Springtime is my favorite time to come home to the Vail Valley. There is truly nothing better than skiing the slushy Back Bowls with my family under a blue, cloudless sky. It’s also the best place to come home to after a long competitive winter season.
This past year marked my comeback from spinal surgery in April of 2023, and I’m so happy to report that I competed in every competition pain-free. I finished the year ranked 7th overall on the FIS World Cup Tour with four 4th place finishes in both single and dual moguls as my best results. Our team also finished as the best moguls team in the world for the fourth year in a row.
Perhaps more importantly, though, I’m healthy and had the best time traveling the world with my teammates. In a recent article by the Vail Daily, I was quoted saying, “If I really examine what I’ve overcome to get to those fourth places, I would say the word is ‘gratitude’ – gratitude to be feeling healthy and to be able to risk a lot in my skiing to try and match the level of skiing that’s happening on the women’s World Cup. To even be in the running for a podium was really meaningful for me.”
Our US women’s moguls team is absolutely exceptional – all seven of us competed in nearly every final round, achieving podiums and top 5 finishes every weekend. It’s a massive honor to be a small part of this era in women’s freestyle skiing.
My favorite trip of the winter was in March, where we competed in Almaty, Kazakhstan and Valmalenco, Italy for the final World Cups of the season, then US Nationals in Waterville Valley, New Hampshire. The girls on my team and I took advantage of our international whereabouts and planned some extra travel around the events. It’s always been important to me to make the most of the experiences presented to me on this journey, and it’s amazing to be so aligned with my teammates in that way.
We spent three days in Bangkok, Thailand where we explored the city via bikes, eating copious amounts of delicious street food in 85-degree weather. We toured the Grand Palace, Wat Arun, saw too many golden Buddha’s to count, and had a traditional Thai spa day which prepared our bodies for the events ahead. It’s quite the privilege to have these opportunities to learn about different cultures with my best friends while pursuing my athletic dreams.
We then traveled back into winter for the event in Kazakhstan which was filled with fun and bluebird days. We’ve been there for World Cups four times before, and it’s definitely the craziest stop on tour, but the people are lovely and the accommodations are very nice. They treat us athletes with the best care! I competed a cork 720 on the top jump in singles for one of the first times since surgery, which was a massive feat for me, and I placed 4th in duals! I skied against my teammate, Olivia Giaccio, for the bronze medal and lost the dual by the closest possible margin – 17-18.
As the season progressed and I felt more comfortable post-surgery, I was able to push my speed and risk more in my skiing. To see it culminate in a great result against one of my teammates was very cool. While it’s certainly fulfilling to have gotten as close as possible to a podium, it’s simultaneously frustrating because I always strive for more. I’m an innately competitive human being and after a lot of 4th places this year, I’m feeling extremely motivated for training this summer/fall to close that gap. My homebase these days is in Salt Lake City, Utah to be as close as possible to the US Ski Team training facilities, so I will spend most of the prep season there and in New Zealand in August/September to chase the snow.
After our successful event in Kazakhstan, we had three days off before the World Cup Finals in Valmalenco (several hours north of Milan), so we rented a quaint farmhouse via AirBnb in Simigniano, Tuscany. I’d never been to Tuscany before and I certainly wasn’t disappointed. We toured the infamously historical cities of Siena and San Gimignano and did a 25 mile e-bike tour all around the Tuscan countryside stopping at vineyards and local farms to taste their delicious products. Our AirBnb hosts even provided a farm-to-table dinner (possibly the best meal I’ve ever had) where all of the food came directly from their animals and farmland. Again, it felt like such a dream to be vacationing in the middle of a ski trip!
We drove up to Valmalenco with full bellies and memories to last a lifetime. Valmalenco is a charming Italian mountain town right near the Dolomites, and it will always hold a special place in my heart as that was my first European ski destination when I was 14 years old for the FIS Junior World Championships (my Dad even got to come). It’s fun that they have a Dual Moguls World Cup there now, and while I skied great, I met the world #1, Jakara Anthony. in the round of 8 and she was simply faster. Regardless, I was proud of my skiing and even prouder to finish the season ranked 7th in the world with a healthy mind and body.
We finished off the trip at US Nationals in Waterville Valley, NH where we competed with all of the other top mogul skiers in the nation. It’s such a fun opportunity to blend the different age groups and levels of skiing at Nationals, and I was (as per usual) very impressed with the younger generation’s ability and drive. To top it off, it was great to take home the bronze medal on singles day during an unprecedented East Coast powder day!
It’s crazy to think that another season has come and gone, marking my 9th year on the US Ski Team and my 8th FIS World Cup Tour. Thanks to all the endless support I have (including my amazing partnership with the Inn at Riverwalk), my passion for the sport has never been stronger and I’m thrilled to continue my quest for Olympic Gold in 2026, as well as all the unforgettable adventures that come with it! Thank you so much for reading.