SKIING / CHRIS DUFRESNE : Tomba Finally Gives Fans a Victory

Maybe we can all get some sleep now that Italy’s Alberto Tomba has won a World Cup slalom this season.

Of course, how much Tomba will sleep is anyone’s guess.

A skier who has never been afraid to mix his great slalom skills with two shots of nightlife and a twist of lime, Tomba finally gave his adoring fans something to shout about after he won the slalom last weekend at Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany.

Tomba, who won gold and silver medals in the 1992 Olympics at Albertville, France, was winless in four previous slaloms this season. He had not won a giant slalom either--an event in which he won Olympic gold in 1988 and ’92.

The Italian media, which sticks to “La Bomba” like pesto on pasta, was on the prowl.

Tomba is only slightly less popular in Italy than the Pope, who, incidentally, is not a bad skier himself.

Rumors about Tomba were running rampant.

Some where blaming his huge entourage of advisers and sycophants for his less-than-perfect showings of late.

Others speculated that Tomba’s relationship with Martina Colombari, a former Miss Italy, was cutting into his slalom times, if you catch our snowdrift.

Why all the fuss?

“It’s in the character of the Italian sports fan,” said Marcello Cristo, a U.S. correspondent for the Italian newspaper, La Gazzetta dello Sport. “You can also say it about our national soccer team. We always say we have 58 million coaches, everyone has the right answers about how things should be managed.

“Same thing for Tomba. Everybody expects a lot from him. As a consequence, everyone gets upset when he doesn’t do what he’s supposed to do. He’s one of those characters that we could call a little undisciplined. It’s part of his personality.”

At a World Cup stop in Kranjska Gora, Slovenia, in December, Tomba didn’t bother to attend the mandatory start-selection meeting the night before a race.

Instead, Tomba stayed home in Italy and sent a runner to make his selection.

When informed that the skier had to be present for the selection, the “gopher” rushed back to Italy only to find that Tomba was out to dinner with his girlfriend.

Tomba was forced to take the 15th start position, last among top-seeded skiers.

Seeds, schmeeds. A man’s gotta eat.

Now, the reality check:

Although Tomba’s victory last weekend was his first on the World Cup circuit since March 22, 1992, he has actually been skiing pretty well this season. Tomba had two second places in slalom and has been among the leaders in the World Cup overall standings despite not competing in speed events, super-giant slalom and downhill. “I didn’t really feel any pressure because I had some good finishes this season and I knew that I was capable of winning again,” Tomba said after his victory last weekend.

Of course, speculating about Tomba is half the fun.

On a much larger international scale, he is sort of Italy’s version of Jose Canseco: A rich, young athlete with a flair for drama and mischief.

Last year, in fact, Tomba became an unofficial graduate of the Jose Canseco School of Driving after becoming involved in a sticky little incident near Miami, Canseco’s stomping grounds.

Tomba, it seems, was using U.S. 1 near Plantation Key as his personal slalom course. The sheriff’s department reported Tomba weaving in and out of traffic in his rental car.

Tomba’s off-season training program?

Nice try.

One deputy watched in horror as Tomba passed about 10 cars using the middle lane intended for left turns.

Tomba initially told police he was a Italian police officer and showed a picture of himself in a uniform.

Tomba later acknowledged the title was honorary and said he was weaving in an effort to get to the airport. Tomba posted $300 bond at the station, signed a few autographs and boarded the next plane to Milan.

Oh, that Tomba. What a skier. What a driver.

Snowboard bulletin board: Ski Green Valley’s plan to become the first snowboard-only resort in Southern California is being taken seriously.

“It may be a pretty good idea,” said Randy Arrington, spokesman for Snow Valley, a nearby resort in Running Springs.

Ski Green Valley, a small ski area that has struggled to compete against the Big Three in Big Bear, is attempting to take advantage of the increasing popularity of snowboarding.

Ski Green Valley will conduct a six- to eight-week pilot program for snowboarders starting Feb. 1. If successful, the resort will become a full-time snowboard mountain next season.

Arrington said he does not think the move will greatly affect business at Snow Valley, where he estimates snowboarders represent only 8% to 10% of business.

But Arrington said snowboarding is here to stay.

“We’re convinced it’s more than a fad,” he said. “One thing that convinced us is that we see older skiers who are turning to snowboards.”

Skiing Notes

Rain in the winter does not necessarily mean good news for local resorts. Last week’s warmer tropical storm wreaked havoc on local operators. Snow Valley was forced to close for a couple of days late last week because of rain. Fortunately, the Big Bear resorts had enough snowpack to survive the rain. Colder storms then arrived to fortify the snow base with additional powder and, reportedly, the skiing is still good.

Skiing in her first race since the death of her brother, American Julie Parisien finished fourth in a World Cup slalom last week at Maribor, Slovenia. “I didn’t really punch it,” Parisien said after the race. “I was just thinking about finishing. I was really nervous--I just wanted to finish. But I did pretty well.” Sunday, in a super-G at Cortina, Italy, Parisien went off the course on her first run and slightly injured her knee. She was scheduled to fly back to the United States for tests.