lindsey was running on a pair of 215 cm as opposed to 210 cm which is the minimum womens requirment for dh skis. its not even so much the fact she was running on a bigger ski but a much faster ski. not all companies have the same speed of ski, and the speed of the ski isnt determined out of construction, but after construction each company's technicians work the shit out of their wc speed skis, hot boxing etc. so some companies end up having faster skis then others. lindsey skis for head as does bode and supposedly heads wc ski quiver is the fastest in the world right. in addition to the difference in company's speed of ski, that 5 cm extra running service also adds an advantage.
to the people talking about creating an icier track etc. the process is called injecting the snow. to do that, long before the event, they run cats over the course with plowes on the back that chop up the snow and create about a foot deep grooves running all up the track. they then run fire hoses up to the course and literally blast water into the groves created. after they groom it over basically covering up where the water went and then over night/when its cold enough, the water sets up under the running service of the snow and freezes creating a seriously hard track. skiing on injected snow even has a different feel then ice its kinda crazy.
sorry for the long post.
