Howell Puts Heart Into Memorial Meet

The recent stretch of warm weather might have melted snow and ice and indicated ski season is over, but don’t tell that to Broden Janczarek. 

Since he left the Division 1 Finals on Feb. 24 at Nub’s Nob, the senior from Lake Orion has been his usual busy self.

He has been to training and racing sessions in Oregon, Colorado, and Canada, adding to his world skiing travels. 

Janczarek said the highlight came last summer, when he traveled to Chile (during its winter) to enjoy two weeks of breathtaking scenery, food that was cooked by chefs each day and skiing.

“We were staying right at the base of the mountain,” he said. “We were walking out of our little condo, skiing open to close and then starting right back over the next day.”

While his experiences skiing around the world and on junior circuits are near and dear to him, so is his experience skiing for the high school team, which was beyond fruitful. 

During his time in high school, Janczarek:

• Won the Southeast Michigan Ski League giant slalom and slalom titles last year, and the slalom this year. He was second in giant slalom this season. 
• Qualified for the MHSAA Division 1 Finals all four years. (This season the Dragons qualified as a team as well.)
• Posted three top-10 finishes at the Finals, including a runner-up in giant slalom this season.
• Accumulated a 4.0 grade-point average in the classroom.

Then again, competing as a skier from Southeast Michigan and nearly beating elite skiers from the Upper Peninsula and the northern part of the Lower Peninsula shouldn’t have been much of a surprise, since he has done it for years at weekend junior competitions.

“It was nice to kind of show them what’s going on in Southeast Michigan,” Janczarek said. 

Janczarek said his love for skiing started early in life, beginning when his dad taught him the sport at age 3. He got serious into racing when he was 7, and by the time he got into high school he was already accomplished, having trained with Pinnacle Alpine Racing based out of Pine Knob. 

He said there were two big components that drew him most to the sport.

“Partially the adrenaline rush of racing, but also the community,” he said. “You wouldn’t realize it with skiing because it’s more of a solo sport. But the team bonding you make and the close friendships you have, it can make or break your experiences in the sport. I was fortunate to have some good teammates, some good friends and even better coaches along the way.”

Lake Orion head coach Karl Basigkow said the biggest thing that has separated Janczarek from the rest is the way he prepares for different tracks, gate placement and terrains each course has presented.

“He’s a student of the sport,” Basigkow said. “His technique is excellent. Every race course and venue is different, and with that in mind the tactical side is always in development.”

What also has complemented Janczarek on the slopes has been his time on the pitch as a soccer player. 

He played soccer at Lake Orion for all four years of high school primary as a center back, which he said gave him extra cardiovascular endurance for ski races. In turn, he said skiing and all the concentration that sport forces an athlete to develop have helped him be a better soccer player.

“If I had just done one over the other, I wouldn’t have been a better athlete for it,” he said. 

At the Finals, while the biggest accomplishment was finishing second in the giant slalom — which was his best finish at a high school state meet — the biggest compliment to him might have been how he handled one mishap in the slalom.

Janczarek had a straddle on the first run of slalom that pretty much took him out of the competition, but he didn’t hesitate to go up for his second run and finish.

“I know there is a lot of people in the sport of ski racing that if they have a bad run, they’ll just not take their second run or just leave and go home,” he said. “I think it’s important you give your all every time you’re on the ski hill.”

Janczarek will continue to give it his all in college, as he plans to ski for Northern Michigan University. 

He said he wants to stick with skiing “as far as it will take him,” whether it’s something beyond college competitively, or just as a coach to influence others.

Basigkow said Janczarek was generous with his time all season in the way he counseled younger skiers on Lake Orion’s team, and saw firsthand how coaching could be in his future.

“Just to get other people the same love for the sport I have,” Janczarek said.

Keith Dunlap has served in Detroit-area sports media for more than two decades, including as a sportswriter at the Oakland Press from 2001-16 primarily covering high school sports but also college and professional teams. His bylines also have appeared in USA Today, the Washington Post, the Detroit Free Press, the Houston Chronicle and the Boston Globe. He served as the administrator for the Oakland Activities Association’s website from 2017-2020. Contact him at [email protected] with story ideas for Oakland, Macomb and Wayne counties.

PHOTOS (Top) Lake Orion's Broden Janczarek cuts past a gate during a slalom run at the Division 1 Finals at Nub's Nob. (Middle) Janczarek comes to a stop after a giant slalom run. (Click for more by Tori Burley.)