WHISTLER, B.C. -- American downhiller Erik Fisher stood atop the Olympic men’s downhill course in a snowstorm Wednesday, awaiting his turn to plunge down a course with an average speed of 73 miles per hour.

On Fisher’s head was a new helmet, replacing the one he busted apart in a violent crash while racing on Jan. 26 at a remote French ski area. Fisher broke his right hand in that wreck too, and now, because he was unable to grip his ski pole, he had duct-taped the pole to his hand.

“Everybody skis with injuries,” explained Fisher, a laconic former football player from Idaho. Read more…

Middleton’s Erik Fisher is already a member of the U.S. Olympic Ski Team. Now he’s trying to prove to his coaches he should be on the slopes for the Vancouver Games.

If Erik Fisher is deterred from his dream, it won’t be for the lack of a strong grip.

Instead, it will be one slip, fall, or one hundred of a second that does him in.

It might even come down to a matter of an opinion. Read more…

You can watch a video of the olympians getting all their Olympic gear and merchandise. Go here to watch.