Stover School Ski Team won an astonishing record haul at the County Championships
Recently, in conditions which resembled a monsoon on the slope and a Turkish bath in the clubhouse, the Stover School Ski Team recorded its best day with a dozen medals and trophies at the Devon Schools Championship, including Gold for the fastest Prep team and a Bronze for the Senior team.
The individual competition is divided into ‘novice’ and ‘racer’ categories, ensuring a level playing field for those starting out.
The Stover team is blessed with racers who lead the field in their respective age and gender categories and, for the first time in the Schools history, all of these racers won Gold. Our most senior racer, Elliott Edwards, arguably the coolest and calmest racer ever to enter a start gate, won Gold in the Boys Intermediate category. Historically the Schools fastest racer, Jack Cox won Gold in the Boys Middle Category and was placed an excellent second overall whilst his younger brother Frazer won Gold in the Boys Junior category and was third overall. With only 0.23 seconds splitting them, the tension was palpable. In the girl’s infant category, Rosie Arnold was simply too hot to handle and won Gold with a time fast enough to put her on the podium in the next two age brackets. This is an astonishing achievement for Stover.
In the ‘racer category, success or failure is often measured in tenths or hundredths of a second. Emily Sell skied two very consistent quick runs, with six-hundredths of a second between them to guarantee the podium whilst Felicity Bill-Gigg, stepping up into the Girls Junior Category for the first time, just missed out on a medal. Similarly, nursing an injury, Hudson Cooper-Thompson skied nicely alongside Vaughan Richardson who improves significantly with each race.
From a coaches perspective, it is an absolute joy to see the amount of progress Stover pupils are making in their skiing and racing. In the novice categories, Kate Watt has been with the club since the start and is one of our most dedicated and improved racers. This weekend, that work paid off and she won a comfortable, deserved and tactically perfect Gold. Similarly, Bethany Sell who is a regular at training nights made the brave decision to race for the first time and, in one of the best results of the day, made the podium. Whilst we have a young team, both Arabella Armitage and Lucas Cox showed the future is even brighter by making the podium in the infant categories and in their first races for the school.
On the subject of first races, sometimes you just have to doff your cap (or umbrella!). Daniella Mirasole was spotted over half term skiing for fun alongside a race training camp. Despite being an utter novice, she progressed within 4 days to the point of being invited to train with the camp. On Sunday, she casually appeared in the start gate and clocked a sub-16-second run which is frankly ludicrous and which has Ladbrokes worried for the Olympics! Similarly, Will Richardson who started training this year went through the gates for the first time on the Friday before the race ‘for fun’. He was a late entry on the day, popped in, won Gold and went home!
Thanks again to all of the parents and supporters who ‘enjoyed’ some awful weather as well as the irreplaceable Miss Robinson without whom the club wouldn’t exist. She has given her free time and supported us from the start and it is much appreciated. Training continues this Friday at 1730 at the Torquay slope.
In skiing terms, the future’s bright and it looks very green.
Mr Arnold
