Taam mostly skins on the ski areas, partly to mimic race day and because it allows for a long stretches of vertical. He’ll pace himself depending on how much time he has: longer days are on the easier side, while on shorter days he’ll challenge himself with high-intensity intervals.
Highland Bowl is where Taam and Gaston (who are not competing in this year’s Power of Four due to a scheduling conflict with the world championships in Europe) usually pull away from the field, says Taam. He’ll focus time training on Highlands’ more technical sections, practicing kick turns and skinning up icy side hills, but when it comes to skiing down, “that’s where John and I really excel.” After about an hour and a half of climbing from the base of Highlands to the 12,400-foot peak, they can ski to the bottom of Deep Temerity in three minutes.
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