Difficult conditions

Press, 29 August 1980, Page 24

Difficult conditions

Very steep slopes and icy snow made things difficult for the New Zealand ski team which contested the F.I.S. races at Thredbo this month, according to the manager-coach, Mr Scott Callaway. Mr Callaway said on his return to Christchurch from Australia yesterday that these conditions meant only 40 per cent of the: field and none of the New Zealanders finished the first international slalom event. The team of eight had missed the first race at Thredbo, a giant slalom, because of problems with a rental vehicle. Dean Stewart (seventh), his fellow Cantabrian, Roland Kuhn (ninth) and the Queenstown skier, Maurice Brown (eighteenth), finished the second slalom and

f “everyone” got through ths • second giant slalom. * 1 The last two races at Per--3 isher made the trip worthy * while — especially for th? r younger members. “Everyc one skied much better . there,” Mr Callaway said. J ’ In the final ’ race, a giant ! slalom, almost all the team , made F.I.S. points with Evan j Bloomfield (Ruapehu) and 5 Stewart getting creditable . sixth and eighth places re, ’ spectively. j The Australian F.I.S; t series, which followed hard _ on the New, Zealand one (at ’ Mount Hutt, Coronet Peak and Turoa) was . also contested by the talented Yu- ’ goslav slalom-G.S. team (at » Threbo only) about 40 Aus- ; tralians, a lone West Geri man, Martin Steger, and CaInada’s Kathy.Kreiner.