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I
awoke early to take advantage of a lifetime
opportunity .. to join our Finnish
ski champion on his morning training session
at RUKA. Arriving to the slope at
7:30am, it appeared the whole village was
sleeping. The only sounds to be heard was
the hum of the ski lift, the clicking of boot
buckles, the whoosh of skis gliding down
a glistening slope and the morning whistles
from the birds. A clear blue sky and
glowing sunshine set the idyllic scene for
what Kalle refers to as, ‘a nice day in the
office!’
Kalle’s dedicated father and lifetime
couch, Jouni, had already prepared the
course and Kalle´s elder brother Keke,
was also there for time keeping and support.
It was a pleasant display of family
loyalty and commitment to encourage a
son and brother in his training regime.
For it’s at this time when the season is
over, that Kalle needs to stay motivated
and maintain his fitness.
By trying to mirror each run and stay in
Kalle’s tracks, I gained a serious amount
of respect and admiration for the speed,
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accuracy and ‘no fear’ required in this
sport. The hidden fire or spark in Kalle’s
eyes proves to us that he has what it
takes. Today Kalle was not only training;
he was testing ‘which ski fits best’.
Atomic offer a great diversity of skis and
it’s important for Kalle to find his perfect
pair. Perfect might not mean the fastest.
Some of the faster skis can cause other
problems on the race, so it’s a matter of
finding a pair that is fast but stable at the
same time. Times for 3 different sets of
skis with varied widths were recorded.
After 15 practise runs and a best time of
31.81 seconds, Kalle deserved a cup of
coffee!
There’s something Kalle can do faster
than skiing ...and that’s eat a chocolate
muffin! So after having recharged his
energy he shared his thoughts on last season’s
performance. 2004 felt a little different
to Kalle .. for a while he was ‘the
skier’, having won 8 World Cup Slaloms.
This season, coming 4th in the World
Championships did not please him at all;
no-one wants to miss the podium by 1
place!
15
Printed on OP Opaque Cream Smooth © 60 g/m 2 / 40,5 lbs (shade 75)