Icy Stelvio will test downhillers

BORMIO, Italy — The bottom section of the Stelvio course is so hard and icy that even Bode Miller is wondering if he has the stamina to ski it.

Miller, who won the World Cup downhill here last year and took gold in both downhill and super-G at the 2005 world championships on the Stelvio, said conditions this season are as challenging as he's ever seen them.

"The top is bumpy, so you get tired, then the bottom is icy and dark and when it's all in the shade like it is now you can't see anything," Miller said Saturday after placing 10th in the final training session ahead of Sunday's race. "The bumps rattle you so much because it rained down here and it's all ice.

"I feel pretty fatigued before this last pitch. Coming off San Pietro (the course's biggest jump) the legs are burning. I have the fitness to make it no problem, but to execute the type of turns I like to make takes a little bit of extra power compared to some guys. Some guys are more on both feet. That makes it tough for me."

Making things even tougher for Miller is that he still has a sore ankle and bruised ribs from a crash in Beaver Creek, Colo., earlier this month.

"The ankle is still a little bit touchy on this stuff because it's so hard and bumpy," Miller said.

The conditions were daunting enough that Miller deliberately missed the compulsory bib draw on Saturday. Miller was fined $933 and given a later start position, which should be favorable because the icy section at the bottom of the course will no longer be in the shade when he skis 46th.

"He doesn't think that this is a disadvantage to start later because the light is better and the slope is hard enough that it won't deteriorate," said Forest Carey, the coach of Miller's independent team.

Miller finished second in the previous downhill in Val Gardena last weekend but the New Hampshire skier is still seeking his first victory this season after failing to finish six of his 13 races.

Michael Walchhofer, the Austrian who won back-to-back downhills here in 2006, led the final training session.

"Normally I'm not bad under these conditions, but it's not fun to ski," Walchhofer said.

The Stelvio is the only course on the World Cup circuit where skiers can see the finish from the start, even though at 2 miles, only the famed Lauberhorn in Wengen, Switzerland, is longer.

Nearly every skier was bent over at the knees in exhaustion after finishing their training runs, with running times lasting more than two minutes.