Sophomore Daniel Brunker is an avid alpine skier. Brunker, who has been skiing for over ten years, recently sat down with Zephyrus to talk about his alpine career.

Zephyrus: How long have you been skiing?

Daniel Brunker:  I’ve been skiing since I was three years old and racing since I was seven.

Zephryus: How did you react to winning state?

D.B.: It was an amazing feeling, I just couldn’t stop smiling because I knew that all the hard work that I had been putting in for the season really paid off. Also, it was great to send the seniors (Dennis Bao and Nick Griggs) off to college as champions.

Zephryus: How do you train for alpine?

D.B.: Every day from about 4 to 7 p.m., I train at Hyland Hills with my club team, Team Gilboa, and the high school team. We usually do a few drills that focus on the technique of skiing and then get into regular courses as well.

Zephyrus: I heard you are participating in the Junior Olympics, can you tell me more about that? How did you get to participate, and how are you preparing?

D.B.: The junior Olympics is a race held in Colorado. It is made up of athletes from the Central Region which is Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, and Ohio. And then the Rocky Region which is the Rocky Mountain states. There is about 40 athletes that qualify to go in central at a qualifying race in Marquette, Michigan. If you ski well enough there, you are selected to go to the race in Colorado. It’s five days of racing where you ski all four disciplines: Downhill, Super-G, GS, and Slalom.

Zephyrus: What do you do during the offseason of alpine?

D.B.: The offseason for me consists of a lot of lifting, crossfit training, and conditioning. Also, for a week or two during the summer, I train out in Mt. Hood, Oregon with my club team.