Reflections

When people asked me the goals for this season, I always struggled to answer. Usually everyone uses FIS points to base progress and how successful a season was. When I did my first attempt at a 'full time' season points were all I wanted. I became obsessive and when things didn't go well I got really down. I realised the focus had completely moved from how I was skiing to the numbers.

This season I made a real conscious effort to focus on how I was skiing, not the points. So when people asked me "Nia what are you aiming for this season?" I simply replied "to enjoy my skiing, love what I do and feel satisfied with any improvements I make" some people laughed, some people questioned whether I was actually taking racing seriously. If you look down my FIS biography page, the results I scored were nothing particularly special, I was consistent but I managed to make improvements, no matter how small, across all 3 disciplines. In my last 2 GS races in Pila, I skied some the best GS I have ever skied, the points didn't reflect this but I couldn't have asked myself for anything else.

I can't deny I wished my points had come down lower, even if it's for recognition or to stop people questioning me why I am continuing to race and not going to university. However when I take a step back and think about how many set backs I've had this season, how at times I felt like I was attempting to do it alone, and how I actually managed to get where I am now. I'm quite satisfied with how it's gone!

I don't think I'd recommend travelling a total of 3460km by public transport, alone with all of your ski gear. I probably won't be doing it again if I can help it. At times it was scary and there were too many near misses, but I am thankful to the people who helped me! Special thanks to the American ski team girls who lent me race suits to allow me to race at the Welsh Championships because my luggage was lost, the Swiss Army who at some crazy hour in the morning carried all of my luggage for me off the train and across the airport in Zurich, the countless people who attempted to help me carry luggage at stations in Austria and attempted to understand the request for directions in terrible German, and the taxi drivers in Slovenia and Croatia who hilariously requested photos and autographs but kept me entertained with funny stories. Some people would say I'm mad and to some extent I will agree with them, but I did it because I love my sport and I felt like I was doing what was best for me. It probably didn't do the best for my performance but I don't regret it at all!

Again even more thanks to my sponsors for this season who helped me on this crazy adventure - especially Jack Wills who show so much belief in me, 2Pure Active who provided me with awesome POC gear, Reusch gloves who came to the rescue when I injured my thumb again in January, X-Bionic UK for providing me with base layers I'm not sure how I managed to survive without before and Bounce Balls who kept my energy levels going all season whether on the race hill or on a 5am train across Europe!

Of course the biggest decision is where to go from here... At the end of May I embark on my crazy journey around the world provided by STA travel as part of my prize from Jack Wills. Importantly I am going to continue my summer with it mind to continue ski racing. It is a huge decision to make. I have deferred my entry for university twice now ( I am forever thankful for Manchester University for this!) but I cannot expect them to do it again a third time. Many people will think I am stupid for this. At the moment my true passion is skiing, and I don't want to throw myself into a degree when my heart is somewhere else. However realistically, if I can't get my funds together for a season I will have no choice but to finish, so i've got some hard work ahead!

Few days off for rest now then the summer physical training starts again, let's go!

If it doesn't challenge you, it doesn't change you

After a well needed break back at home, I had a pretty good intense training block of slalom and giant slalom in Hinterstoder, Austria. It was then time to go to Bormio for the English Alpine Championships. Bormio is definitely one of my favourite places to race, the weather is almost always perfect and the hills are great for racing!

Hinterstoder

The races didn't go too badly, I think it took me a while to get into it. I didn't feel hugely race ready, its not something I've experienced so far into the season before but I think I managed well. In the first slalom I put down an average first run full of mistakes, but followed it up with a pretty fast second run. I need to find the right mindset to nail it on the first run next time! Then came my first GS start of the season, and it didn't go to plan. I wasn't confident enough and a huge mistake on the flat meant I didn't finish the first run.

Bormio FIS GS

The Super G in Bormio is always great fun. I don't ski a lot of speed, but it is probably my favourite Super G. Despite not being on my skis since October and not had a proper Super G run in gates since February last year. I was feeling pretty good and confident. I was happy with my performance, I would have liked to have been a bit closer to the leader but I skied to my points in the first, and scored points in the second - can't argue with a personal best!

I got a second attempt at the GS a day later in the NJR races, I think skiing the Super G made a big difference. I was happy with my performance, although I didn't make points I'm now definitely ready to get some more GS races under my belt. 6 races in 5 days is a pretty intense programme, I finished the week with another slalom race, on a pretty strange hill but came away with a personal best score in slalom which I was pleased with and I know there is room for more :)

Chamonix Valley

After Bormio I returned to Les Houches. I decided to leave my team in Austria. I wasn't happy and wasn't sure things were working out. I think its hard to perform your best when you are in an environment you aren't happy and comfortable in. I think I made the right decision and hopefully things will get a lot better towards the end of the season. I'm now back training with Ali at the British Ski Academy and things are working out well. I've got 3 races lined up for the end of this week (providing snow conditions are good) 1 slalom in Morzine and 2 GS races in Les Gets. Fingers crossed I can my head down and put in some good performances!

5 countries, 7 days...

I finally managed to get my first few races underway at the beginning of this year. On the 3rd of January I started my mega eurotrip from Weissbriach to Chamonix. Getting a train from Austria to Ljubljana, a flight from Ljubljana to Zurich and then a train from Zurich to Geneva. I have to admit travelling all of that distance by public transport with 2 pairs of skis, suitcase and race bag wasn't the easiest of things to do, but it was really cool to see new places.

5am wake up calls and no time for breakfast - bounce balls come in handy!

The programme was to have 2 FIS slaloms and 2 FIS GS races. The 2 slaloms ran as planned, the conditions were really tough! The slalom hill was still injected from the men's European Cup event only a few days previously, and after heavy rain the night before the race and it freezing to -10 meant it was really icy. It was also the biggest girls field I had ever raced in with 94 girls starting. I knew it was going to be tough, I hadn't trained in conditions close to those at all so I just gave it my best shot. The first slalom went much better than I expected, I was fairly pleased with my skiing, for the first race of the season I didn't have huge expectations due to training situations... But I managed to score my best slalom points of my career, finish top 20 from a start number of 62 and finish as first British girl. I was really happy! 

Second slalom didn't go as well, conditions seemed even harder on the second day and I felt more nervous for some reason. I think I definitely ski better when I'm relaxed and not thinking too much about the outcome. My first run was full of mistakes and the time showed it, second run I straddled gate 6 lost my ski and crashed out. 

Between the races I had a couple of days to free ski around, managed to get some limited time on my GS skis, th snow conditions have been so bad I hadn't been on them in over 2 weeks. In Les Houches the snow was really really bad you were pretty much limited to 2 pistes and one of those was the race piste for the children's races. I headed up to Argentière to do some free skiing with my Dad. It's the sunny days, views like this and the great snow that make me miss this valley so much! It was so good to be back!

My GS races were eventually cancelled due to a combination of lack of snow and lack of safety netting. The TD decided it wasn't safe enough to race. This meant an earlier return back to Austria. I spent a night in Zurich before flying back to Ljubjlana then getting a train to Austria. The journey went pretty smoothly apart from getting chased by a drunken homeless man around Ljubljana train station. Running around with all my luggage wasn't really the fitness training I had in mind but I made it safely to my train. 

I spent only one night back in Weissbriach, followed by a short morning session of GS in the rain in Nassfeld before our team left for Croatia to do 2 slalom FIS races in Sljeme, Zagreb. Another tough set of slalom races. The World Cup slalom events had been held there just a week ago so the hill was still in good condition. The 20cm of snow we had just before the races made the conditions even harder. The girls field was small but with a really high standard. On the first day only 11 girls finished out of the 38 starters. I was happy I managed to finish a really tough race. I was really tired and probably not in the best shape considering I hadn't had any rest from racing and training in the previous week and the travelling. I wasn't happy with the way I was skiing - all of my bad habits came back. Didn't score any points but wasn't too far off. On the second race I think the tiredness, mentally and physically got the better of me. I had a poor first run and in the second run I made so many mistakes I had nothing left in the tank to make the recoveries I needed and came out. 

Recovery run in the amazing sunsets!

Once the races had finished it was time to hit the road again, I took a 7 hour train from Zagreb central station to Vienna to catch a flight to Geneva. I'm now off to Switzerland for the Welsh Alpine Championships in Morgins. Hopefully I'll be able to get my first GS race under my belt, I feel like I have done too much slalom!

End of 2014......

It's been a crazy last few weeks, with the well publicised snow shortage across Europe it's made training and racing pretty hard for everybody. I've spent the last couple of weeks training between Mölltal glacier and Kronplatz in Italy. Although it's been slightly stressful and tiring we've made the best out of the training we got. All of the races that I had planned to do before the end of 2014 have been cancelled. It's frustrating, I'm keen to know where I stand and to see if all my training is paying off.

GS training in Mölltal

Initially I was quite happy in delaying the start to my race season, I wasn't satisfied with the way I was skiing and didn't feel ready, my confidence levels were pretty low. A solid but exhausting 4 days training in Kronplatz of slalom and GS helped me get back on track. With snow forecast over the next week or so, I can get my race face on and get some starts!

Now back in England for 3 days to enjoy Christmas before flying back to Austria on Boxing Day. 2014 has been a crazy year, I'm so grateful to be in the position I am in. At the end of April I thought it was my last season racing, but now I'm back and doing more than ever before! I'm recovering successfully from surgery on my hand, And i've received more support than I could ever have imagined. I would like to give a huge special thanks to Jack Wills for the belief and support they've given me. Everyone at X-Bionic UK, NinePointNine Ltd (POC UK and OsmoNutrition), Bounce Balls UK and Reusch UK you are best. 

I'm determined to kick off 2015 with some good training and good results, at the beginning of January I'm heading over to Chamonix for the Scottish FIS races. Having skied the race hills so many times before, I'm hoping it will be a needed confidence boost. Let's start the new year with positivity!!

Happy Christmas everyone, I hope it's a good one! See you in the new year!

Where's the snow?!

After a month in the UK I flew out to Austria on the 2nd. I spent a day in Salzburg sightseeing and looking at all the Christmas markets. It's quite nice to get the chance to see a bit more than just the airport when you fly everywhere!

Our base for the winter has now changed, I won't be based in Innerkrems this winter, but in a small village near Nassfeld. However due to Europe's snow shortage it hasn't opened yet so we've been training in Mölltal on the glacier. The conditions here have been pretty good and free skiing has been fun in the powder. We're just hoping it gets colder and the snow gets harder to get better gate training in! 

Enjoying my GS training and free skiing with my new POC gear, I love it! Huge thanks to 9point9ltd and www.2pure.co.uk

My first races of the season should be in GS in Leogang next weekend followed by SL in Kranska Gora, they've started making artificial snow in Leogang so hopefully the races will go ahead!!

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Hintertux October

I've just returned from two weeks in Hintertux with Motion Team, it was a huge relief to finally go back out in the mountains, it was the best reminder of why I put in so many hours in the gym in the last couple of months! 

Me and fellow Motion and Rossignol UK team mate Kirsty Guest

I had a day of free skiing to get the feelings back and to get the feel of my new Rossignol equipment! I really like the new set up!

 It was straight back into GS gates for day two. As it was the week before Sölden, Hintertux was pretty busy with big national teams preparing for the races. It was cool to train alongside Tina Maze and the Italian World Cup teams there aren't many sports that give you the opportunity to train in exactly the same environment as the top athletes in the world. So I feel very lucky! Talking to some of them on the lift I was surprised but also relieved when they said they were finding the conditions really tough too! Despite not skiing for a couple of months I was really frustrated with how I was skiing and I think I found it more difficult than I was expecting.

Had a selfie and a lift queue chat with Elena Curtoni :)

With Davide SImoncelli, Giovanni Borsotti and Luca De Aliprandini

We couldn't train for the next two days because of the weather, the mountain had to close. Over a metre of snow fell in 48 hours at the top. Even where our team were staying at just 850m altitude we had 40cm. It turned the place into a winter wonderland, so we made the most of it and did a team snowball fight in the woods, watched a whole season of Suits and did fitness training sessions in an underground car park! 

  

When the bad weather had passed it was back to hard training. For some days we managed to do some double sessions of either slalom or GS in the morning with Super G in the afternoon. The slalom and GS wasn't going so well but I managed to get some good feelings on the Super G skis.

Conditions were almost perfect everyday for the second week. I managed to get more sessions of slalom in. I have to be careful training slalom because it's so easy to injure my thumb again.  Skiing slalom courses with only stubbies on the right foot turns looked a little odd, but at least among the sea of gates we could tell which course was ours... Hopefully when I am back out training again I can ski full slalom courses as I would in races.

The final day training was the best day for me. After a frustrating two weeks when I felt my skiing had not been where I wanted it to be. I finally started to feel like changes were being made and I got more confident skiing giant slalom. It was a good way to end the camp. 

I am now home for a month before I head out to Innerkrems in Austria. Hopefully my first races will be middle of December. Now it's the last final push to get stronger and ready for the winter and make the most of the time at home!   

Ready to go!

It's been a pretty good past few weeks! I've made quicker progress with the rehab for my thumb and wrist than my surgeon originally expected. As it's got stronger I've been able to vary my training and I'm feeling good! I've just got to be extra careful when I get back on skis and not to push it too hard.

Yesterday I was in London to meet my mentor, as part of the Jack Wills Young Brits prize. Stewart Castledine works for James Grant In the sports division - one of the biggest media and sports agencies in the UK. It was really cool to see the work they do for some of the biggest sports stars in the UK and their support for me and what I do was really encouraging. Probably one of the funniest parts of the day was being stopped by the police outside Piccadilly Circus tube station in the rain in rush hour...They suspected I was carrying a firearm.... but I was just carrying a pair of Super G poles I'd collected from Ski Bartlett that were wrapped in plastic. Not sure who was more embarassed, the police officers or me!

More good news! I'm so happy and thankful for the support from 9Point9Sports Ltd for their help and support from POC. I've used POC helmets, goggles and gloves for years as they are a brand I trust and I know suit me and my requirements so well! 

I'm now all ready to start training again in Hintertux! Also huge thank you to Jack Wills, X Bionic and X Socks, Reusch UK, Bounce Balls UK and Rossignol UK. Your help has made such a massive difference! 

I will keep you updated with how my training goes, don't forget to keep checking www.blog.jackwills.com for young brits updates too!

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