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Storming the Snow
BY LSPH Yuri Ramsey
Volume 50, No. 15, August 23, 2007 |
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Navy skiers and snowboarders carved up the slopes of Mount Hotham in Victoria during the annual ADF Alpine Snowsports championships from August 7 to 9.
Navy skiers Justin Mangan and Brad Vizard took first and second in the combined overall individual results. The top Navy snowboarders were Stew Smith and Chris Sparks, taking fifth and sixth respectively in the overall individual results.
This year a UK defence force team of one RAF and six Army skiers also competed in the races with the ADF.
The first event contested was the long GS (giant slalom) on the tight Snake Gulley run, starting at an elevation of 1765m and finishing at 1550m. A clear day of racing was soon spoiled by clouds rolling in resulting in poor visibility. This, combined with hard-packed snow, made the race challenging for all.
Taking first, second and third place for the long GS were Matt Shepherd, Clint Hamblett and Dougie Macpherson, all of the UK. Close behind were Brad Vizard and Justin Mangan, of the Navy, then Mike Atikinson, of the Army, and Dominic Sims of the Air Force.
The snowboarders were up next. Taking first, second and third were Steve Medaris, of the Air Force, Conan Sinko and Ben Nelson of the Army, with Stew Smith in fifth as the highest-placed Navy snowboarder.
Even poorer visibility conditions and soft slushy snow made it harder going in the giant slalom than on the first day. UK’s Matt Shepard and Dougie Macpherson claimed first and second, with Justin Mangan of the Navy taking third.
Army snowboarders Alistair Court, Anna Russell and Conan Sinko dominated the snowboarder GS, taking the top three spots.
For skiers, it was off with the long skis used for the GS and on with shorter ones for the slalom. Low cloud, high winds and light rain made this tight course the hardest yet.
Matt Shepard, of the UK, Justin Mangan, of the Navy, and Dougie Macpherson, of the UK, took the top three spots.
Snowboarders were meant to compete in the Bordercross near the summit of Mount Hotham but the event was cancelled because of bad weather.
After a highly competitive three days of racing, Army took the team championships trophies for both the skiing and the snowboarding events. Air Force achieved second in both and Navy took third in both disciplines.
The individual snowboarding results were led by Army and Air Force. Conan Sinko and Alistair Court took the top two individual places for Army, with Steve Medaris grabbing third overall for Air Force. |
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FLOATING ON AIR: LCDR Brad Vizard at speed during the Long GS event.
Photo: LSPH Yuri Ramsey |
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CUTTING EDGE: LEUT Glen McIntosh flies past a gate during the Giant Slalom.
Photo: LSPH Yuri Ramsey |
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SMOOTH: AB Stew Smith turns towards the next gate on the Giant Slalom.
Photo: LSPH Yuri Ramsey
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THE NAVY TEAM: LCDR Brad Vizard, LCDR Justin Mangan, Phil Ridgway, AB Jerrad Coomber, LEUT Ryan McGill, LS Andrew Taylor, AB Stew Smith, SMN Chris Sparks, LEUT Glenn McIntosh, LEUT Adam Milburn, AB Nathan Martin, LEUT Eugene Cleary, LCDR Ian Napthali, PO Stuart Taylor, CAPT Tony O’Malley, and CMDR Andrew Mierisch.
Photo: LSPH Yuri Ramsey
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TIGHT: LEUT Eugene Cleary gets close up to the gates on the Slalom during rainy conditions.
Photo: LSPH Yuri Ramsey
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HARD TURN: LCDR Phil Ridgway nudges past a gate during the Giant Slalom.
Photo: LSPH Yuri Ramsey |
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Snake Gully: A bird’s eye view of the course
Photo: LSPH Yuri Ramsey |
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