True enough. They speak regularly as they hopscotch across the world on the ski circuit. “There’s definitely a lot to be learned from each other about what we go through,” says Mike. “There’s a lot of knowledge being passed back and forth on different experiences.” Adds Britt: “To know that I can go to Michael or he can come to me with fears, and be sent back in the right direction, that’s important, too.” She can also draw on Mike’s experience as an Olympian. In Turin in 2006, with his family watching from the hillside, he clawed back from a disappointing first slalom run to finish 17th.
The mutual support has helped as they both worked through difficulties last season. Britt, a downhiller and a nine-time Canadian champion, had no podium finishes last season, after snagging a gold and a bronze in the 2007-08 season. Mike fought off a back injury to finish last season with a bronze in the World Championships. This season both are ranked in the top 10 on the World Cup circuit.
While home-snow advantage carries its pressures, both Janyks can close their eyes and visualize their respective Olympic courses. The men ski on the Dave Murray run. “There’s gliding at the top, there’s good air, there’s good jumps,” says Mike. “It’s a true downhill in the sense of having everything.” The women ski Franz’s run, which is fine by Mike, since he broke his leg there as a 13-year-old. “It’s technical in places. It feels fast. It’s got some good jumps,” Britt says of Franz’s. “I think it’s really cool that the men’s track and the women’s course both have a jump into the [same] finish area, so people get that action and a bit of a show at the finish.”
And cooler still that they are literally heading for home. From the finish area, they could ski the short distance to their parents’ back door. Their plan, though, is to linger awhile. On the podium.
Peter Vajda, age 90, died in 2003, six months after learning that Whistler will finally host the Olympics. “I think the bigger joy was knowing how well his grandkids ski,” says his daughter. Come February, the third generation might write a new chapter in the intertwined history of a family and a mountain.
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