Creek picks up second slalom win at Winter Park

Shaving nearly two seconds off her second run, Niwot freshman Emily Creek claimed her second individual slalom title of the season at the CHSAA Girls Slalom Event at Winter Park on Feb. 8. Skiing for the Nederland High School team, Creek finished with a combined time of 1 minute, 50.01 seconds, more than two seconds faster than runner-up Beth Anne Droll of Middle Park (1:52.14). Nederland ended the day with 163 points, good for third overall in the tight team race, one point behind Middle Park in second and three behind Evergreen (166) in first.

The victory at Winter Park was the ninth-grader’s third top-ten slalom finish on the year. At Winter Park on Jan. 18, she took second overall to Middle Park’s Ella Wiser, then followed that up with her first high school win at Copper Mountain on Jan. 26, over Durango’s Annabel Gates. In giant slalom (GS) events this season, she was fifth overall at Eldora on Jan. 12, and seventh at Winter Park on Fen. 2.

Creek admitted that she didn’t expect to be winning races so early in her high school career.

“In the past years, I haven’t jumped up this much in racing,” Creek said. “I haven’t gotten in the top where a lot of the good girls are skiing.”

She attributed her unanticipated success to both tangible and intangible factors.

“I’ve been skiing a lot this year,” Creek said. Between practices with Nederland and her club team, as well as races, Creek is seemingly on her skis more than she’s off them these days.

Her recent success has also helped reignite her passion for the sport. “Before, I didn’t really know if I wanted to ski in college, but now I want to ski in college. It’s helped boost my work ethic towards practicing a little harder.”

Nederland head coach Jonathan Damon agreed with Creek’s assessment.

“She has put in a lot of time training with the Nederland Ski Team and Eldora Mountain Ski Club,” Damon said of the “fast and consistent” freshman. “Her talent and training are coming together for some great finishes. Emily's racing this season has been very impressive and in her first year she has established herself as one of the fastest racers on the team and in the CHSAA alpine ski racing league.”

Both Damon and Creek are looking forward to the CHSAA State Skiing Championships on Feb. 22 and 23 at Ski Cooper near Leadville. Damon will be taking a large contingent to the State race this year, and has legitimate contenders in slalom and GS on both the boys and girls teams.

“We have a deep and consistent team, so there are three to four boys and three to four girls who could win either slalom or GS races next week,” Damon said. “Team morale, teamwork, and sportsmanship are really great this year…. It has been an excellent season with many success stories, and we're still building on that as we head into the State Championships.”

As for Creek’s chances, he said the freshman would not necessarily be at a disadvantage against more experienced racers, such as defending GS champion Mariel Gorsuch of Aspen, who has wins in both slalom and GS this season.

“Her youth won't hold her back,” Damon said. “The terrain at Ski Cooper does favor heavier skiers, so lighter skiers like Emily will have to be very careful with their line to hold their speed. She is capable of two consecutive, nearly-perfect runs through the race course, and that's what she'll have to do to win at Ski Cooper.”

Creek is looking forward to racing against Gorsuch and other western slope skiers at next week’s statewide race, and is familiar with the terrain at Ski Cooper. To prepare for the event, she has been competing in the SYNC Cup ski race series, with hopes of qualifying for national-level events.

“I’ve been getting in the habit of racing and controlling how I’m feeling when I’m racing,” Creek said. “Sometimes you get a little nervous, and you’ve got to