[FWM News] Viva Italia and McKinney Cup races

[Far West Masters news]

After a slow start to the race season,racing action heated up in February to finish with a 3-day 
weekend of SL racing at Heavenly Valley and Mt. Rose, featuring two of our most prestigious trophy 
events.

Our next race is the Bernard Cup weekend at Squaw Valley on Mar. 10-11.

Heavenly Viva Italia
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The 2012 Viva Italia SL races at Heavenly, rescheduled from the original weekend after New Year's, 
was held on a beautiful, warm sunny day. Competitors enjoyed classic views of the south shore of 
Lake Tahoe, hanging out comfortably all day in race suits and plenty of sunscreen, while racing 2 
SL races on the outstanding racing surface of the World Cup run.

John Gianotti, Mr. Viva Italia himself, put together another great post-race party. Hungry racers 
were treated to plenty of food and a lot of great raffle prizes. The annual Viva Italia trophy is 
awarded to the top man and women in the overall standings, using an age-adjusted handicap formula. 
The 2012 women's trophy went to newcomer Carol Levine, recently moved from Rocky to north Tahoe, 
whose return to racing proved to be a successful debut in the Far West. The men's trophy went to 
John Mukavitz, with a display of powerful SL skiing as he continues his return to racing after a 
devastating knee injury that took years to recover form. Congratulations to both winners!

Mt. Rose McKinney Cup
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The weekend weather turned colder and breezy for the Mt. Rose McKinney Cup. The Lower Lake View SL 
run provided a challenging SL venue, with a variety of terrain and firm snow conditions. The 2012 
McKinney Cup, awarded to the man and woman with the fastest total time for the weekend races, was 
won by Carol Levine (W08), in an outstanding debut weekend with the Far West Masters, and Ara 
Papazian (M4), topping the men's standings both days with clean powerful skiing.

Race Results:
    http://farwestmasters.org/raceinfo/2012/results
Season Standings:
    http://farwestmasters.org/raceinfo/2012/standings