Downhiller Chad Fleischer said Friday his Halloween "treat" was getting back on skis. He took 10 testing runs in his first time on skis since he severely injured his right knee in a crash during World Cup training in January.

"It was sweet, so nice," he said.

Fleischer, 30, of Vail, CO, in his 10th season on the U.S. Ski Team, has undergone three surgeries since he tore ligaments and tendons in his knee when he crashed during a training run in Wengen, Switzerland. He said longtime Ski Team surgeon Dr. Richard Steadman gave him the go-ahead earlier in the week and he was on snow in the early afternoon of October 31.

"It was good, really good," Fleischer said. "I took 10 runs, broke it up – five runs of slalom turns, five runs just working on some stuff. Now I'll take two days off, ski Sunday, take a day off, ski again Tuesday, and slowly break things back in again."

Snow conditions, he said, were inconsistent and "fairly rough actually, a good test for me. It was so nice to be doing what I do again. About the only thing I didn't do was catch air, but I was ripping fast GS turns, making my knee commit to angles. It didn't want to but I was forcing it to, trying to train it again. It'll take some time, plenty of repetition, to build that strength and mobility back.

"It was sweet, so nice," he said. "I never knew if I'd get back on snow again, that's just the way it's been. To be so close a couple of times and then have surgery just as I was right there, then something would tear again and I'd be out another eight weeks," Fleischer said. "It felt great this morning, so things are good."

He spoke with Steadman and U.S. men's downhill Head Coach John McBride to inform them of the return.

"John-o's been awesome and really changed the dynamics of the team. We really jive. He's so willing to listen, open to all kinds of ideas and open discussion, whether it's coming back or something about technique or line or something else. It's just so good," Fleischer said.

He has no time frame on returning to World Cup racing and may take the season off to fully recover rather than coming back too soon and causing another injury.

"I know the knee's moving in the direction I need it to and we've got time," he said.

— Courtesy, US Ski Team