lack of snow in Zao. At the top of the mountain there was an incredible 9 meters of snow! All of us had our best jumping in Zao on the K90. One day Logan Gerber had our best finish in 22nd when he went 85.5 and 83.5 meters. Takanobu Okabe was third with jumps of 92 and 101 meters. Norwegian Thomas Lobben had one of the best jumps I have ever seen when he went 102 meters with a telemark and 58 style points. Finally, Akira Higashi was the winner of day one with jumps of 99.5 and a hill record of 102.5 meters. On day two, Jim Denny had the best USA result when he placed 2nd, just one point behind Yusuke Kaneko of Japan.

Willy Graves

The trip was a very good experience for me to jump overseas and to get a feel of what it's to jump with so many good jumpers. It was really cool to meet and hang out with jumpers from other countries.

The most memorable part of the trip was jumping right after Masahiko Harada on my very first day of official training in Sapporo. I was naturally very nervous jumping right after a former world champion, but I will never forget the feeling of watching him go short in front of me. "If Harada just went 71 meters how far am I gonna go?" It was a moment I will never forget.

by Willy Graves, NYSEF/BOC/NSA, Putney, Vt

Hopper Highlights
Grasshopper Camps

The best ski jumpers in the world use the same in-run principles as you should. Weight on the whole foot, good shin angle, and upper body relaxed. On the table, they try to keep the chest relaxed and only use the legs. Keeping the hips high through the move creates the most effect. Once in the air try to keep that perfect flight position - skis in the V formation, arms at your side and chin up.

How do you (and the world champions) do it? By keeping it simple... don’t think too hard... ... just do it... and you will be flying to the bottom of the hill before you know it.

Between the Colors ...
by Dan "Mouse" Warner

Because Steamboat has the proper progression of jumps. You can fly 50, 100, 200, 300 and 400 feet on their jumps. These are the necessary and proper increments that are conducive to ski jump training. The same set-up is currently in place in Park City and Calgary. Guess who has the best teams at Nationals, JO’s, and North American Championships? IMD, RMD and Canada (Calgary).

We do have these size jumps in the East but they are not at one site (and not even in any one state) and they are not all “plasticized.” If the East is to be competitive with these folks we need that alignment of hills. We already have the 90 and 120 here and we need the other jumps in place with plastic to give our athletes a fair shake. Since I have been Lake Placid it has been my main focus to get this done for our athletes. If I’m barking up the wrong tree, someone please tell me why?

I believe it behooves the Eastern Division to support this project and see it to completion. Our athletes need to be on a level playing field with the rest of the country.

A New Heights Online Extra
The Old Boys
A Brief Report on the State of Masters Jumping

So why are new guys not streaming into Masters class? Simple – because the Senior class jumper (18-29) is becoming an endangered species, so we no longer have a feeder program for Masters. And why not? I think that the sport has changed, demanding huge commitment from its juniors at an early age, winter and summer. By the time they reach age 18, they have taken thousands of jumps and are worn out. And it is not clear that many skiers jump for fun. Too much goal setting, not enough jumping for joy.

The one recent bright spot for Masters is the number of adult beginners and resumed jumpers. Keep ‘em coming! One of my dearest friends Earle Murphy was an adult beginner who had a great career, and resumed jumper Tom Dodds is certainly sparking up Masters class in the east this year, just as the Cannonball, Jon Farnham, did a few years ago. Jon took just a short time to become dominant; this season he logged seven wins in his eight meets. But look out for Tom who made it very, very close and edged Jon once in each of the last two seasons.

In spite of decreasing numbers, U.S. Masters had their days in the sun again this year at the National Masters Age Group Championship and the annual International Master Championships.

Seventeen Old Boys showed up for the National Masters in Iola, Wisconsin, where they chose up to two from 20, 40 and 60 meter events. Conditions were a bit dicey and finally the 60 meter competition was stopped after one round. I was the only Eastern participant and the two Wyoming Wingnuts made the trip. Otherwise it was a Central field, including several adult beginners on the small hill. Bob Keck (Karla’s dad) won the 60 meter Masters event and pointed out that he and I have now jumped in seven decades. On the 40 meter, 54 year old Tim Denisson was the overall winner, finishing ahead of all juniors and seniors.