Ski Racing Art

Pencil sketches of some of the greatest ski racers the US has ever produced

By Pat Moore

About two years ago my wife and I visited an Albrecht Dürer exhibit in St. Petersburg, Florida.  He is considered the greatest artist of the Northern Renaissance. I was fascinated by his engravings.  When we returned to Connecticut I tried to replicate his style and failed miserably.  I then tried drawing more traditional pencil sketches and in the intervening time have produced about fifty sketches. 

As an amateur ski (and snowboard) racer I have great respect for the current and former members of the US team and wanted to acknowledge their contributions to the sport by sketching them. 

Doug Lewis is one of the most successful US Downhill racers of all time.  A member of the 1984 and 1988 Olympic team, Doug competed on the World Cup circuit for five seasons.  At the 1985 World Championship in Bormio, Italy he won the Bronze Medal beating a stellar field that contained stars of the day like Franz Klammer.

For many years Doug has been a popular figure at the annual NASTAR National Championships.  NASTAR is the largest recreational ski racing program in the world.

These days Doug is a ski racing analyst for Universal Sports and runs a very popular children's sports camp in Vermont called Eliteam.

Phil Mahre along with his twin brother Steve were standout racers on the World Cup circuit for more than a half dozen years.  Phil was the overall World Cup champion for three consecutive years from 1981 to 1983. 

At the 1984 Olympics in Sarajevo, Phil took Gold in slalom while Steve took the Silver.

In 2006 Phil made another attempt to qualify for the US Team and, despite his age (nearly 50), he was considered to have a very good chance until he was sidelined with an ACL injury.  These days he and his brother run a Training Center in Deer Valley, Utah.

When you think of American ski racers one of the first names to come to mind is four-time Olympian, A J Kitt.  A J ascended World Cup podiums six times.  In 1993 he took Bronze in Downhill at the World Championships in Morioka, Japan. 

Each year for many years, A. J. has toured the country as the national traveling pacesetter for NASTAR.  His ski runs set the benchmark by which local pacesetters are measured.  A J is a real estate broker in Hood River, Oregon.

Today, Heidi Voelker can be found at Deer Valley where she is the Ambassador of Skiing.  In the past she was one of the most consistent performers in the sport of ski racing spending twelve consecutive years on the US Ski Team.  She was the 1994 National Champion in Giant Slalom racing.  In 2007 the state of Utah issued a license plate with the image of Heidi skiing.  She became the first living American ever to appear on a license plate.

Heidi hasn't lost any of her Giant Slalom racing skills.  Her team of celebrities won the 20th Celebrity Skifest at Deer Valley in December.

Steven Nyman made a rare transition, migrating from slalom skier to the speed events where he has excelled in Downhill and Super G events.  He competed in his first Olympics in 2006.  Later that year, took Bronze in a World Cup Downhill at Beaver Creek followed by Gold at Val Gardena, Italy two weeks later.

Each year the NASTAR Nationals, the current and former US team members vie for the honor of becoming the National Pacesetter for the upcoming year.  Everyone else is measured from this theoretical zero handicap.  In 2011, Steven earned that distinction.  Unfortunately this season was cut short by a torn Achilles tendon.

I had the good fortune of seeing Kaylin Richardson compete in a World Cup Downhill Race in Lake Louise in 2007.  She's competed in two Olympics.  A versatile racer, she's been US National Champion in Slalom, Combined, and Downhill (twice).  A frequent pacesetter at the NASTAR Nationals she brings out the crowds to watch her smooth and very fast technique.

Kaylin retired from competitive ski racing in 2010 and has embarked on a broadcasting career.

When discussion turns to skiing dynasties, the conversation always focusses on the famous Cochrans of Vermont.  Over the past half century, this extraordinary clan has produced ten US Ski team members.  In 2004, Jimmy Cochran continued the tradition by winning the US National Championships in both Slalom and GS.  He repeated that dual accomplishment in 2008.  He competed in both the 2006 and 2010 Winter Olympics. 

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At the 2011 Nationals in Winter Park I printed a composite of many of the images above and asked the US Ski Team members to sign it.  They graciously agreed to do so.

Two additional subjects:  Both are former NASTAR Nationals pacesetters and have compiled enviable records in ski racing.

Daron Rahlves is one of America's most successful ski racers of all time with twelve World Cup victories including Super G at the World Championships in St. Anton in 2001.  In 2003 he became the first American in 44 years to win the legendary Hahnenkamm Downhill. A year later he won the Super G title at the same venue. A holder of seven National Titles, Daron switched to the Skicross event and competed in the 2010 Olympics.

The past couple of years, Ted Ligety and Lindsey Vonn (future sketches!) have taken the ski racing world by storm but Bode Miller has been the name the general public has associated with the sport ever since he grabbed a pair of Silver medals at the Salt Lake City Olympics.  A veteran of four Olympics, Bode has earned five Olympic medals, 33 World cup victories (at least one in each of the five disciplines), and is a two-time overall World Cup Champion.  Not ready to retire, he won the Birds of Prey Downhill at Beaver Creek in December 2011.

I did two sketches of Bode.

Many of the stars above will be pacesetting at the NASTAR National championships in Winter Park in March 2011.  Try to qualify at your local participating resort and join these legends of the sport!

Pat Moore directs online sales of ski and bike gear for SuburbanSkiAndBike.com in Berlin, CT. In 2008 he was the first NASTAR racer to become age group National Champion in both skiing and snowboarding at the same time. 

More of Pat's sketches along with his photography can be found at pat-moore.artistwebsites.com