The’ UVM and St. Lawrence carnivals gave sophomore David Donaldson more to celebrate.’ At the UVM carnival at Stowe and the St. Lawrence carnival at Whiteface Mountain, N.Y., Donaldson raced for his 10th career win, along with Jurgen Uhl, who claimed first for the Catamounts in 10k Nordic skiing.’ Both Donaldson and Uhl, along with six other Catamounts, finished in the top 10 for their respective races, a solid contribution to UVM’s second place finish behind Dartmouth.’ The carnivals consist of giant slalom, slalom and downhill, where the racers compete for the lowest time.’ The team with the overall lowest score wins the carnival.’ ‘The scoring is like track and field,’ Donaldson said. ‘Except the team that accumulates the lowest score wins.’ A national champion in giant slalom, Donaldson is no stranger to the podium. His ranking is impressive. ‘Right now I’m in the top five for slalom,’ he said. ‘But since I won the first [giant slalom], I’m currently first in that.’ In his time at UVM, Donaldson has had 11 top 10 finishes and won first place overall in giant slalom in the Eastern Championships. He has also been named Rookie of the Year and been invited to ski on the Canadian National Team.’ Born in Ontario, Donaldson skied on the Ontario Provincial Ski Team for three years before coming to UVM, where he raced giant slalom and was the overall champion.’ Last year, he was named the UVM men’s skiing MVP after a stellar season in which he made the top 10 in nearly every race.’ Two weeks ago, Donaldson competed in our own UVM Carnival, where he placed first.’ After a rough start with a fall in his first run, Donaldson fought back to third place in his second run. However, Donaldson believes that it’s not skill alone that gives him his winning edge. After his giant slalom win at UVM’s carnival, Donaldson ‘felt good, had a good breakfast and three cups of coffee, and was ready to go,’ he said. But Donaldson doesn’t worry about fueling himself before the race with the breakfast’ of champions. ‘[It was] a typical morning, nothing changes,’ Donaldson said. The continuous podium finishes don’t seem to be changing either, as Donaldson enters his second winning season with a bang.’ He’ll have to share that spotlight with his teammates, as they, too, continue to post considerable scores and top 10 finishes. ‘This year we’re a lot more consistent as a team,’ Donaldson said, which he hopes will lead to more podium finishes for UVM.’ ‘I’m pretty excited ‘hellip; We have a shot at the NCAA title as a team,’ Donaldson said. ‘We’re stronger than ever.’