SKI COOPER — In the great tradition of Colorado sports rivalries, Nick Stenicka versus Hunter Black ranks right up there with the Nuggets against the Avalanche.
It’s less an apples to oranges comparison than a mutual respect among like-minded athletes aiming to achieve their best. The difference in the case of ski racers Stenicka and Black is that somebody has to lose.
At Friday’s state high school giant slalom skiing championships at Ski Cooper, that somebody was Summit County High School’s Black. After winning every race he started for his high school this winter, the senior lost the season’s final giant slalom by a scant .05 seconds to Middle Park High School’s Stenicka.
His reaction?
“I’m not sure how I feel,” he said. “It’s not like whoever wins state is going to be the next Olympian or anything. It could happen, but really it’s just another race, another way to test yourself against everyone else and see how you do. You can’t be too upset when you do your best.”
Black’s philosophy apparently is infectious, at least when it comes to newly crowned state champion Stenicka. It’s not that the Middle Park junior doesn’t care about winning. It’s more that he doesn’t care who he beats. In his mind, he only skis against himself.
“It’s really a personal sport. It’s not like you can look at somebody else and say, ‘Oh, I beat them today so I must be a better racer,’ ” Stenicka said. “It’s racing the clock, not the people. Everyone is just trying to get faster.”
Speed was a difficult commodity to come by on the flat, wind-whipped giant slalom course at Ski Cooper on Friday. Stenicka, who outweighs the 140-pound Black by more than 20 pounds, understands his advantage on flatter courses and made the most of it to help his high school to its first alpine state championship in more than a decade.
As the two competitors stood side-by-side calculating the miniscule blink-of-an-eye margin separating their two-run finish times, it became evident that even a state championship title was not enough to stir a rivalry, however. It was barely enough to stir a pulse for the two skiers with their focus set on a far bigger picture.
“This is probably less important than our other races, actually,” Stenicka said. “It’s cool because people at school actually appreciate you for it. But it’s not really where the best competition is.”
The reality of ski racing is that it ultimately knows no boundaries. It makes no difference to the clock whether a skier is in high school or college, tall or short, thick or thin. All that matters is that he or she is fast.
Therein lies the challenge for high school programs. The real competition in the alpine racing ranks is between high schools and races sanctioned by the more prestigious International Ski Federation (FIS), which goes much farther in determining a skier’s stature in the long run.
The primary focus for both Stenicka and Black is on improving their FIS rankings. Comparatively speaking, high school racing can be a tough sell.
“It’s challenging. Their schedules are very grueling to start with, trying to hit the FIS races,” said Lisa Mirabito, head ski coach at Middle Park. “It’s definitely a high priority for them. So for them to come here, it’s great. It makes us competitive and it’s fun because we haven’t been competitive, this competitive at least, for a long time.”
