John Jay skiers reach the mountaintop at states

CROSS RIVER, N.Y. - On Feb. 25 at the New York State Ski Championships, Porter Bysshe finished his first slalom run at Gore Mountain in 11th place and getting some shine was at stake.

“I knew the margin was small between placing in the top ten and not getting a medal,” said the sophomore.

So the Wolf stayed in attack mode.

“I came in with the same mentality - get down the mountain and don’t fall,” said Bysshe, and the second heat was good for sixth best and a seventh place finish overall. 

He got there the week before by placing second in the Section One tournament at Hunter.

“I was consistent. I got down the hill, trying to go fast and staying up with the fate of the states on the line,” said Bysshe. 

Second place both times, he knew right after crossing the finish line on run two.

“I was pumped,” he recalled.

Gore was a first, though. Never skiing there before, he noticed the difference from last year’s tournament at Whiteface.  Steeper and shorter versus longer and flat, said Bysshe, “I found it easier.”

He was also positioned to find a place in the giant slalom. Hitting a hard bump, Bysshe stayed on his feet and finished in 17th on the first run. But the bounce did not go his way the second time.

“My ski popped off,” he said, and it takes two runs to get standing.

Of course, he made the most of slalom and did so by staying in striking distance after going off toward the end the first time. “The conditions were pretty beat up,” he revealed.

But he was near the top the second go around. “They reset the course,” said Bysshe.

The skier took advantage, and next year Bysshe hopes to one up the hardware. 

“Don’t fall,” said the Wolf, “and maybe I get two medals.”

The Bysshe family wasn’t done, though. At the sectionals, James finished second in the slalom and also qualified for the states.  

A real nip in the air, the good company of skiers more than made up for the chill.

“It was pretty awesome,” said the junior.

He didn’t mind being on the thin ice of so many accomplished skiers either. “It was something to watch to see them blow us out of the water,” said the elder Bysshe. 

Still, he was in 13th place after his first slalom run and was looking to medal. Unfortunately, his second run wasn’t as good, and 19th place was the final tally.

26th in the giant slalom, he’s got more than practice on his agenda to move up the leaderboard. He and his brother will be coaching at Mohawk, and their pupils won’t be the only ones who will get the chance to improve, according to James.

“Seeing other people’s flaws, pointing them out, I can use the same tips on myself,” he said.

Not done, Sean O’Meara also qualified to make a run at Gore. The second time around, the junior liked the recognition of being a familiar face. “You get treated like a veteran,” said the Wolf.

Even so, he didn’t have the benefit of knowing the course either. O’Meara had the next best thing, though.

With James making the run before him, O’Meara was able to put aside some of the negative forecasts. “He said the course is really easy and ski it really aggressive,” O’Meara conveyed.

The advice left O’Meara off and running. “I took that and skied my best,” he said.

Good for 20 overall, O’Meara added 41st place in the giant slalom, and a 40th place finish in the GS by Matt Wolfe tallied pretty well for the quartet. “We were fourth,” O’Meara concluded.