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Bode: Go Fast, Be Good, Have Fun

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Back in the mid-'60s, when I was a young teacher at a small Miami prep school, Bode Miller's father, Woody, came south for his junior year (presumably with warm weather tennis in mind). I got to know and like him, so I was both surprised and intrigued to learn, at the time of the 2002 Olympics, that the new star, Bode Miller, was his son and that Woody and Bode's mother Jo had brought their kids up in a cabin back in the northern New Hampshire woods - and that they had known and admired Scott and Helen Nearing whose simple lives fascinated me.
So, when I saw this book, I had to read it - and I loved it. Especially the first half with its focus on Bode's upbringing. His youth was the antithesis of the way 99.99% of kids grow up today - and they are the worse off for it. Clearly he has great natural ability, but it was his outdoor, free childhood and young manhood that made his skiing success possible. There is a parallel, I think, between his life and career to that of the great Kenyan and Ethiopian long distance runners. They, too, have great natural ability, but the main reason western athletes can't compete with them is because for the Africans their whole lives have made their success possible, not just a couple of hours of training before going back to the sofa and the air-conditioning.
Bode has recently gotten much media attention for his blunt opinions. I hope that Americans, who pay little attention to skiing, will really listen to him and ponder what he has to say. The ideals he espouses in short interviews pervade this book. Kids - all people - should weigh his preaching of kindness and joy and freedom and non-materialism against the contrary values that pervade our society.
So, Bode, I hope you win the Gold - or two or three - despite what you say, simply because it may be lead to many more people reading this book and changing their lives for the better.

This is a really interesting quick read. Bode is a fascinating character. The first 53 pages of the book mention little about ski racing and focus instead on Bode's family background and outdoors lifestyle. He comes from a clan of rugged outdoors maverick. The press has described his lifestyle as austere, growing up in a cabin in the woods with no electricity or running hot water. In the book, Bode describes his childhood in enchanting ways. He had a freedom to explore nature, and experience the elements. He loved every minute. Every moment was an opportunity to be challenged and have fun. He never had time to be bored or watch TV. So, it did not matter that he did not have one.

Bode is just an all around world-class athlete. In high school he was the tennis state champion. He also was an excellent varsity soccer player. Later in 2002, he won the CBS Superstars competition beating out a bunch of NFL and NBA pros at various "Survivor-like" events. His ski coaches encouraged him to pursue snowboarding racing instead of ski racing. He placed 2nd in a national snowboarding race. But, his heart was set on skiing. However, his snowboarding adventure would change skiing forever.

Bode was a pioneer in racing on shaped skis. He liked the side cut of snowboards better than the straight alpine skis. He pressured a K2 ski rep relentlessly for K2 to develop the first shaped racing ski. Bode succeeded in getting K2 to manufacture such customized parabolic skis for him. And, the rest is history. Bode and his shaped skis took the world by storm. Because of Bode everybody quickly shifted to shaped skis, as they carved better and faster turns. According to Ingemar Stenmark, the living legend of alpine skiing shaped skis revolutionized racing technique much more than anything else.

Since his early high school days, Bode developed an all out technique that results in many falls, but also many wins. This originally drove his coaches crazy. But, now coaches support this low percentage but high success rate approach.

In the opening of the 2004-05 FIS World Cup, Bode had the best start in the history of alpine racing. He won 6 of the first 10 races. He won in all four disciplines in the same season in just 16 days. Only two other skiers had duplicated this feat, and it took them nearly an entire season to do it. He describes this apex of his career near the end of the book. The book's timing is perfect as it ends on this high note.

Ever since, his career has gone downhill (no pun intended). He still managed to win the 2004-05 FIS World Cup. But, that was because of his 16-day miracle. He skied poorly the rest of the season. The 2005-06 season, including the 2006 Turin Winter Olympics were disappointing. At the Olympics, he looked out of shape compared to the Austrians.

Increasingly weird statements have come out of his mouth. Within the book, he indicated that he might start a pro tour with sponsored teams such as in bike racing that would compete on the FIS World Cup. That was a strange leap. He also indicated that (maybe because of his pro tour concept) he might not participate in the Turin 2006 Winter Olympics. He ultimately did; but performed poorly. Later he accused Lance Armstrong and Barry Bonds to take steroids. With hindsight, nobody will blame him for mentioning Bonds. But mentioning Armstrong caused a huge devaluation in his advertising potential.

Bode's ultimate fall from grace does not detract from this very original biography. The book is enjoyable whether you are into skiing or not. Heck, as Bode indicates throughout the book he is more into having fun than skiing (if the two shall meet so be it). That's at the essence of his phlegmatic charisma, his successes, and his downfall. If you enjoy this biography and also like tennis, I strongly recommend John McEnroe's "You Can't Be Serious," Boris Becker's "The Player," and Ilie Nastase's "Mr. Nastase." They are all multifaceted characters.

2005 overall world cup champion Bodie Miller was raised in New Hampshire in a rural cabin without electricity or indoor plumbing, so his roots are as unconventional as his rise to become a top sports star. Go Fast, Be Good, Have Fun is an autobiography which recounts his philosophy in life as much as his sports experience: he tells of the world of competitive skiing and how he bucked conventional wisdom to rise to the top, and his personal theories shine brightly throughout. Go Fast, Be Good, Have Fun is packed with first-person 'you are there' adventure and insights: paired with Miller's personal formula for success, it's as much a winner as he is.

Bode's book fills in many gaps the press leaves empty. His upbringing is given considerable depth, not only by naming and describing influential people and events in his life to date, but by showing how timeless ideas and ideals of Thoreau, Emerson, Helen and Scott Nearing, and similar rugged individualists were lived by example by adults and children in Bode's world. Thought contrarian and rebellious by many conventional Americans, Bode's free spirit and quick mind we learn are ironically better known and repsected in Europe than in the land of Washington, Jefferson, Madison and Adams; whose namesake New Hampshire White Mountain peaks have been his lifelong home. In a time when thoughtful Americans are told to shut up and support their government, Bode Miller and his family
arrive on the world sports stage perhaps just in time to remind us that making your own, inspired way is not only a worthy challenge, and in Bode's case great fun, but that American traditions of innovation, family, community, and liberty still inspire greatness, in sport, and in life.

I've just finished reading Bode's book after reading the Herminator's auto biography and what struck me is the difference each of them views their life, surroundings, and the meaning of it all. Whereas both exude confidence and a common vitriol to the hounding press and media, Bode comes across as introspective, self admittedly shy, compared to the all confident, all conquering Maier.

Both are obviously very special athletes - Maier crushing the race courses and his opponents on the World Cup circuit, but Bode perhaps his own demons in his quest to find meaning in life. It was rather surprising to learn that winning at all costs is not central to Bode's life.

For ski racers, both are a good read. A bit plodding at times to maintain a high level of interest, but a good view of what makes each of them tick and keep at the great white circus.

I am only a third-of-the-way into this book, and my sides are splitting. This guy is a great wit, and possesses considerable intellect, which has to be some sort of a salute to his "home-schooling." Mirth is incorporated here into all of his irreverent statements, and there is a little bit of Bode in all of us, at least in myself and my choice of friends! Since this book predicates the infamous "60 Minutes" profile, which wasn't bad; it was the ski-press' and industry reaction to it that has been so distasteful to me. Bode is going to be around as a character long after he has finished with his go-fast skiing. I look forward to knowing him somehow, and wish him the best as a centered human being who cannot fail to be totally himself. Ever! There is a great NH influence here, and he represents us well with our unique woodsy approach to reality. Godspeed, Bode. You are funny!!!!

You don't have to be a skier or rider to appreciate Bode Miller's individualism. Being raised early on off the grid, he later collided with the conventional lifestyle he ironically needed to move ahead. And the conventional life imposed upon him can be attributed to very conventional circumstances, like the breakup of his parents and his father basically abandoning the family--all of which makes this a fascinating, compelling read, exactly because it is not a cookie cutter life with neat ambitions squared off in a well-plotted series of steps--the way most of us are raised. No glossing over the truth here--just straight on anecdotes, sometimes defensive, often proud, always a little bit of getting even, somehow.

On the other hand, there's pain in his life that he does, in fact, gloss over. He defends his father by not judging him, explaining how Woody fell out of love with his mother (now saddled with three small children), and how his father's moving out removed chances for what otherwise would have been a domestic mess. Maybe, maybe not. The reader is not convinced one can rationalize the absence of a parent without a little blood letting on the inside. But my hat goes off to him for succeeding, for realizing an early ambition to be a great skier, despite the naysayers. And his kind is refreshing in this era of confused, drone-like patriotism. Bode has guts, and you have to admire anyone who can cross the grain and keep on cutting.

This fantastic book is suitable for any audience above the age of eleven and for anyone who is a skier. Bode wraps you up in an interesting childhood that all started with home schooling. He also adds his amazing performance as a skier at only five he could out race 5 ski patrol on the slopes of his home mountain Canyon, New Hampshire. He lets you know that he doesn't only race for the pride he also but loves the fun of it. His story sinks your thought deep into the book so you feel like you are there. You feel the panic, sorrow, thrill, and pain of all his emotions. If you want to see what it's like on the slopes for a professional skier read the enchanting story of Bode Miller and autobiography.

I defiantly recommend this book to young skiers and people that enjoy a good laugh. This book is filled with funny stories and basically the story of Bode Miller. This book was awesome I couldn't put it down. I connected with bode on some of the things that he wrote. I love skiing and I have the dream of being a professional skier when I grow up just like Bode Miller. I the book Bode I learned that doing something that you love makes you happy especially if it is fun. I also learned that while skiing, falling is part of the process so don't be in intimidated!

2005 overall world cup champion Bode Miller was raised in New Hampshire in a rural cabin without electricity or indoor plumbing, so his roots are as unconventional as his rise to become a top sports star. GO FAST, BE GOOD, HAVE FUN is an autobiography which recounts his philosophy in life as much as his sports experience: he tells of the world of competitive skiing and how he bucked conventional wisdom to rise to the top, and his personal theories shine brightly throughout. GO FAST, BE GOOD, HAVE FUN is packed with first-person 'you are there' adventure and insights: paired with Miller's personal formula for success, it's as much a winner as he is.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch