“All I think about is concentration, quick feet and kick butt,” the hospitality business sophomore said. “I look at the bottom and say, ‘I’ll be down there in no time flat.’”
But Habryl wasn’t the only skier who was successful during the weekend.
By the time the final beeps sounded at the starting gate, her team took first place overall at the meet, beating out Western Michigan, Notre Dame, Michigan and Grand Valley State.
This is the second year the men have won the divisional meet and a first for the women.
Habryl said the weekend snow conditions were fairly warm and sunny, making some of the runs extra challenging.
“The snow was good in the morning,” she said. “But by the time we took our second run in the afternoon, it got really rutty and soft. Sunday afternoon was the worst.”
The win qualifies the team for the regional meet at Marquette Mountain this weekend in Marquette, where 19 schools from eight states will compete for the top two spots and a trip to the national competition.
The national championships will be held March 11-16 in Waterville Valley, N.H.
“I really don’t know how we will do next weekend,” said Wade Hirschman, the club’s president and a zoology junior. “We are definitely shooting for top five though.”
Alpine ski meets consist of two events, a slalom competition in which the gates are set close together, and a giant slalom competition, in which there are fewer gates set farther apart.
The team’s season on the snow starts in January and ends in late February or early March.
Because team members don’t have anywhere to train on the snow in the Lansing area, they get together for activities before the snow starts falling for the season. Besides the races, this is the only time they have to meet.
“We start dry-land practices during first semester,” vice president Nick Valentino said. “We play games like soccer and Ultimate Frisbee. It’s mainly a way for new people to get to know people.”
No minimum-ability level is necessary for the club. The main concern is to have a good time.
“There is a wide range of skiers on the club,” said Valentino, a landscape architecture junior. “We have a lot of skiers who have high school racing experience. Many other of the members are avid skiers but a lot of them have never really done any racing.”
All of the more than 50 club members are allowed to ski in the meets, but only the top six finishers are able to score for the team.
Communication sophomore Whitney Gordon is one of those skiers who grew up skiing without race experience and decided to join the club.
Gordon got to race at the divisional meet, but isn’t one of the scoring team members.
“Most of us are out here to have a good time and to do something everybody loves to do,” she said. “We are really close. My best friends have evolved from ski team. They are like my family.”
For more information, visit www.msu.edu/~skiteam.
