What Miller Said Doesn't Bode Well

After a 3-month winless streak, Franconia NH-born Bode Miller became the first American to win the World Cup title in 22 years last weekend. You can’t say enough about the amazing performance Bode gave. As always he won it his way, skiing with abandon, being brash about it, too. He skied every race while other competitors were skiing to finish for points.

But, what Miller said in a recent USA Today interview may be more telling about what it takes to win against the back drop of the rush to judgment of top athletes in the spread of performance enhancing drug inquiries. Asked in the interview why he lives and travels the tour in a mobile home, Miller said that besides the privacy it affords him he doesn’t have to eat in cafeterias and large venues with other athletes where their food may be tainted by someone bent on sabotaging a career.

It that what all this is coming to? Great athletes having to be paranoid about where, what and with whom they eat, because the food and drug police might catch them with something in their bloodstreams that was put there unknowingly? If that’s what Bode thinks and how he feels he needs to live, then we’ve gone way past the point of common sense and fairness.

Here is an athlete whose parents led an organic lifestyle and ensured that Bode grew up with a gentle understanding of the natural beauty in the world and a strong sense of individualism. They may have been right in keeping Bode somewhat protected form the outer world while he was growing up and before letting him loose in it for our enjoyment of watching his special skiing talents.

Compared to other sports, skiing has been relatively free from doping scandals. But, the threat suggested by Miller that everyone needs to look over their shoulder and not trust anyone else is contrary to the concept of sportsmanship and fair play.

Major sports organizations need to collectively get their heads together on this issue, introduce common standards and penalties, but above all communicate more with the athletes so that they don’t have to compete in an atmosphere of fear. Athletes like Bode have enough to worry about going down a 62% incline at 85 mph.

How to Ski Without Getting Hurt

According to a recent article in USA Today, twice as many snowboarders are injured on the slopes than skiers every day*. And, the two best ways to avoid injury are getting in shape before the season starts, and following the basic safety rules once on the slopes.

Knee injuries account for 30-40% of the injuries according to Kevin Plancher, an official doctor of the US Ski and Snowboard team. Your knees act as shock absorbers during skiing. A lack of strength and flexibility in your knees increases the chance of injury significantly.

You should do stretching exercises for your quads and hamstrings, plus abdominal curls and leg lifts for at least four weeks prior to your first day on the slopes. A dozen a day of each should get you ready. Do more if you can.

Being in generally good shape helps reduce injury, but doesn’t mean you are in shape for skiing. Once on the slopes, stretch before and after skiing, and stop when you get fatigued.

According to the USA Today article, most injuries occur in the late afternoon when skiers are tired. Don’t forget to wear a helmet.And most importantly, learn how to fall. Believe it or not, being in good shape helps you prevent injuries in a fall.

Just in case you’ve forgotten the rules on how to fall—don’t fully straighten your legs, keep your knees flexed, keep your arms up and forward, and don’t try to get up until you have stopped sliding.

*3 in every 1,000 skiers and 7 in every 1,000 skiers are injured every day (USA Today).