Vail’s Lindsey Vonn captured her third consecutive World Cup overall title last week. Since 2005 she has reported regularly from the tour in collaboration with Denver Post ski writer John Meyer. This is her final installment this season.
GARMISCH-PARTENKIRCHEN, GERMANY — Next season a lot of the girls are going to be pushing really hard to beat me, and I know it’s going to be tough to stay where I am. But I don’t just want to stay where I am, I want to improve.
I want to improve my giant slalom and slalom — my weakest events — and to get as many wins as possible. I want to continue to push the limits, to ski faster and faster.
I don’t focus on specific records. I just want to keep winning World Cups, keep winning world championships medals and win the overall title again next year.
I’m really happy with everything I was able to accomplish this season. I’m most proud of the Olympic gold medal in downhill. I’m really happy that I was able to close out the season with a victory in super-G at the World Cup Finals, and to win the overall title again was amazing. It went down to the wire with Maria Riesch, and she’s skiing so well right now.
It’s going to be a big challenge to stay ahead of everyone, but I will try to outwork everyone. Hopefully I can keep improving.
I’ll be in New York for a few days to do some media stuff and come cool events, and then I’m coming home to Vail for a few days before heading somewhere that has a beach.
I really need some time off to heal. I’m not supposed to be doing anything that involves impact for four to six weeks because of the bone bruise to my right knee that I suffered last week.
The tentative plan right now is to start my fitness program in the middle of May, train at the Red Bull center in Austria for a couple of weeks around the middle of June, and then do some ski training in New Zealand in July.
I’m hoping to do most of my off-season training in Vail. I want time at home, not traveling for a while. I definitely want to go on a vacation, but I also just want to be at home and not have to do anything. I want to have kind of a normal life, hang out with my friends and family, and not have too many obligations for a while.
If you’re biking up Vail Pass this summer, keep an eye out for me.
