Ski-ing Cantago Match To Canterbury

Press, Volume C, Issue 29621, 18 September 1961, Page 13

Ski-ing Cantago Match To Canterbury

Canterbury beat Otago in the annual Cantago teams' trophy match at Lake Ohau. The match was decided on the slalom event alone as conditions yesterday prevented the downhill event being run. Both the Canterbury men’s and women's teams were faster in their average times than their opponents. It had been expected that the Canterbury women’s team would find possibly superior opposition, but their averaged times for the total of the two runs was 1133 sec, compared with 117.45ec recorded by the Otago team. Under international scoring Canterbury lost no points and Otago 2 15. The captain of the Canterbury women's team, Miss A. Latham, who also captained the women's national team in Australia last month, recorded fastest time of 53.25ec for one run. The Canterbury men’s team averaged lOßlsec for the two runs with no points lost, against the Otago average of 148.6aec and 22.28 points lost. Fastest time for the men was also made by a Canterbury man, P. Willis, who was also in the national team. His time was 50.9 sec. Conditions for the slalom on Saturday were difficult. The race was late in starting because high winds whipped up the surface snow and drove it across the course. Even when the wind eased and the race was held there were still some runs made under very difficult conditions. The course was set by O. Von

Allmen. the chief instructor at Coronet Peak, who set tie national courses this year. It was an excellent course for team racing. Of 47 gates, it had sections of speed and in others there was tight and testing turns.

For the unwary, quick traverses were brought up suddenly by turns across the slope and then down into a flush of several gates. It was a course which demanded rhythm and control, but it was at the same time fairly open.

The course opener was S Yates (Canterbury).

When the teams arrived at the ski field yesterday morning there was fog covering most of the top basin and this later moved down on to the tower slopes. For the whole day the fog hung tantalisingly over most of the mountain. It would lift slightly and then come down again. It was not until 4 o’clock that the race was finally called of! and it was decided to award the trophy on the basis of the slalom points. Teams' racing is difficult for New Zealanders in that nearly all racing in this country is for individual competition. A fall by an over-confident skier can reduce the whole team's sver%he match showed up well the skiers who had been In the national team, and there was a good splnt of team competition on both sides. Some of the younger skiers gave better performances than had been expected. but there were also several surprises.

Both men's teams had runners who did not complete runs. J. Fulton, of Canterbury, in his second run. went outside the finishing gates, and the Otago skier. H. Guy, did not finish his second run.

P. Chapman (Otago I fell three times in his first run. winding himself and lying helpless for the best part of a minute before he rose to carry on again after one fall. His second run showed his fatigue and he fell again, but he managed to complete the run in reasonable time. G. Nevell and P. Willis were the two outstanding Canterbury men and while their runs were made at speed they were under control the whole way P. Baudinet and M. WynnWilliams. the men's captain, both made two consistent runs in good time. A. Coberger. the national slalom champion this year, opened the Canterbury running and was unlucky to fall In his first run. His second run showed him ski-ing capably and up to form.

Miss H. Arndt made two stylish runs at speed which gave the Canterbury women the basis for a very good average. Miss Latham had a check in her second run after her brilliant first and the other two. E. Watson and K Guy. also lost some time in their running. Miss C. Womersley. who comes from Canterbury, but who is ski-ing for Otago University this year, made two excellent and consistent runs for Otago, i and R. Earle also looked to be ski-ing capably.