U16/18 Race Team – Program Outline

Long Term Athlete Development Plan

US Ski & Snowboard — Alpine Training System 

Biological Age	Post Puberty after Growth Spurt
Chronological Age	Girls: 12–17 years old | Boys: 14–18 years old
Time in Sport	6–11 years in sport
Training Volume	Up to: 480 hours per season, 3-7 sessions per week
Summer / Off-Season	25 days

Training Elements 

• Coached Freeskiing: 20% 

• Coached Drills: 20% 

• Coached Gate Training: 40% 

• Competition Simulation: 20% 

• Freeski with Friends & Family: As much as enjoyable while balancing rest, travel and recovery needs 

• Complementary Sports: Use complementary sports and activities for variety and to enhance aerobic conditioning by increasing training volume in all activities. 

Physical Fitness Domain 

• General Concepts: Implement periodized training with varying volumes and intensity. Training is now essential to seasonal programming with 2-3 sessions per week and off-season fitness plans. 

• Growth and Development: Growth rate slows and stops. Bodies are adult in proportion and muscle to fat ratios. Very little change in height from this point forward. Muscular, skeletal, cardio and respiratory functions are fully formed with capacity for heavier exercise or training loads. 

• Endurance: Develop understanding of the inverse relationship between volume and intensity. Maintain a sport specific and training endurance level. 

• Mobility: Practice a variety of core stability exercises. Incorporate mobility training specific to the sport or discipline. 

• Strength: Practice safety and competence with free weight techniques. As technique is mastered, increase external loads with focus on whole body movements while addressing any imbalances. 

• Power: Continue to incorporate full body movements while increasing volume in jumping, etc. Add duration to strength portion of the workout with continued emphasis on mobility, movement, mechanics and warm up. 

• Motor Skills: Use sport specific exercises and more complicated ABC drills to enhance range of motion that target sport specific movements patterns. 

• Nutrition, Hydration, Recovery: Implement plans for a balanced diet to enhance performance. Keep a logbook of all training related activities such as hydration, diet, rest, recovery, sleep, and other factors that contribute to or diminish physical fitness. 

Technical & Tactical Domain 

• General Focus: Technical and Tactical Stage – Refinement and blending of specific technical and tactical skills. 

• Athletic Stance and Balance: Utilizes tip pressure at turn initiation to create a carved turn and fall line pressure. Can give self-feedback in regards to rotational balance. Ability to adjust edge angle to required turn radius and maintain a strong outside leg to resist turn forces. Can separate arm action from torso. 

• Skills (Rotary, Edging, Pressure): Able to modulate pressure and adjust edge angle for all turn shapes while maintaining a high tuck in most speed event turns with minimal speed loss. 

• Turn Strategies: Linking turns of a variety of sizes and shapes on all terrain and conditions while maintaining speed. Able to limit speed loss during high speed skidding (stivot) maneuvers. 

• Coordination of Movements: As situations dictate, legs can act independently to generate edging, rotation and pressure. Smooth translation of fore/aft movements throughout the turn. 

• Terrain: Refine event specific technical and tactical skills to achieve desired outcome. Integrate the increased strength, power and body size to achieve more complex movements and precision of skill application. 

• Tech/GS and Slalom: Athlete is able to use many methods to clear the slalom gate. Methods match course segments, delay gates, vertical combinations, etc. 

• Speed/DH and SG: Becomes aware of ski to snow Interaction to minimize speed loss. Can transition through tuck positions through a variety of terrain, turns and jumps. Jumps at speed can be managed through different types of terrain including traverses, turns or straight jumps. 

• Course Sets: Can read course sets requiring speed control and where speed is gained. Mastered all but the most difficult course set. Developing an understanding risk management as related to terrain and course set. 

• Competition Strategies: The yearly training plan demonstrates a balance between all disciplines. 

Equipment Selection & Preparation Domain 

• General Focus: Adhere to USSA(U16) and FIS(U18+) rules for all equipment selection. 

• Skis: Slalom, GS and Super G skis with training skis. Tuning skills continue to improve. Insight into waxing and grinding necessary for speed skiers. 

• Boots: Proper boot fit and flex are critical for performance. Boots facilitate interaction with the ski. Performance considerations may Include flex, cant, forward lean, ramp angle, and foot beds. 

• Protection: Head, arm, hand, shoulder, back, teeth (mouth guard) and shin protection recommended based on event. 

• Poles: GS-standard length. SL-pole guard for blocking and protection, pole may be slightly shorter. 

Mental Training Domain 

• Goal Setting: Clearly understand and define the ‘why’ for sport participation. Set process and performance goals prior to seasonal activities. Use a reflective practice to assess and refine goals. Form support structures that effectively encourage and assist goal attainment strategies. 

• Team, Training & Competition: Collaborate with team members who share similar motivations and behaviors. Perform training exercises that facilitate mastery of skills. Perform in competitions to demonstrate the mastery of factors linked to goal achievement and performance outcomes. 

• Self-Talk: Continue to monitor and evaluate self talk during performance related experiences. Incorporate self talk into routines and process goals. 

• Mental Imagery: Continue to develop imagery skills. Master use of imagery for training purposes and pre-performance routines. 

• Intensity: Establish breath control and generate consistency of intensity levels during performance related experiences. 

• Focus: Continue to evaluate where focused attention should be at any given time to support process goals. Incorporate mindful practices into daily routines in and away from training and competition. 

Competition Domain 

• General Focus: Compete for skill mastery. 

• Competition Types: Appropriate level and number of race starts ranging from local to national and international competition. Focus on head-to-head performance with Junior Championship track athletes. May race ‘up’ for experience or ‘down’ for rehearsal. 

• Disciplines: U16s compete in all disciplines. Primary focus on Tech (SL and GS) with limited SG. 

• Race Season and Volume: Nov-April, 10-20 Starts U16 max of 40 starts for U18. 

• Race to Training Ratio: 1 race for every 4 training days.