Local alpine racers continued to shine on the World Cup circuit in the final events ahead of the Winter Olympics.

Competing at Wengen, Switzerland, Team Palisades Tahoe skier Bryce Bennett posted his second top-10 finish of the season, claiming seventh in Friday’s downhill.

“We made some major adjustments to the way we were prepping the skis before we came here,” said Bennett in an interview with U.S. Ski & Snowboard. “The first training run was my best training run all year, and I felt pretty good, so it was just getting some confidence back in that.”

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Notably, Bennett, 29, clocked the fastest speed of the day, reaching nearly 95 mph on the Haneggschuss pitch.

“I remember after Marco (Sullivan) retired, he sent a text message out to our whole group — I’ll never forget it,” added Bennett. “He was explaining the whole course and he goes, ‘When you hit the Haneggschuss, you better tuck like you love going fast.’ I always think about going as low as possible and going as fast as possible. It’s not often you get to go that fast and I enjoy it.”

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Bennett, who will make his second Olympic appearance next month, went on to finish 21st in Saturday’s downhill. Racing then shifted to Kitzbuehel, Austria, where Bennett posted the seventh fastest time in training.

Fellow Team Palisades Tahoe skier and Olympian, Travis Ganong, was also competing in Wengen last weekend and finished 34th and 20th in downhill. Ganong, 33, also posted a 19th-place finish in super-G.

On the women’s side, Team Palisades Tahoe skier Keely Cashman put together her best finish of the season, claiming 23rd in super-G at Zauchensee, Austria.

“I am really happy with the way I skied today,” said Cashman in an interview with U.S. Ski & Snowboard. “It has been a struggle trying to gain confidence back after my crash last season, so this result is a big step. I felt confident in myself today and was just able to send it and ski the way I know I can. This is another step forward, and I hope to take this feeling into Cortina next week.”

Cashman, 22, will make her Olympic debut next month. She also claimed 39th in downhill at Zauchensee.

Justin Scacco is a staff writer with the Sierra Sun. He can be reached at jscacco@sierrasun.com