Read a fast study on World Cup circuit
Crazy Canuck’s son carves up Kitzbuhel run
Erik Read pushed out of the start gate at the first World Cup race of 201617 with the lofty goal of reaching the top 30 twice this season.
On Sunday, the son of Crazy Canuck Ken Read posted a career-best seventh-place finish on the most terrifying slalom course of them all, Hahnenkamm Mountain in Kitzbuhel, Austria.
It wasn’t a podium, but the latest of four top10 results suggests the younger Read has the potential to join his father in the conversation about elite Canadian skiers.
Ken Read became the first North American to win a World Cup downhill in 1975. He retired after 10 seasons with five downhill victories, including one at Kitzbuhel.
Now it’s his son’s turn to chase greatness on cragged mountains the world over.
“Kitzbuhel is the Super Bowl of our sport,” Erik Read said this week. “Austria has the best and the craziest ski fans. To see that crowd from the start gate is one of the coolest experiences you can ask for.”
But Read’s attentions are divided. He needed to retreat to his hotel and fin- ish up some work due for a class at the University of Denver. The Calgary native is a business major with a specialization in finance.
“It can be a good thing,” he said. “If you have a bad day on the hill, it doesn’t consume you, because you have to take your mind away and focus on something else.”
After heading into this season with humble expectations, Read is ranked 27th overall on the World Cup circuit, 23rd in slalom, 26th in giant slalom, and 14th in super combined.
Not bad for a guy cut by the national team just two years ago.
NOTE: Former sledge hockey captain Todd Nicholson will be Canada’s chef de mission at the 2018 Paralympics in Pyeongchang. The native of Dunrobin, Ont., played for Canada from 1989 to 2010, winning gold, silver and bronze during that span. The chef de mission acts as the face and spokesman of the team during the Games.