It was my first time in my native Norway, and I was happy to get another top-10! I ended up in 9th place in what turned out to be a very tight Super G race in Hafjell. There was a three-way tie for first and I was just four tenths behind the winners. It felt good to discover that I’d won the last, most technical split. (I was 45th on the top flat! It’s practically impossible to make up that kind of time.) It’s always nice to win splits because it reminds me that I am in fact capable of winning a race!

It had been a long time coming, but I also finally got my first top-30 World Cup GS finish in two years! Starting with bib number 58, I moved up into 24th place after a solid first run. In the second run I moved up a bit more and ended up in a respectable 21st place. Both runs I had top-15 splits. My GS is really coming along and getting some World Cup GS points under my belt should help me secure a start position for GS next season.

After Hafjell I got to go home for the first time in over two months. During my short six-day break I had the pleasure of hosting an Olympic party at my friend’s bar in Seattle. I had such a wonderful time catching up with all of the people from my past who’ve given me such tremendous support as I pursued my dream. It meant a lot to me to be able to see and thank all of those who are close to me—and we all had lots of fun!

Back in Scandinavia, I competed in my last World Cup of the ‘06 season. Only those ranked in the top-25 in the World are allowed to compete in World Cup Finals, which was held in Are, Sweden—site of the 2007 World Championships. I felt like I’d skied a good, fast run, but I found myself in 12th at the end of the day. As usual, I was close to the top-10—just seven hundredths off—and I missed the podium by about a half of a second. The points I earned kept me in 11th place in the Super G standings for the year, so I am officially ranked 11th in the world in Super G!

My next races will be U.S. Nationals in Sugarloaf, Maine, immediately after which I will start up school at Dartmouth for the Spring.