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Robbie Dixon comes home

Whistler skier looks for consistency after breaking through on World Cup circuit
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Ten Years Later After moving to Whistler to focus on ski racing, Robbie Dixon is having a breakthrough season on the World Cup circuit. Photo by Pentaphoto, Alpine Canada.

Ten years ago, when he knew he wanted to be a ski racer, Whistler’s Robbie Dixon left his parent’s home North Vancouver and moved in with his grandparents in Whistler.

He was 14 when he moved to the community that he now considers home, and where he immersed himself in the sport.

“The Vancouver school system and sports like skiing don’t go together,” said Dixon. “On the other hand they had a great program in Whistler Secondary that let you miss a little school each week to train, and still stay on top of (your education). My family were weekend warriors going back to the time when I was racing for the Blackcomb club, before the Whistler and Blackcomb clubs merged, but it made sense for me to move here full-time.”

Dixon’s pursuit of his dream followed the usual channels — Whistler Mountain Ski Club, a spot on the B.C. Team, a few starts in Nor-Am competitions and results good enough to earn a spot on the national development team in 2005 — one year behind his former ski club teammate and fellow speed team member Manuel Osborne-Paradis, who now has three World Cup podiums to his credit.

On the development team, Dixon proved himself on the Nor-Am Cup and Europa Cup circuits, and earned a World Cup start with a Nor-Am Cup championship in super G in 2005-2006. He missed a few months of racing with an injury in January 2007, but rejoined the development team later in the season for a handful of races before joining the national team for training this past summer.

Although he did have a few World Cup starts last year, he considers this to be his rookie season with the national team. And what a season it has been.

With start numbers near the back of the pack, Dixon has worked to improve his standing with every race. Then in Kitzbuhel, Austria, on one of the hardest courses on the circuit, Dixon took bib number 43 and managed a sixth place finish in the super G against the top speed skiers in the world. He was one of five Canadian speed skiers to crack the top-30 that day, and one of three to make the top-15. Dixon wasn’t the top Canadian, with John Kucera placing one spot ahead in fifth, but the performance stood out. It was the first time that Dixon had cracked the top-30, and another indicator of just how deep the Canadian team is becoming.

Dixon followed up nine days later with his first top-30 in downhill, placing 29 th overall at Chamonix. The next day he was 12 th in the downhill component of the supercombined event, although he made a few mistakes in the slalom component which put him in 43 rd overall.

Next up was the national championship in Whistler, where Dixon placed fourth in downhill and fifth in super G behind members of the national team.

“This year was a big one for experience, and was all about learning the tracks and getting out to all the different venues,” said Dixon in a phone interview from a national team training camp at Nakiska, Alberta. “I had three goals coming into the season cracking the top-30 in super G and downhill, and the possibility of GS (giant slalom). I’ve accomplished two of those with the super G in Kitzbuhel and the downhill in Chamonix, which were big stepping stones. Now I want to… better those results and keep that consistency. I think it’s possible, and that I can do it.

“It’s already helped. By finishing sixth in super G that helped me for the next race in Whistler, where I will be able to start in the top-30. Starting sooner gives you an advantage in a cleaner track, less ruts, and that kind of thing. It makes it easier to pursue my goal of cracking the top-30 and staying in the top-30.”

With the FIS World Cup returning to Whistler for the first time in 10 years this week, Dixon is confident that the Canadians are as well prepared as can be. Not only did the mens’ team get a chance to race the downhill and super G courses at the recent Canadian Championships, they also spent time on the course this summer.

“We ran the nationals, and last year when the season was over we did a training camp in April on the Dave Murray Downhill, using the top and lower part for eight to 10 days. We’re going to do it again this year at the end of March and the beginning of April,” said Dixon.

“Coming home is going to be sweet for a couple of reasons. For one thing we get to bring the World Cup back to Whistler for the first time in 10 years, which the whole team is pretty excited about. It’s also home to me and my family, and it’s an opportunity for friends to come out and cheer us on and watch me do what I do. It’s tough for people to come out and watch races when we’re away in Europe for so much of the season.”

Dixon said he wouldn’t be where he is without the strong support of his family over the years.

“That’s mostly how I’ve done it, although there have also been a few anonymous donors over the years that have helped out with the financial part of racing. This year I picked up Haywood Securities as a headgear sponsor, and they’ve helped pitch in a lot, and then I have all the team sponsors and the team helping me out,” he said.

“It’s taken a while to get here, and my rookie season was another step forward to the goals and dreams I’ve had since I was a little kid. It’s definitely worth it. I’ve really enjoyed this year. The coaching staff has been awesome, and the fact that the guys are doing so well has been really motivating. Racing beside guys who, on any given week, can be on the podium has made a huge difference, and it’s fun to be a part of it.”