Big prize magnet again

Press, 30 August 1979, Page 14

Big prize magnet again

V/EWS FROM THE TOP

by

Tim Dunbar

New Zealand’s best known promoter of freestyle ski-ing, Geoff Hunt, was off across the Tasman again on Friday for his annual chase of the big prize money offered on the Australian circuit.

He is expecting even tougher competition than usual this time because the total prize money for the four events is a tantalising $50,000. A large overseas entry has been attracted.

An important addition to the circuit is the Victorian resort, Mount Buller. The other venues are Thredbo, Falls Creek, and Perisher Valley. Perisher will be host to the final event on September 15 and 16. For the first time starting lists will be based on seedings, initially worked out on 1978 rankings. Thus the need for preliminary heats will be removed. The seedings should also help to determine the top 30 or 40 freestylers to take part in the final event, which will be contested by invitation only. Hunt will be making his fourth appearance in the series. The Dunedin man retains fond memories from 1978, when he was first over-all in the Victorian titles at Falls Creek and won a return airticket to Paris.

Accompanying Hunt is another Coronet Peak regular. “Captain Video” (also known as Joe Keill.). Both are sponsored by the Mount Cook Company. Some prominent United States and Canadian freestylers Chris and Steve Chavez, Jim McMaster, Tim Boulay, and Jackie and Gordon Silanoff. have also ended their training at Coronet Peak and have set off for Australia.

Chris Chavez, an American, won the Mount Cook Airlines Freestyle Challenge Cup a few weeks ago. He landed with such force in the mogul contest that his boots broke. Both Hunt and Kellie, an Australian, also showed that they are approaching peak form. Hunt won first prize in the moguls while Kellie, noted for his spectacular flips, won the aerials.

The new “boogie in the bumps” series, currently led by Hunt, has helped to keep the team mentally

tuned for the Peter Stuyvesant-sponsored Australian tour. sjt St St

There has been some good news lately for the New Zealand Ski Association. Lion Breweries will allow the association to use its $lO,OOO sports grant to subsidise the overseas travel of the top racers.

N.Z.S.A. representatives were last week given the money which had originally been earmarked for the employment of a fulltime national coach.

By the time the award was announced earlier this month things had changed somewhat with the departure of the Swiss-born N.Z.S.A. alpine director and national coach, Jan Tischhauser. Tischhauser has taken up a better-paid position with the Australian Ski Federation. He was interviewed by “The Press” before he left and caused a little controversy with his comments about some New Zealand ski racers not being disciplined enough in their approach.

Since then he has been back in New Zealand as the coach of the Australian team for the international races at Mount Hutt on August 9 and 10Some did not recognise him immediately as his familiar moustache has been removed.

A spokesman for the N.Z.S.A., Mr John Vryenhoek, says that it will now be more in the position of “holding a whip over the heads of the racers.”

When discipline problems cropped up among the New Zealand team in Europe during the last northern winter coaches could not have sent racers home. That was because in many cases the racers’ trips are largely financed by their parents. Mr Vryenhoek believes that the N.Z.S.A. can now virtually insist that racers

must be fit before leaving New Zealand and they could be sent home for bad behaviour. The racers will be told that their trips will cost them $2500 in advance each, “whatever their programme.” Bonuses will be given for good performances on the circuit with refunds, from the already subsidised $2500, based on an individual’s F.I.S. starting points: the lower the points, the bigger the refund.

Finance would also be provided by the Ski Pool set up by Tischhauser and revenue from the raffle the association was running, said Mr Vryenhoek. He said that plans had

almost been completed for a New Zealand men’s team base camp in Austria to which racers could return after competing in an event. The house would have a permanent “hut mother” and “hut father,” si: sjs A few unusual sights have caught the attention of your roving ski columnist in recent weeks. At Coronet Peak there was a painful experience for the girl who boarded the chairlift smoking a cigarette which she swallowed on falling off a few seconds later. And a female acquaintance caused a little merriment at Porter Heights, when she elected to ski the T-bar slope without poles or gloves, which she had managed to leave neatly attached to the tee as she got off the lift. These items stayed on the turning tee safely until it reached the bottom.

Not so amusing was the enthusiasm of a Craigieburn Valley Ski Club member who chose to plaster “Ski the Big One” posters on the rear windscreen of many cars (including my own. hence the lack of amusement) parked at Porter Heights. IS Sis 13

All the frustrations of running an International Ski Federation series do not seem to have unduly perturbed Neil Harrison. The Rangiora chemist says he will probably again be able to act as convener of the organising committee for the fourth F.I.S. series at Mount Hutt next year. Mr Harrison acted as secretary for the inaugural F.I.S. series in 1977 which attracted the World Cup holder, Ingemar Stenmark (Sweden) and some disastrous weather: all but two of the six events were cancelled.

For the last two years Mr Harrison has been even more hard worked as convener of the organising committee for the international series. In 1978 all the races started in spite of some bad days and his fears that it was going to be a repeat of the previous year. Earlier Mr Harrison had to cope with many problems, such as the withdrawal of Air New Zealand’s sponsorship, the fact that the invitations were handled by Australia, with New Zealand having no say, and the failure of the Austrians to turn up. At the last Europe F. 1.5., which finished three weeks ago, the big disappointment was that neither of the two scheduled downhills could be run. This was with some of the world’s best downhillers from the United States and Canada at Mount Hutt.

The administrators, as well as the racers, get depressed by delays. “It is frustrating when you’re sitting round and can’t do anything (positive),” agreed Mr Harrison. Such problems, though, are forgotten when the over-all value of the proceedings are considered. “It’s been an interesting exercise to be involved with these top-class skiers and their trainers and see how our facilities shape up,” said Mr Harrison.