The XC Files

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XC Files

This year the small community of Mt Beauty has implemented an exciting ski program with the help of the local secondary school and Birkebeiner Nordic Ski Club. With 12 local students being part of the Elite team, the program welcomed three new junior skiers in search of great snow and tracks at Falls Creek, some expert coaching and a lot of fun on skis.

Sally Cunningham from the ACT is a current member of the National Junior A team, she has already had impressive results in the past few years and recently scored some great results in the Australian Senior Championships, with a best result of 4th in the sprint.
Trevor DeFratis from Alexandra has shown he is capable of good results at state level, with some creditable races at the Victorian Interschools.
Adam McLean also from Alexandra has only begun to ski seriously and has shown rapid improvement while being part of the program.
With nearly a meter of fresh snow on the ground, Australia's duel sprint champion Esther Bottomley took time out with these three young athletes before serious racing starts next week at the Victorian Interschools Championships at Mt Buller.

EB: How have your seasons been so far?

AM: It's been good as there has been snow here all year, sometimes not much , but we have done a lot of skiing.
SC: Pretty good.
TD: It's been good when there has been races and lots of snow.

EB: So have you enjoyed the program?

AM: I have enjoyed it a lot, and it has made training fun with all the other juniors.
SC: It's been good because I have met new people and the skiing at Falls is different to Perisher.
TD: It's been really good with more training than we have at home plus better skiers to train with.

EB: All of you seem to have made big jumps this year with your skiing, what do you think has made the difference?

AM: Being part of the program has motivated me to train harder than I did last year.
SC: Skiing during the week as part of school.
TD: More skiing and more coaching.

EB: What skiing goals do you guys have for this year and the future?

AM: Top 10 for the Joey Hoppet, and to beat Trevor as much as I can.
SC: Win at Junior Nationals and to make the Australian Junior Team.
TD: To ski well at Interschools and National Juniors.

EB: Having the opportunity to train with guys like Ben Derrick, Paul Murray, and Rhiannon Palmer is a unique thing with all these guys based at Falls. What sort of stuff do these guys do and is it motivating for you guys to have them skiing up there with you?

AM: Watching those guys makes you want to train harder.
SC: Motivates me more to have these guys around.
TD: It is good when they help us with our technique, plus we all want to train harder like them.

EB: What is one thing you have learnt about yourself while you have been away from home this term?

AM: I have learnt that I am pretty unorganised without my parents there all the time. Also learning to wax my skis.
SC: Learning to get along with new people at school and with skiing.
TD: I have learnt to get more orgainsed and am learning to wax my skis better.

EB: Changing schools must have been hard. How have you handled that?

AM:First couple of days were hard but now it's fine, plus I knew some of the Mt Beauty guys already from racing.
SC: Different at first being the new girl, but now it's cool.
TD: Pretty well, Mt Beauty is layed back and they have a good CAF, plus Mt Beauty kids are pretty friendly.

EB: Has it been all hard training and racing, or have you guys been having fun too?

AM: It's been serious training but also doing fun stuff like 10 pin bowling.
SC: Been pretty fun while training hard.
TD: I've been having fun, the Birke junior camp was great, but the training has been good.

EB:Are you planning on coming back next year?

AM: I'd like to but probably not with year 11 subjects.
SC:Probaly not as I need to start college in the ACT next year.
TD: No, I want to ski with my school ski team at Alexandra.

EB: Good luck guys and enjoy the rest of the season.

XC is the official website of the Skiing Australia Cross Country Committee. It is produced with the assistance of the Australian Sports Commission, and the Kangaroo Hoppet. The editor can be contacted via info@hoppet.com.au.