Ski racing and me

Even though I enjoy watching ski races on occasion (that is, Alpine skiing only), I've always had an ambivalent relationship to that activity. I don't think it really represents skiing; it just is an offshoot of the sport and one that is quite artificial at that.

To me, skiing is an activity that begin with a blank canvass and that gets filled in as wanders around, according to the mood of the day, the weather, the sights, the quality and quantity of snow, the paths that are accessible, the infinite variations in terrain and all kinds of surprises.

It's totally unpredictable, changes as it unfolds and no skiing experience is ever quite the same. To me this totally unpredictable adventure is what skiing ought to be.

In contrast, ski racing is an ersatz too far rigid and so removed from that rich experience that skiing ought to be...