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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Nov. 5, 1986)
Continued from Page 8 Harland said. "It took a lot of guts, but it needed to be said. It took a lot of pressure off of the other competitors. We’ve always known that we can drop out. but that always implied that we couldn't take it. When Weber dropped out, it opened the door for the rest of us to make that same decision if we had any doubts." Does Harland have any doubts? “No. not really," he respond ed. "Everyone thinks of falling, but I don't worry about it. There's just too much more go ing on during a run to worry about biting it." What goes through a speed skier's mind at 120 mph? Does he talk to himself about main taining form and control? Repairs • Buy and Sell STEREO WORKSHOP 140* M«n Sp«tng<Md 741-1597 "It's not so much talking to myself to stay in control, but rather my brain telling my body what to do.” Harland explain ed, "My body reacts to what my brain is saying. At speed, it doesn’t take much movement to make adjustments." Sometimes all it takes is just a slight movement of the head to make the necessary corrections, he said. Training for speed skiing is limited. Harland runs and lifts weights to stay strong enough to take the pounding he must en dure while speeding down the course. He does stretching exer cises to develop flexibility and practices his skiing at Willamette Pass, where he’s a ski instructor. "But you just can’t train for ★ COPIES ★ •Crazy Kata Try Um! S84 East 13th si. what the wind will do to you at 120 mph,’’ he said. To get some idea of what it’s like to ski at that speed, imagine walking on level ground during a windstorm. With the wind at 40 mph, you have to lean for ward to make any headway. At 50 mph. you have to lean for ward just to hold your ground. At 60 mph and above, you have to hold onto something to keep from blowing away. Now con sider the wind turbulence a speed skier encounters at 120 mph. And that doesn’t even take into account the chattering skis the speed skier must try to keep on the snow. Some speed skiers train in wind tunnels if they have the opportunity. But this is expen sive at $100 an hour, and again % AR CA I M®» f£ ARCADIAN FARMS N.W. Horar Riding UnMM 240* Hoi*, Hill Root IS Mlnulr. from I of O "Ao ftmiar AltenMlfvc" For 25 Years, we’ve been exporting America’s most valuable resource. The men and women of the Peace Corps. Dedicated volunteers who help people in developing countries live better lives. It's tough. And it takes more than just concern. It takes motivation. Commitment. But for 25 years, being a Peace Corps volunteer has been a chance to stop dreaming about a better world and start doing something about it. INFORMATION TABLE: Mon. Tues., Nov. 3-4 9:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m. EMU Lobby AFTERNOON SEMINARS: "Peace Corps in Jamaica" Tues., Nov. 4 12:30 p.m.-1:30 p.m. EMU. Room 108 "Peace Corps Opporlunities World Wide" Wed., Nov. 5 3:30 p.m.-5:30 p.m. EMU. Forum Room Peace Corps The Toughest Job You ll Ever Love EVENING SEMINAR: “An Evening In Nepal” Mon., Nov. 3, 7:00-9:00 p.m. EMU, Room 101 SCHEDULED INTERVIEWS: Nov. 18-19, 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Hendricks Hall, Career Planning & Placement Office Sign up in advance, bring your completed application to the interview. gives no feel for the instability of the skis on the snow. "The skier can just sit in his boots." Harland said. “They end up perfecting an aerodynamic posture that would be impossible to main tain at speed." Speed skiers have also been known to ride on top of cars, with their skis secured to the roof rack. "It’s common for the Euro peans to do that," Harland said. "But I’m reluctant to do it — it's pretty risky." Before the World Cup tour starts again next April, Harland is concentrating on building up his strength and flexibility. When Willamette Pass gets enough snow to open for the winter, he’ll go back to work as a ski instructor and use his free time to hone his skiing skills. The ultimate goal for speed skiers is to go as fast as they possibly can. The one barrier that most often prevents them from going as fast as is physical ly possible is a mental barrier. "All skiers have a speed threshold.” Harland said. "Once they reach it. they don't want to go that fast again." For all the training they go through, and all the specially designed equipment and courses they use. the sport of speed skiing isn't man against man or man against the moun tain or environment. It's man against himself and his self-imposed barriers. rl ncf t'°n,'nue^ ^r°m **a8e 9 "Some friends who were wat ching were sure I was going to fall. But I knew that I was not going to fall.” he says con fidently. A wistful look comes into his eye. “If only I’d had a clean run." By the time he'd recovered and was back into his tuck. Harland was already past the steepest part of the course. All he could do was sit back and hope for the best. He still logged a fast speed. 115 mph, but he had done 116 mph the day before, starting lower on the mountain. Until he betters that mark, he’ll always wonder how fast he could have gone with a clean run, he says. Harland will have a chance to see how fast he can go next spr ing. when he heads to Europe for the 1987 World Cup lour. His goals are to move up in the rankings, from 67th fastest in the world and 14th in overall World Cup points. Somewhere down the line he'd like to set a world record. "I know I can do it,” he says. "I just have to stay at it and wait for it to happen.” Harland has other short-range goals. He wants to get a spon sor. Last spring's experience on the European tour was another low-budget affair. "I had to manage 240 pounds of equipment and luggage on the European railroads by myself." he says in an ex asperated tone. “The top speed skiers have sponsors that pay airfare and lodging as well as provide support crews for the skiers.” Having a sponsor takes a lot of pressure off the competitors so they can concentrate on ski ing. Harland says. “The guys are spoiled. So meone carries their luggage, so meone pays for the hotel, so meone drives him around town, someone carries their skis,” he says. Another short-range goal Harland has is to make speed skiing popular in the United States. The problem is that speed has a bad reputation here. ‘‘When you mention speed skiing to resorts, it’s like talking to a brick wall," he explains. "Reckless skiers and inflated insurance costs are killing the sport of recreational skiing. In Europe they approach the sport differently, Harland says. “I was skiing with some locals, and they just went bomb ing down this cat-track (a nar row, winding ski trail) whoop ing and hollering All the begin ners on the trail just pulled off to the side and stopped as we zoomed by. They were in the way of superior skiers, so they just moved over." he says. On slopes in the United .States, it’s up to the advanced skiers to avoid the novices. They also settle accidents dif ferently in Europe, he says. “If you cause an accident or make someone fall, it gets settl ed right there on the mountain. You may have to buy them din ner or.” he says with a laugh. you may end up gening a punch in the nose. But in the United States, it’s assault and you get slapped with a lawsuit.” To get speed skiing going locally, Harland envisions an Oregon tour. Harland admits it will take a major change in ski resorts’ im age of speed skiing before an Oregon tour can take place. "We've got to convince them that the emphasis is on safe speed, and not reckless, out-of control mayhem.” If anyone can do it. Harland can. Making speed skiing popular in the United States is Harland's ultimate goal. What about becoming a legend, like Prefontaine or Decker, or like Kalevi Hakkinen of Finland, who still speed skis at age 53? (There’s a statue of him in his hometown.) "No. nothing like that," says Harland. "I’d like a world record someday, and 1 want the sport to take off in the U.S., but no statues." ** German A U TO SERVICE VWS MERCEDES BMW’S DATSUN TOYOTA tor car “Sine* 1963" hi m i i i 2025 Franktn Bvd Eugana. Ora 97403