By Devon O’Neil, ESPN
Two years ago, Travis Ganong contacted Daron Rahlves and asked for help.
Ganong, then 24, had long been considered a rising star in speed events (he won the downhill and super-G national titles in 2010), but he hadn’t figured out how to translate his potential to World Cup results. After debuting on the circuit in 2009, it took him three years and 39 races to crack the top 10.
Rahlves, who won 12 World Cup races in his career, is considered one of the two greatest American downhillers in history with Bode Miller. Rahlves had been a fan of Ganong since Ganong first made the U.S. Ski Team, even lobbying his ski sponsor, Atomic, to sponsor Ganong, too. He knew Ganong had the talent to win at the highest level.
Rahlves and Ganong sat down in North Lake Tahoe, California, where they both live, and broke down a handful of World Cup downhill courses. Among them: the Birds of Prey track at Beaver Creek, where Ganong stunned everybody Saturday and won a silver medal in the marquee race of the biannual world championships.
“We talked about tactics, how I approach this course on race day, aerodynamics, where you gotta really push it,” Rahlves recalled Saturday, standing at the base of the course after forerunning the race. “So many guys have the skills physically, but it’s all about getting yourself mentally ready and executing — sticking it on the way down.”
Rahlves reiterated his message from two years ago when he showed up at the U.S. team’s prerace meeting two nights prior to Saturday’s race. It had been nine years since Rahlves retired and 12 since he laid down the fastest time in Birds of Prey history to win the 2003 World Cup downhill. After the meeting, Rahlves said, “I turned the screws a little harder on Travis.”
“You want to see how to ski this thing fast, buddy?” Rahlves said. Then he showed Ganong a video of his 2003 run. “Always look for your tuck,” he told him.