Well.. we should have been racing today, but that didn't happen. Goals today were to get the intermediate eyes installed, tested and then get the start installed.
We got most of it done, but the start wasn't built until about 3pm. They have decided to have the start halfway down a pitch called "Sunset". Normally the start hut holds about 20 people, but this hut holds the starter, the start referee, the racer and their coach. Wait till the CBC gets up there. Not only that, the slope is about 30 degrees it will be pretty easy to slide/fly right by it as you sideslip down Sunset. Tomorrow will be interesting to be sure.
About 4:30, I made it to the start to help the local team of volunteers finish the wiring. They are responsible for getting the cables to the locations. We are responsible for hooking it up to the equipment. At a World Cup race, you can have as many as 8 pairs of wire that have to go all the way back to the start hut (Start for system A, start for system B, Headset, Backup Handtimers headset, Display board data, radar data, plus a few other gadgets we bring to the show).
Did I mention the sun sets about 3:30 in the valley and about 4pm up at the top. Brett (one of the volunteers) was finishing the cable connections when I got there. He had glued himself to the side of this 30+ degree slope in -15C weather attempting to crimp 8 pairs of wires. At the same time we are getting pressure from below to get out of there as their is a snow cat with winch attached going to groom part of this hill. It is so steep that the Cat it attached to the top of the hill with a winch and the only safe place to be when this is going on is the next area code.
The moon was rising as we left (see the picture of Brent, Polly and Camille) with the moon behind them. Half the ski down was on snow that had groomed by snow cat tracks (ie: not groomed), and the rest was on newly groomed snow that we could really let it rip.
The other shot of a freezing Andy. You can see all the rocks behind him. This what we have to ski through each morning.
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