A day in the life at Killington World Cup:

We're excited to be in our sixth season supporting #ThePaulaProject, and one of the highlights is always heading to the Stifel Killington Cup to cheer on Paula and her fellow teammates. This year, we asked Paula to take us behind the scenes and share a glimpse of what a typical race day looks like for her! 

5:30 am: Wake up  

As I have matured a bit in my sport, I have learned to enjoy a slow morning with time to wake up and enjoy a cup of coffee while playing all the NYT games.  

6:00 am: Breakfast  

It is a nice treat to be competing at home because the breakfast buffet has all the classic American breakfast foods. After a long stint in Europe, it's nice to have a bagel with cream cheese or a waffle with syrup along with your eggs. (Unique to Killington WC, all the athletes stay in the same hotel which means you are seeing all the competitors first thing in the morning.) 

6:20 am: Off snow warm-up 

Heading back to the room to do some activation exercises which include: 

1. Limbering and stretching 
2. Slow Pilates work to turn on the core and back muscles  
3. Some BFR (blood flow restriction)- helps to warm up the leg without fatiguing them too much. 

6:50 am: Boot up and Depart 

The drive from the hotel to the hill is quite short, which means we will get all geared up in the lobby and then Ryan will drive me up to the hill.  

7:10 am: Load Lift   

7:20 am On hill warm-up  

Once I am on the hill, depending on how I am feeling I will take a free ski run and one or two training runs on Skyelark. (At most World Cup races, they will set a “practice” course on slopes near the race venue.) 

8:00 am: First Run Inspection 

We are given a certain window of time to slide down the racecourse and look at the terrain and the course set. This gives us time to talk with our coaches and make a plan for our race run! 

8:20 am: Hospitality chill 

After inspection I like to head inside, take my equipment off, and put my headphones in a chill to a little Noah Kahan or Zach Bryan. Sometimes we play cards as a team but it really depends on the day.  

9:45 am: Head up for race run  

Boots, helmet, and protection back on! (I only like to ride the lift with Ryan or with one of my teammates before I race.) 

10:00 am: Run One Race Start 

I haven’t had the opportunity to start bib one too often, so my routine is to watch a few of the top women on the TV screens at the top of the course. After, I do my band warm up with our PT, then click into my skis, get a little debrief from the coaches on the radio, fist bump Ryan, and its race time.  

10:45 am: Finish area walkout 

I like to try and sign as many autographs as possible while in Killington because the fans are so amazing. The walk out of the finish area can take some time! 

12:00 pm: Second Run Inspection 

The course is reset in between the first and second run by a different nations coach, so in one race we ski two very different courses on the same hill.  

12:20 pm: More chill time in Hospitality 

1:00 pm: Second Run Race Start 

Second run is run in reverse order of slowest to fastest timed in the top 30 competitors. If everything goes to plan first run, I will be starting later in the lineup. No matter where I start second run, the routine is the same as first run. I wouldn’t same I am superstitious, but I do like my routine! 

2:30 pm: Race finish and Awards  

3:00 pm: Autograph signing at the Skida Tent  

One of my favorite parts of Killington is being able to interact with friends, family, and fans. Spending time at the Skida tent post-race really allows me to get the face time with the crowd that they deserve.  

3:45 pm: Head back to the hotel  

Take off all the ski clothes I have been I for far too many hours. Then I use this time to decompress and unpack the day, but it is usually short lived because there is lots to do with a race the next day! 

4:30 pm: Prerace activation and Physical Therapy  

This can vary day to day, it truly depends on how my body is feeling. This could be spending time on a spin bike to get a recovery in or it could be a series of explosive exercises to prime for the slalom race. Then it is off to see our PT who takes care of all my nagging problems but in all honesty our PT’s put in overtime on race day. They are there for us from beginning to end, no matter the circumstances. 

6:00 pm: Team Meeting 

Here we get to debrief the day as a whole team and get the plan for the coming day: which includes celebrating those who had great race, hearing the race schedule, and finding out what bib number you are.   

6:15 pm: Dinner  

Normally all the girls on the US team eat dinner together, this is a time where everyone can just be themselves and let the barriers come down. It is usually silly and there is lots of laughs to be had. 

7:30 pm: Head back to the room and unwind   

PHEW! It's finally time to relax with good book or a TV show! 

9:00 pm: Sleep! 

After the long day, I’m zonked and have a hard time staying awake. 

Thanks Paula! We can't wait to follow along this season!