“Having my best finish ever here in front of my home crowd and my family is really cool,” Holcomb said. “I’ve been working with [sled designer] Bob Cuneo and the coaches and we’ve been kind of messing with the sleds and all of a sudden it just clicked. Things are coming around and now we’re going fast.”

“I am surprised that my two best finishes ever are in two-man,” he admitted. “I never would have guessed that.”

After claiming his first-career World Cup medal in Calgary, Alberta, on Dec. 1, Holcomb returned to his home track and slid a final time of 1:35.64 that was a quarter of a second behind Andre Lange and Kevin Kuske of Germany. With two of the day’s most explosive pushes of 4.88 seconds, Holcomb and Kreitzburg went on to earn the second-quickest runs in each heat with times of 47.78 and 47.86.

“It’s exciting be a part of it and to see Holcomb progress,” Kreitzburg said of Holcomb’s driving. “He’s really stepping up and driving really well in two-man. I think that Steve is getting more and more confident every week and with him driving well, hopefully we’ll also be able to do really well in four-man.”

Lange and Kuske—both double gold medalists at the 2006 Olympic Winter Games—earned a combined time of 1:35.39 with each run’s fastest times of 47.59 and 47.80 to win gold for the second consecutive race.

With a second-run time of 48.20, Americans Mike Kohn (Chantilly, Va.) and Jamie Moriarty (Winnetka, Ill.) kept the 16th-place position they held with their first slide of 48.41. The U.S. pair finished with a total time of 1:36.61.

Stephan Bosch (Park City, Utah) and Jeremy White (Durango, Colo.) placed 17th with a total time of 1:36.76. They improved their second slide by 0.14 seconds to 48.31 after a first run of 48.45.

“I think the team is much more cohesive this year than it has been at least since I’ve been around,” Kreitzburg stated. “Guys are really putting the team first as opposed to their own individual goals. Everyone wants to work together not only to improve themselves, but to improve the program and have a long-term perspective.”

After sharing the bronze medal in the Calgary World Cup two-man race with Ivo Rueegg and Cedric Grand of Switzerland, Canadians Pierre Lueders and Lascelles Brown earned sole possession of third place in today’s competition with a time of 1:35.73 (47.86, 47.87). Rueegg and Grand were fourth in 1:35.77 (47.81, 47.96), while Matthias Hoepfner and Andreas Porth of Germany were fifth in 1:36.02 (47.96, 48.06). Rounding out the top-six sleds was the Russian team of Alexandr Zoubkov and Dmitry Trunenkov in 1:36.03 (47.99, 48.04).

World Cup action in Park City concludes on Saturday with the men’s four-man bobsled competition beginning at 4 p.m. MST. The Park City World Cup men’s two-man bobsled race will be televised nationally on SPEED Channel on Saturday, Dec. 23, at 1 p.m. EST. For complete results of today’s race, visit the FIBT’s Web site at http://www.bobsleigh.com/. The next World Cup men’s two-man bobsled competition is Dec. 16 in Lake Placid, N.Y.

RESULTS:
1. Lange and Kuske (Germany), 1:35.39 (47.59, 47.80); 2. Holcomb and Kreitzburg (USA), 1:35.64 (47.78, 47.86); 3. Lueders and Brown (Canada), 1:35.73 (47.86, 47.87); 4. Rueegg and Grand (Switzerland), 1:35.77 (47.81, 47.96); 5. Hoepfner and Porth (Germany), 1:36.02 (47.96, 48.06); 6. Zoubkov and Trunenkov (Russia), 1:36.03 (47.99, 48.04); … 16. Kohn and Moriarty (USA), 1:36.61 (48.41, 48.20); 17. Bosch and White (USA), 1:36.76 (48.45, 48.31).