Skydiving Surprise at Stifel U.S. Ski Team Conditioning Camp

After a few long days of intense training and conditioning, jumping out of the sky was the furthest thing from the minds of Stifel U.S. Ski Team’s women’s alpine team members while attending their conditioning camp.

In one of the annual summer conditioning camps held at the USANA Center of Excellence powered by iFit, the women’s alpine team came together to train following an intense schedule organized by the Alpine Sport Science Director Per Lundstam along with coaches Kip Spangler and Foreste Peterson. The team participated in skills quest testing, gymnastics, pool sessions, and played ice hockey. However, on the schedule at the end of the week was a threatening session identified only as a “Hell Session.”

The main goal of the camps is to foster team camaraderie through a challenging block of physical and mental training. The team’s trainers strive to include as many athletes from the NorAm to the World Cup level as possible, attempting to form a cohesive group.

This camp certainly succeeded in its goal of training while keeping the athletes on their toes. On the Thursday of the training week, the women were in for a bit of a surprise when it came time to commute to their “Hell Session.”

The “Hell Session” was scheduled to last five hours. The coaches did not reveal what it would entail, but they wanted the women to prepare their minds for an extremely hard workout. 

Predictably, the athletes approached the session with curiosity and grit, ready to tackle whatever crazy workout the team had planned.

But an intense Navy SEAL workout was far from the reality. The women’s curiosity intensified as they headed down to Salt Lake City. 

“When we were headed to Salt Lake, I thought maybe it was going to be an Air Force thing; I was very confused,” said Macuga. 

But surprise! They pulled into a skydiving facility.

When the team approached the planes, nerves were high, but every athlete confidently jumped from the aircraft.

Others had no fear, comparing the activity to bungee jumping in New Zealand. 

Overall, the conditioning camp was a success for the athletes. The opportunity to bring together team athletes of all levels and ages is something athletes and staff hope to continue.

“I think it’s so important to have a week of conditioning where we’re experiencing all kinds of suffering together,” said Bocock. “I never get to see the D team girls when I am on the road in the winter, so being able to do this activity together was very cool,” said Macuga.

Press release @ Ski Racing Media