High school alpine skiing: Bell finishes strong

Maxx Bell knew he had the potential for some podium finishes.

His first run times would often have him within reach, but the Edward Little alpine skier would then watch it slip away in the second run. Fixing that became his goal.

“I worked a lot in the offseason with conditioning and stuff,” said Bell, a sophomore. “It was obvious to everyone that I really couldn’t finish two runs last year. So my main focus was putting down two solid runs. I knew putting down two solid runs would put me in the top five or the top three.”

Sure enough, Bell won the Class A slalom championship. He also finished eighth in the giant slalom. In the KVACs he won the giant slalom and finished fourth in the slalom.

“My consistency really improved,” Bell said. “I’d put down a good, solid first run last year. Then I’d get a little tense and a little nervous and even a little tired toward the end of the course. I’d just blow out the second run then.”

In the states a year ago, he had the second-best time in the first run in the giant slalom, only to finish seventh after a slower second run. In the slalom, he was among the leaders after the first run but didn’t finish the second.

In addition to his training, he tried to be better prepared this year.

“I just had a lot of motivation and I really had to know the course in and out, like the back of my hand,” Bell said. “I had to know where all the little bumps and terrain is. So I’d know what to nail on that section of the course to finish.”

This year, after two podiums in the KVAC, he went into the states with high expectations. In the giant slalom he was first after the opening run but stumbled in the second run. He still managed to finish but ended up eighth. That fueled his race the next day. He won the slalom with a pair of impressive runs.

“I was still angry about the day of the GS,” Bell said. “So I was like, ‘I’m just going to go out and shred the second day and go out on top.'”

Bell is also a standout football and baseball player at EL, but he says skiing is one of the tougher sports you could ever compete in.

“Not many people understand how competitive it is,” Bells said. “It takes so much out of you and so much strength. I think the top athletes are skiers because there’s so much athleticism just to go down the course.”

kmills@sunjournal.com

Ryland Van Decker Oxford Hills Jr.

Nick Newman Mountain Valley Jr.

Maxx Bell Edward Little Soph.

Lucas Alley Spruce Mountain Jr.

Maguire Anaszewski Winthrop Fr.

Samuel Smith, Mt. Blue Fr.

Second Team

Connor Jackson Edward Little Soph.

Kyle Mooney Edward Little Soph

Jacob Beauchesne Mountain Valley Jr.

Julian Kirouac Leavitt Sr.

Kyle Farrington Mt. Blue Sr.

Miles Pelletier Mt. Blue Jr.

Honorable Mention

Isaac Elliot, Edward Little Sr.; Carson McEvoy, Gray-New Gloucester Fr.; Kyle Mercier, Gray-New Gloucester Fr.; Mitchell Haines, Mt. Abram Sr.; Machaon Henderson, Mt. Abram Jr.; Hunter Bolduc, Mt. Blue Soph.; Dylan Roberts, Mt. Blue Sr.; Jon Adler, Mountain Valley Jr.; Curtis Gauvin, Mountain Valley Soph.; Nate Legere, Mountain Valley Jr.; Andrew Arsenault, Mountain Valley, Jr.; McKinley Murphy, Oxford Hills Jr.; Chad Richards, Spruce Mountain, Sr.; Joel Hussey, Spruce Mountain Fr.; Charlie de Haas, Winthrop, Jr.