The racy ladies
Wednesday December 9, 2009 - Email this article to a friend

Think of a ski racing course and you probably imagine testosterone filled young men in tight racing cat suits and bulging thigh muscles. Well, you'd be wrong.

Meet the aspiring racers on a course in Tignes, France, this month run by the company "Inspired to Ski".

There's 43 year old Jane Hall, Liz Robb who is a 54 year old mother of 3 grown-up children, and Jennie Selbie who, at 58, is the senior member of the team.

Also on the course are two women in their 30s who joined for 3 days and a couple of guys in their 40's who did 2 days. It's the 3 ladies from Aberdeen who catch the eye though. They are here for the whole week, and they are serious.

Not one of them has ever done any ski racing and to them a gate is something they might pass through on a country walk, not something you have to ski round as fast as you possibly can trying to shave fractions of a second off a timed run.

"I was so anxious about doing a ski racing course and I honestly thought I might just drop out if I was not up to scratch and everyone else was better than me," admits Jane on the third day.

Jennie went even further. "I was very, very worried that it would be full of youngsters pumped up with adrenellin and a competitive spirit. Let's face it 58 years old is perhaps a bit late to be doing my first ever ski racing course!"

So why did they decide to go for some race training?

All are keen skiers and they simply wanted to try a new challenge and they had heard race training is a very good way of improving all round skiing ability. So they signed up for the new course called, "A taste of race". And that is exactly what it is - a taste of what it is like.

The head coach is Phil Brown, a fully qualified race coach who normally specialises in teaching children and juniors.

"It's certainly different teaching people of this age but they are fantastic ladies and absolutely determined to get as much out of the course as possible and, as they have said, racing is a superb and highly effective way to improve all round skiing," Brown says.

"It teaches balance, concentration and, above all, the correct way to make a ski turn."

What does a ski racing course involve?

It starts off gently with a few drills and exercises and Brown shows how to use the ski to make the most efficient and effective turn possible. Balance is key and rather surprisingly the best way to go faster is not actually to try to hard otherwise you will go too fast and soon be slamming on the brakes.

"I actually try to make the course gentle and unintimidating. Far too many people go into a race course too early and get put off by the number of gates and steepness of terrain; it's actually all about reducing the things that are intimidating at this level and that is what makes people perform better," says Brown.

As the week long course drew to a close what was the opinion of the racy ladies?

"It's been absolutely fantastic and I would recommend it to anyone, even people of our vintage," laughs Jane Hole. "I have learned how to get the correct extension and how to get the ski on its edge so it does not skid round a corner and it has made a massive difference to my all-round skiing ability. Above all though it has been fun."

Who was the fastest of the racy ladies?

Well they aren't going to say. "We were not competing against each other but rather ourselves, to prove that even at our stage in life it is never too late for a new challenge and a new experience" they chorus together.

They talk of coming back next year and they may even invest in some cat suits.

Racing is after all a serious business. Sometimes.