Start routines and training runs

In this episode of the American Downhiller Podcast, LEW, Marco, Daron and AJ provide advice to junior racers, parents and coaches about the elements of a start routine. From early morning warmup jogs to dialing in your equipment to breathing techniques to handle stress, they discuss what worked for them on World Cup. They also share some funny stories about the craziness of the starting gate area during their careers, and talk about how they all still have nightmares about missing their start.

Then, they transition into their thoughts on training runs and their different approaches. Marco was all about learning the terrain and gaining confidence; AJ could dial it in quickly and really only needed one run, and Daron was full gas every run. They relive some of their craziest training runs of their World Cup careers, and give advice for junior races to consider implementing in their day-to-day training routines.

Finally, they share their thoughts about how clubs and regions can teach speed to U10s, U12s, and U14s so they already love speed and have the tools to excel in it when they progress to super-G and downhill later.

The podcast is 45 minutes long and can be seen exclusively here at SkiRacing.com, or you can listen to the podcast with Spotify or Apple. Just search “American Downhiller.”

Next week, they will cover the Lauberhorn Downhill in Wengen, the site of Bill Johnson’s first ever downhill win for the Americans back in 1984. It is also where LEW, AJ, Marco and Daron had historic races, tune in to hear their stories.