Updates

TEAM Afton - Breaking News

News Item #1: Team Afton successes abound - J3 Junior Olympians score multiple
top 10 finishes, including SILVER in SL. FIS skiers score season best performances
including MidAm Cup TITLES - Women's OVERALL and Men's SLALOM!

News Item #2: J3/J4's Make splash on Shores of Lake Superior - Team Afton
qualifies 11 to Junior Olympics!

News Item #3: Young Team Aftoners ski like crazy at Ski Brule,
collecting 20 medals! Lead by coach Ali-oop! (Click photo to enlarge)

News Item #4: Video Hi-Lights feature check it out

News Item #5: Practice Schedule updated

News Item #6: Photos page updated

News Item #7: Team Afton Winter News PDF format click now!

News Item #8: Team Afton featured Ski Club in the #1 Ski Racing
Journal in the world. Yep, read it in your issue highlighting this years US Ski Team
hopefuls. Don't have a copy? C lick here to view the article.

News Item #9: Check the HotLine for last minute updates that may not appear on
this website: 651-436-7652.

SPECIAL NOTE: regarding helmets; it is a USSA rule that FULL-HELMETS are required for GS. With that in mind, we will
require helmets for all GS course skiing. While USSA does not require helmets [yet] for Slalom, we feel that it is the
responsible thing to do to recommend that you wear a full helmet w/ MOUTH PROTECTION while skiing Slalom
(traditional basher bands do not offer protection for the back of the head, therefore we would suggest attaching a mouth-
protecting bar to your full helmet (nearly every helmet will accept a bar) or, alternatively, use an in-the-mouth MOUTH
GUARD) Wearing a helmet cannot guarantee total protection, but they are generally a more effective means of protection
than a wool hat. Though we will not attempt to mandate the wearing of helmets for Slalom, we strongly urge that you
commit to wearing one. This needs to be the responsibility and commitment of the racer [and his/her parents] to protect
himself/herself from head injuries. Though this is a somewhat controversial subject, we don't want to see anyone sustain
an injury that could easily be avoided by taking this simple precaution. (If you have any questions or concerns about these
comments, please feel free to consult Head Coach & Program Director Tony Olin)

Old News:
Team Afton extends a special THANK YOU to our supporters. Their generosity has helped make our J456 Championships a
success. Good luck to all the racers!
BEA SYSTEMS/Dale Zurbay Family * Lakeside Dentistry * Schmelz Countryside Saab *
St. Croix Orthopedics * Hastings Chrysler-Jeep
Hastings FORD * McGough Company * Vermillion State Bank * Hesten Park
Special Tees * Mr. and Mrs. Jeremy Blackburn * State Farm Insurance
Edina Realty-Woodbury * Askar Corporation * Dr. and Mrs. William Trygstad
And, an additional thank you to the following for their contributions in making our event a huge success.
Afton Alps Ski Area * Tierney Brothers * The Red Tail Project * Ted Dale, Keka Design
Dave Thorsen * Chris Magnotto * Freedom/Valu * Mike Larkin * Matthew Simenstad
Hillary Hoffman * Bake and Lee Baker * and a host of Team Afton parent volunteers

They've done it again!
Lee and Bake Baker have shepherded another fantastic J456 Event. The plaudits keep rolling in for the amazing efforts of
the entire team. Team Afton is not only healthier for it, the task further builds on a tradition that says--we care about our
team. Congratulations to all!

Team Afton's BIG WEEKEND!
Few words can describe the successes for Team Afton this past weekend--it was big! Topping the list: Tague Thorson (you
remember him; he was at our Christmas Camp the first day--we watched in awe his SL technique and cobra shape) He took
2nd place in a NorAm at Sunday River, ME this past weekend gaining a 10.90 point result. This places Tague 86th on the
WORLD RANK LIST for SL ski racing. WhooHoo Tague!
Next up: It can only be described as the Max Factor--Max Lund scored a 41 and 44 international point result by winning the
first two MidAms of the season at Boyne Highlands, MI and he did it in fine fashion winning the first race by 2.5 seconds
ahead of Austrian Martin Stoker and a host of other fast skiers. This places Max squarely on Team Central--the elite
accomplishment for Central USSA racers. Carly McDowell (already a Cental Team member) new 15 year old to the Team
Afton stable, scored a 59 pt result on her way to a 5th, 6th, and 2nd place finish at the MidAm in Michigan. The rest of
Team Afton's MidAm skiers preformed at high levels, all gaining point results! Spirit Mountain was host to the J456 and
J321 this weekend as well. We saw exceptional performances from Team Aftoners including Sydney O'Reilly, Grady Gores,
David Campeau, and JC & Anna Magnotto! Team Afton skiers continue to amaze the coaching staff. Great job coaches and
skiers! See results at: www.skifast.com and www.ussa.org (to view results, click on the members>quick tools>events
lookup>USSA then type in the appropriate search info. Then, click on the code at left to view the results)

Chuck Stone Memorial Trophy - Team Afton brings it home again! Congratulations to Jake Lund who brought home the top
honor at the Buck Hill Invitational (Chuck Stone Memorial). This continues a string of Team Afton wins over the last
number of years including Tague Thorson, Casey Charlson, and Tyler Shepherd. Other notable performances included
Jake's younger brother, Max, who faultered on his first run but came up big on his second attempt with a 5th fastest time,
only .5 sec. behind speeding older brother, Jake. Kelly Pechoch, new Team Afton J2 skiing gal, turned in a terrific
performance and also brought home some hardware: 3rd for J2 girls! Blake Radke and Devon Erickson also had moments
of shine. Overall, another terrific outing for Team Afton skiers (click the pics to enlarge)

Get in shape with the KOZ! Team Afton highly recommends your taking advantage of this unique opportunity to learn
workout techniques from Olympic Skier Kristina Koznick. What better way to ignite your summer prep for next season!
These camps are recommended for J3 and older--but consult with TonyO if you're younger and would like to attend.
Kristina and her Trainer Aaron Leventhal will be holding Dry Land Camps at Fit Training Studios this summer in
Minneapolis.
The sessions will reflect the intensity, progression, and development of speed, strength, power, and agility that Kristina....
(READ ON)
“The reason I want to do these camps, is so that I can pass along what I have learned over the years to the younger
athletes growing up here in Minnesota.” -Kristina Koznick Registration 0n-Line at www.fittc.com: August 13-17 session 9-
11 am

See Bill Finnegan's video production of J4 Junior Olympics on Google Video! MARCH (JO) MADNESS - 24 days on the Junior
Olympic road….. Does that seem like a long time? Wait until you read this recap—it’s longer….. On March 2nd, I began a
journey west. I drove from MN to Denver in a raging snow storm—narrowly escaping a premature final destiny; boarded
the plane for Oregon; 8 days in the Cascades; returned to Aspen for a week; to land in Winter Park for the J4 Junior
Olympics. First up were the J2 Junior Olympics, AKA the J2 Nationals, at Mount Bachelor, Oregon.... (READ ON.....)

J456 Championship Race Find your resultsonline at: http://www.skifast.com/index.php?page=results.php J456
Championship Race – Order pictures of your racer in action! Click here www.skikeka.com then click on Race Pics to see
the Afton Alps Races. These shots make a great ski racing keepsake – for you, your racer, or grandparents!Click here
www.redtail.org to learn more about the World War II vintage airplanes that zoom over Afton Alps during the Opening
Ceremonies. Or visit www.redtailreborn.com to find out about the PBS premier movie about the Tuskegee Airmen, the
only African American WWII Pilots.

Team Afton Scores high percentage of qualifiers to post season Championships. Max Lund and Nick Stang Qualified to J2
Nationals in Bend, Oregon! Heading to the J4's at Winter Park, CO: TommyT, ColleenC, AndrewF, ElizabethK, and DustyE!
Doing battle at the J3's at Aspen: BaylenR, BenC, RossB, GradyG, and BobbyC! Congratulations and good luck to all of you
for qualifying to these prestigious events!

Jake Lund has been named to the US Ski Team's entry to the 2007 World Junior Championships! Jake, skiing with the US
Team this season, has amassed an impressive result sheet that finds him headed to Europe in early March to compete with
the world's best juniors (19 and under). Good Luck Jake--you've done Team Afton proud! PARK CITY, Utah (Feb. 17) -
Fourteen athletes were named Saturday to compete March 7-11 in the 2007 FIS Alpine Junior World Ski Championships in
Austria, the U.S. Ski Team announced Saturday (Feb. 17). Rest of story In earlier news on the world front: Tag-Line:
Tague the Conquerer! TagUu just finished 3RD OVERALL at the World University Games! Tague is the first Team Aftoner
to qualify for this prestigious race where the World's best University skiers compete--and he's just a freshman! Go Utes!
Vorrei augurarle Congratulazioni! Bello Tague! See the action at: http://www.universiadetorino2007.org/ENG/home.aspx

Crazy Few Weeks! Since Christmas Camp, it's been a few crazy weeks for ski racing at Team Afton. The Camp went very
well and we were fortunate to have experienced up close and personal the skiing of two stellar Team Afton notables: the
Utes Tague Thorson and US Ski Teamer Jake Lund. What a show! Unfortunately, we were rained out the last day and
missed our fun race. Then, Ross "Rosko-B" was jetting off to the Topolino Time Trials at Winter Park, CO and gained
valuable experience going up against Rocky/Central best J3's. Then, 5 Team Aftoners (RoskoB, BaylenR, JackS, MattH,
BobbyC) tackled the World of Speed for a week at Keystone, CO. The J321's and J456's were at Spirit that weekend, and
charted some top results: www.skifast.com Then, Lutsen--cold, cold Lutsen........... Not to worry though, Team Afton
weathered it just fine and came up with more great results. Our J456'ers are really flyin'! ColleenC, ElizbK, HayleyW and
TommyT, AndrewF, and DustyE are leading our strong competitive youngerlings. Finally, home for a day, and then back to
Lutsen for MidAm action. The top stories: NickS comes thru in the GS with big results and FAST skiing! On to Spirit for the
Atmore; MaxL scores--twice! BlakeR comes thru in SL well-sub-100! And NickL is crowned KING twice! (Bibbo King both
days of SL) CHECK OUT THE RESULTS ON: www.skifast.com

2007-2008 Uniforms have been ordered! If you missed the order deadline, Gail Lund may still be able to help you with an
order, so email here at: TomBlair@pressenter.com
Uniform orders are OPEN to D-Team members who may be thinking about USSA for next season and to Team Afton
parents. Gail, email her at: TomBlair@Pressenter.com

J4 Junior Olympic Podium winners Tommy Tuohy (10th in SL), Grady Gores (6th in SG), and Ross a.k.a. "Rosco" Baker
(Silver GS & Bronze SG!), display their awards with coach Tony Olin at the Winter Park awards banquet. Great job boys!

2006 Golf Outing reconfirms this event to be an important link in Team Afton's future. Karen Healy and her crack-squad
whipped this event together in little under a month and yielded record financial results. Key features of this year's event
were the social and silent auction aspects along with a 9-hole format. We hope to amplify the "Alumni" draw for the event
as a true TEAM Afton reunion in future years.

Team Afton has been heating up the slopes with great results in December races; Buck Hill/Wild Mtn.
Planet Cup: www.planetcup.com.
Spirit Mtn, Nubs Nob, Welch: www.skifast.com.
And most recently at the Chuck Stone memorial race where Team Afton Alums went 1-2-5!
Blake Radke came home a bronze medalist in the J3 category too!
Congrats to repeat Champ Tague Thorson and runner-up Jake Lund shown here with their Team Afton coach TonyO.

TEAM Afton skiers set off fireworks [as if, coming from their ski edges] this past weekend at the MidAm FIS International
Series at Boyne Highlands, Michigan.

On the women's side, Brooke Lindert, Brianna Healy (AKA: BB), Devon Erickson(first year J2), and wayweird (oops, I
meant wayward) Team Afton grad Hilary MN Peterson, all showed gathering strength on the demanding steeps of South
Challenger at the Highlands resort.
In the two SL's Friday and Saturday, after wringing out the tentative instincts, they all brought up their game and came
home with some results with Brooke L and Hilary P trading out top 30 spots. Likewise, in Sunday's GS, they improved with
each run. Another factor that may be noteworthy was coach Olin's keen eye toward equipment and a suspicion about
whether there was something holding back his lady skiers--sure enough, a quick flatfilingthecrapoutofthetipandtail was all
it took to improve the comfort zone and ease of turning for those long GS boards. BB exclaimed after a quick test run: "I
can't even beeelieve what a difference that made!!!!!!!!!!" So, the message for all on those newly ground skis:
"flatfilingthecrapoutofthetipandtail" (PS: if you're wondering about this talk to TonyO)

On the guys side: Senior/PostGrad skiers Joe Paul and Andrew Bowden established themselves as anchors for the team
with solid performances and a point-best result for Joe Paul. It's good to have such guys around keeping the ship balanced
especially with the 3Caballeros [Nick Stang, Chad Lawrence, and Max Lund] scampering about, lighting off explosive
performances, and generally creating a stir.

Yes, the big scene was the 3CABALLEROS. First year J2's Max Lund, Nick Stang, and Chad Lawrence began the season with
990 points and start near the rear (along with Devon Erickson on the girls side). Bursting from the back of a field of
nearly 140 male competitors, Nick Stang start number 100, galloped down the minute-long course to 11th place overall
and an 80 point FIS result! Close on his heals was Max Lund with an 86 [result], in 15th. Chad Lawrence, though right
there after the first run, caught a tip shortly into the second run, had to hike 1.5 gates, and still scored a very respectable
128 point result in 49th.

Day two brought even more excitement; Stang-a-rang repeated with an elevated performance and skied to a 70 pt result
and 8th place!!!! Chad and Max, not to be outdone, after a first run with Chad a mere .07 back of Nick, and Max .90 back of
that, both skied out-of-there-heads on the second run. They let loose so much that coach Olin was beside himself on the
radio yelling "they're going too fast!!! They can't make it that way!!!" Yes, they were astounding. Had the race organizers
only moved the damn finish up the hill a bit, it would have been something to see their results. Max caught a hard tip with
finish in sight. Chad hip-checked off and then back on the course with a flat push to the finish ahead of him--and he scored a
96 result anyway in 22nd place! Wow. These guys are gonna make coach old fast.

So, it was on to the GS. As I mentioned before, the gals turned in super-solid performances and DeVawn finished 8th for
the first year J2's and a sub 120 result. The boys, with start orders reflective of their National points, started in the
twenties with the exception of Max Lund who started 67th. And it was that blast from the back again that stole the show!

Max, scorched out-of-nowhere to take 7th after the first run. This time, Nick, Chad, and Andrew Bowden-Bowden-Bowden,
were hot on his trail. But Max kept his head and skied to an incredible 5th place finish overall and 3rd for juniors (19
years old and under)!!!!!! 67 points!
Look at the results--Team Afton had a huge percentage of the front page (top 15)!!!!
Again, this reminds coach Olin he needs to check in for his annual physical......

RESULTS:
http://www.region3cussa.org/results.ph