Up next in our state champion spotlights is Ian Christie of Falmouth. He was the 2025 Class A Slalom state champion. He also won the
SMAA giant slalom and slalom titles. We asked him what he was thinking about at the start and his favorite moment from the season:
1) What were your preparations leading up to the state meet?
I spent a day training at my home mountain Saddleback February break, before heading over to Sugarloaf to spend two days training there with my High School Head Coach, Evan Keefer. A lot of the preparation for the state meet was mental, making sure my teammates and I were in the right mindset come race day to do our best and leave the mountain with no regrets.
2) How did you deal with the pressure and emotions that come along with competing in a state meet?
I always have a few songs in my head that I am able to hum at the top of the race course to keep my nerves stable. But before heading up to the top of each run, I spend a lot of time with my teammates to remember that I am surrounded by a great group of people who always have my back. They also help me remember that it is a sport I grew up doing for fun, so if little 6 year old me was there, he would just want me to do my best and enjoy the experience.
3) What was going through your mind at the start?
I just wanted to have fun and attack the course. I never want to finish a run thinking that I could have done better, that is just not a great feeling. So when you think to attack a course, you ensure that you are trying your hardest, and the result does not matter if you are doing your best. But I was also thinking about crossing that finish line, that team title was always in the back of my mind, and I was always thinking about how I could ensure my run contributed to our teams success.
4) What do you contribute your success to?
I contribute my success to all the people that have surrounded me my whole life. My teammates and coaches now, always support me and help me achieve the best I can. Coaches throughout my life have taught me many valuable lessons and skills. Most importantly my parents and family have always supported me and helped me become the best athlete and person possible.
5) What are your goals/plans for next year?
My goal for next year is to get the third team championship in a row. After narrowly missing out on it Freshman year, I do not want that to happen again. We have won it the past two years, and I believe if we work hard enough, we could put ourselves in a position to do it again.
6) What surprised you the most about this season?
I do not know if this is necessarily a surprise, because I knew he was capable of achieving this. But Zack Small coming in the top 10 in the Giant Slalom at the State Championship was an incredible sight to see. I have always known he has had the ability to do such a thing, and he showed it that day in the GS.
7) What moment/event will you remember the most from the season?
I do not think that anything can top winning the Team State Championship. Being able to go up there with such an amazing group of guys and hold that trophy, nothing can beat that.
8) What do you like most about Alpine Skiing?
I enjoy the suspense of it all. You spend the night before tuning your skis, hours the morning of prepping your body, getting geared, inspecting the course, then mentally focusing on the task ahead of you. All of that, to lead up to a one minute run, where one single mistake could cost you the race.
