WINTER PARK — Tommy Ford used a blazing second run on mushy snow to successfully defend his giant slalom title at the U.S. championships Thursday, edging Tim Jitloff and Ted Ligety.
After the race, Ford almost apologized for knocking off Ligety, the heavy favorite after a World Cup season in which he captured his second straight GS title.
“He’s been skiing well all year, and I’ve been struggling a little bit,” said Ford, who donned a helmet and orange- rimmed goggles designed by Ligety’s company, Shred, along with wearing a matching racing suit. “The conditions are a little different than what we usually race on. He’s still a good skier.”
On this afternoon, though, in soft snow that led to plenty of ruts, Ford simply was faster.
Ford, of Bend, Ore., flew through the course in a combined time of 2 minutes, 22.24 seconds, holding off Jitloff by 0.09 seconds for yet another title at nationals. Ford won the giant slalom, slalom and combined at the event last spring.
“Tommy is a tough skier,” Ligety said. “No surprise that he won it.”
Ligety led after the first run but momentarily got tangled on a gate during his second trip, the cloth portion wrapping around his boot. He made up for the lost time by powering through the bottom portion of the course, finishing third, 0.30 seconds behind Ford.
“The course is so bumpy and soft, it’s hard to control what’s going on with your skiing,” Ligety said. “To get on the podium with that mistake is good.”
Before his second run, Ligety visited with a group of children and took them onto the course, instructing the kids to raise their arms in the air as they glided across the finish line.
Ligety couldn’t quite follow their lead.
Even with little on the line except bragging rights, Ligety showed up at nationals, vowing to hold nothing back.
He made the roughly 400- mile drive in from Park City, Utah, stayed barely a day and took off again, skipping the upcoming super-G and slalom events.
“We’re so cooked by this time, it’s hard to take it seriously,” Ligety said. “It’s hard to get motivated after you get done with World Cup finals, to race again.”
Once nationals conclude, Ford will rest his body and work his mind as he takes a few classes at Dartmouth. It’s time off he said he desperately needs.
This was an up-and-down season for Ford, who finished 11th in a World Cup super-G event in Austria, only to break his right thumb later in a European Cup event. He had the fastest second run, allowing him to sneak past Jitloff.
“Tommy fought me really well. He just nipped me there at the end with a great second run,” Jitloff said.
U.S. Alpine Championships
At Winter Park
Today: Women’s giant slalom, 9:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m.
Saturday: Men’s super-G, 9:30 a.m.; women’s super-G, 1 p.m.
Sunday: Women’s slalom, 9:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m.; men’s slalom, 11 a.m. and 2 p.m.
