Rahlves ends stellar career with super win

CARRABASSETT VALLEY, Maine -- Give or take a bit of emotion, yesterday was like a lot of race days for Daron Rahlves, the 32-year-old veteran from Sugar Bowl, Calif. Except that it was retirement day.

Up at the start before his race in the US Alpine Championships, his high-fives for teammates meant something before he took to the Narrow Gauge course and nailed his seventh national title, his fourth in super-G, in 1 minute 18.80 seconds.

After some partying last night, Rahlves gets on a plane this morning for the West Coast, leaving behind a 13-year career as the top speed skier in US history.

''Yuh, I was feeling it, and it was a definite motivational factor for me today," said Rahlves, the good-natured speed specialist who heads home to his wife, Michelle, and a far less vagabond lifestyle than that of a World Cup ski racer. ''But winning it here was a nice way to step away. Now I'm just heading out to some powder days, a little surfing. I'll have plenty to do."

In Saturday's downhill, Rahlve's sparring partner, Bode Miller, won by more than six-10ths of a second, and Miller nearly won yesterday's super-G. On the lower part of the course, leading Rahlves by a quarter of a second, Miller snagged a gate with his arm, dropping him into second place at the time. He slipped to fourth (1:19.64) after Scott Macartney (1:19.11) and Thomas Lanning (1:19.55) skied into second and third, respectively.

But Rahlves said most of his turns were sharp and he enjoyed beating his longtime rival to go out a winner. ''Hopefully, something we've done here can be passed on now to the younger guys," he said. ''Bode and I were always going at it with each other. We had a lot of 1-2s on the podiums. It's been fun all the way."

Actually, the duo has shared the podium seven times in the last two years, three this year in downhill races. Rahlves retires with 12 World Cup wins, nine in downhill -- the most of any US male -- and three super-Gs. He's also won a super-G world championship gold medal in 2001 and two medals at the 2005 worlds. He never finished better than seventh in the Olympic Games, but Rahlves says he is proudest of his World Cup consistency.

''Sure, the Olympics are huge," he said. ''But World Cup is the day-in, day-out grinding work that really shows off how steadily you can ski over time."

Stacey Cook, 21, had a breakthrough weekend at the championships. Cook, who came in ranked 54th in the world, nailed the top of the tough Sugarloaf course with some perfect turns, then held on with some fast gliding to cross the line and finish first.

Cook, the Californian who finished third in Saturday's downhill, was the 2004 NorAm (minor league) overall and downhill champion.

But stepping into the role of national titlist is another matter, and she now enters a group of 21-year-olds on the women's team -- led by Lindsey Kildow and Julia Mancuso -- that is bound to be in contention for many seasons.

''Julia and Lindsey's success definitely pushes all of us," said Cook, ''and now I know I'm part of it. I see them do it and now I know I can do it, too."

Cook's run yesterday felt right even before she saw her time of 1:23.90.

''Halfway down the course I was really excited. I knew I had just nailed the hard section on top and I was like, 'Just keep it together.' I knew if I did, I would have a fast time."

Veteran Kirsten Clark, the Maine native who won Saturday's downhill, was second (1:24.01) and Kaylin Richardson was third (1:24.04).

''I'm really happy for her," the 28-year-old Clark said of her young teammate. ''This was a real breakthrough for Stacey."

Miller thought the start of his run was also fast. ''I thought I was skiing pretty well over the top half of the course," he said. ''But I lost time when I hit that gate, and on a course like this, you can't get speed back when you lose it."

Miller said he would miss Rahlves and their longstanding rivalry.

But, said Rahlves: ''It's important to walk away having a good feeling on your skis. This was the ultimate way to finish it off today. This wraps it all up."

But as he stood in the start on a sun-drenched Sugarloaf morning, whether Rahlves reflected on all his wins and podiums -- his favorite highlight being his 2003 win at the Hahnenkamm downhill in Kitzbuhel, causing the Austrians to dub his triumph ''Black Saturday" -- by the time he pushed off, Rahlves had boiled his thoughts down to just one.

''Let's go, baby: last ride down."