To Dine For with Kate Sullivan

[Kate Sullivan] We all know her as a sensation on the slopes.

[Lindsey Vonn] I love it, it's kind of part of my DNA.

[Kate] It's who you are?

[Lindsey] Yeah.

[Kate] An Olympian three times over and World Cup champion.

She is the most successful downhill skier of all time.

[Lindsey] Honestly, when you do achieve something after you've fallen, and picked yourself back up.

The success is so much more sweet.

[Kate] But there is so much more to Lindsey Vonn than gold medals and shattered records.

[Lindsey] Spicy rigatoni is my jam.

Yes, I could eat that all day.

[Kate] And that's what we're going to eat today?

[Lindsey] That is what I'm eating today.

I'm very hungry.

I literally saved up for this.

[Kate] Today Lindsey is taking me to her all-time favorite restaurant in all of Miami to eat what she loves and find out why she loves it.

[Kate] Oh wow.

[Lindsey] Told ya.

[Kate] And then, Lindsey is sharing what it's really like to be a world class athlete.

What she hopes to share with young female athletes everywhere and the toughest decision of her life: to hang up her skis.

[Lindsey] Skiing is who I am, it's in my DNA.

But what I realize now, it's not necessarily who I am, it's what I love.

[Kate] What's better in life than a bottle of wine, great food and an amazing conversation?

My name is Kate Sullivan and I am the host of To Dine For .

I'm a journalist, a foodie, a traveler, with an appetite for the stories of people who are hungry for more.

Dreamers.

Visionaries.

Artists.

Those who hustle hard in the direction they love.

I travel with them to their favorite restaurant, to hear how they did it.

This show is a toast to them and their American dream.

To Dine For with Kate Sullivan is made possible by... [Announcer] There are people in your life who count on you for what matters most.

American National agents are close to home and committed to our communities.

They'll help you find the right coverage for you, your family, even your farm and business.

You can learn more at americannational.com.

Lavazza has worked towards perfecting the art of blending coffee for four generations, celebrating coffee in all its forms.

Lavazza Classico can be brewed however you take your coffee.

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[Kate] Today we're in Miami on our way into a restaurant called Carbone Miami, one of the hottest restaurants in town and one of the hardest tables to get.

The person who chose this as their favorite restaurant is a world class athlete, an author, a speaker and an advocate for women.

I can't wait for you to meet Lindsey Vonn.

[Kate] Hi, Lindsey, how are you?

[Lindsey] Good.

How are you?

[Kate] So nice to meet you.

[Lindsey] So nice to meet you, too.

[Kate] Thank you for doing this.

[Lindsey] Thanks for having me.

[Kate] This is going to be fun.

[Lindsey] Yeah it's gonna be awesome.

I'm starving.

[Kate] I'm starving too.

(laughs) [Kate] When you meet up with Lindsey Vonn, you may expect a meal in the mountains, but her pick: Carbone Miami couldn't be farther from the slopes.

Here on Collins Avenue in Miami Beach, sunny days are paired with wild nights.

The magic city is one of the world's biggest party towns and just like the temperatures, the restaurant scene is hot, especially at Carbone Miami.

[Jared LoPriore] It's lively...It's um, it's a lot of people in that beach vibe.

With that beach energy, you know?

Getting ready to go to the club, but uh fueling up on some rigatoni and uh, Caesar salad first.

[Kate] This Italian American restaurant started in Manhattan with a "Good Fellas" vibe.

But the Miami version with its velvet and emerald green accents has a distinct "Gatsby" feel.

It doesn't matter who you know, it's tough to get a table here.

This place is the definition of a scene.

[Jared] In most cases, when people are visiting us for the first time, they're not sure what to expect.

Maybe they are expecting us to be a bit pretentious, but I think when our guests get here, they realize that this is something that they've had before.

The smells are familiar, the sounds are familiar, the music is familiar.

[Kate] At Carbone Miami, they stick to the basics but take it to a whole other level.

Prosciutto and mozzarella antipasto, tortellini al ragu, linguini vongole, veal parmesan, and branzino are just a few menu options to entice you.

The presentation of each course is like being part of live theater.

Wow.

[Server] And then after this, we're going to restart everything.

[both laugh] [Jared] We've been casted in this play or this movie and you you can't hide it, when you really care about it, you're not acting.

You know, hospitality is a- it's a wild collection of people and characters to get together.

So, people that really care about hospitality, they don't need much pressure to act, it's really them just caring and you can't fake that.

[Kate] It is a good thing we came hungry; there is so much to eat, and so much to talk about with Lindsey Vonn.

Today, we're starting with a true antipasto, fresh bread from Sullivan Street Bakery in New York along with an assortment of meats and cheeses.

A house chopped salad breaks things up with chickpeas, tomatoes, and mushrooms tossed in a zesty vinaigrette.

Then, it's on to pasta and fish.

We're having Mario's famous meatballs and spicy rigatoni.

[Lindsey] This is distracting....again.

[Kate] Ooo this is distracting.

[Lindsey] This is what I've been waiting for, this is what I've been waiting for, guys.

[Kate] And if that isn't enough, the Dover Piccata.

A white fish that's pan fried and topped with brown butter sauce and a little bit of lemon.

[Kate] So, it's really interesting.

This show is such a journey.

I go with the guests to wherever their favorite restaurant is.

And when you agreed to be on the show, I thought maybe you might pick a restaurant in Colorado or Minnesota.

But we're in Miami!

(laughs) [Lindsey] We are in Miami, yes.

I actually just moved here.

So, I'm really excited to be here.

And um, I still have a place in Utah.

My family still lives in Minnesota.

I'm kind of still all over the place.

[Kate] But of all the restaurants in Miami, why did you choose this one?

[Lindsey] I love Carbone.

I love the vibe.

Um, Mario's a genius, obviously.

And I also you know, I feel like I miss a lot from not being in Europe as much as I used to when I was racing and I feel like I get, you know, kind of that European vibe in a way.

And, like, the pasta's so amazing.

I can't really eat pasta anywhere else other than Carbone.

[Kate] Really?

[Lindsey] So spicy rigatoni is my jam.

Yes, I could eat that all day.

[Kate] And that's what we're going to eat today?

[Lindsey] That is what I'm eating today.

I am very hungry.

I literally saved up for this.

So, I'm ready to go.

[Kate] I'd like to begin at the beginning.

I read that you were two years old when they put you on skis, meaning your family.

Is that true?

[Lindsey] Yes, definitely true.

I start young.

You start 'em young.

And my dad grew up racing.

And so, you know, he was still coaching at the time and going to law school.

So, his thing was to kind of bring me in his backpack before I could ski.

[Kate] Wow.

...Once I could stand up, I think he had me already on skis.

[Kate] So, you were in a backpack skiing down a mountain?

[Lindsey] Yeah.

[Kate] Before you could walk, probably.

[Lindsey] I mean, Buck Hill isn't really a mountain, but, you know... [Kate] A large hill.

[Lindsey] It's a large hill.

It's about 264 vertical feet on a good day.

Always my feet would get so cold, it's Minnesota.

I mean, it was so cold and my dad would take me to the lodge.

He would take my boots off and, like, rub my feet in between his hands and like blow hot air on my feet, warm me up.

He'd give me hot chocolate, a donut with sprinkles on top.

I was happy as a clam.

I was ready to go back out there.

[Kate] So, growing up in Minnesota, were there any unwritten rules growing up in your household that you still to this day remember?

[Lindsey] I mean, I was the oldest of five, so I think I wrote all the rules and the rule book.

My parents were both working nonstop.

My parents are both lawyers.

So, um, I think I pretty much made the manual.

Always climbing up trees and, you know, like making paths, like in the woods.

And like doing just, I don't know like whatever I could be adventurous doing, I was doing it.

[Kate] So even more than being a good skier or loving skiing, you would define yourself as a thrill seeker.

[Lindsey] Yeah.

[Kate] At what point did you realize I'm kind of good at this?

[Lindsey] It wasn't for a while.

I mean, I started skiing and I loved it.

It wasn't- I wasn't- I was coordinated enough.

I wasn't you know, great at it in the beginning.

But I would say around 10, 11, I started, you know really beating kids that were 13, 14, 15 years old.

And I remember being in a race and winning and, you know everyone around me was crying and I was like, "Dad, why, why is everyone crying?"

And he's like, "you beat them."

I'm like, "but why does that make people cry?"

He's like, you're 11 years old [Kate laughs] and they're 15.

It's not normal.

And then I was like "Oh, maybe, maybe, you know."

I'm- I don't know.

At that moment, that was the first time it kind of clicked to me that maybe I was good.

[Kate] Lindsey wasn't just good, she was a gifted skier.

At age 9, she entered the international ski stage and started racking up wins.

Lindsey was training on a 262 foot hill called "Buck Hill" in Burnsville, Minnesota.

Not much of a mountain, it was a good start, but her family realized the best training was out west.

[Kate] One of the things that you credit for your success is that because it wasn't such a mountain, you were able to put in the reps on a nightly basis that allowed you to get incrementally better.

You know, people in Colorado who are learning to ski, they had to take the chairlift up.

Can you explain this?

[Lindsey] Yeah.

I mean if you grow up in a big mountain you know, it takes you know, 10,15 minutes to make a run.

For us you know, it's a 30 second rope tow ride.

So, I mean, I was getting, you know, 20, 30 runs in the night.

[Kate] 20 or 30 runs a night?

[Lindsey] Yeah.

But I really think that allowed me to just continuously work on my technique.

And I loved racing, I loved training and I loved racing.

[Kate] And from there, you just took off, right?

[Lindsey] Yeah.

We kind- My family kind of realized I needed to spread my wings a bit if I was going to be able to make the Olympics, which was my dream, since nine years old.

I met my idol Picabo Street at an autograph signing in Minnesota, and ever since I wanted to make the Olympics.

So, when I was 11, 12, my family decided to move out to Colorado so that I could, you know, get more experience and learn, you know, the speed events and once me and downhill connected, it was, was game over.

I was in.

[Kate] All over but the shouting.

I think it's such an important point, especially for a young athlete of any sport that you have to put in the time and the energy and the reps. And even though at that moment as a kid you may not have had access to the tallest mountain, you were going to do the work no matter what.

[Lindsey] Yeah, and I also think it was because of my coach, Eric Siler, and my father, who actually was coached by Eric, um, when he was a racer and he had so much passion for the sport as well.

And he passed that down to me and everyone else that he was coaching.

You know, I think we oftentimes don't give enough credit to the coaches um, and everyone else that inspired us.

You know, I think he just had a certain energy and made me want to be there.

He made me want to make him proud and um, he made me want to train harder.

And this looks... this is very distracting.

Yes.

[Kate] (laughs) Thank you.

Oh, my goodness.

Dive in.

Please.

[Lindsey] I'm so hungry.

(laughs) [Kate] You said you saved up.

[Lindsey] I did.

I really did.

I knew I was coming, and I.

This the only time I'm...

I'm allowed... allow myself to carbo load is why I'm here.

[Kate] Lindsey's passion and hard work paid off, catapulting her to the top of the skiing world.

She skied in three Olympic games and became the first American woman to win gold in the downhill at the 2010 Vancouver Games.

She dominated the World Cup circuit winning 82 World Cup races in her career with 3 years of consecutive championship titles in 2008, 2009, and 2010.

[Kate] What do you think is the one quality that has really become your superpower, especially when it comes to skiing?

[Lindsey] I always went the extra mile, and I was also fearless and I think that combination was...was was dangerous because there's nothing that nothing would make me scared.

So if the weather was bad, if the conditions were bad, you always knew that I was going to go 100%, which you know sometimes wasn't good for me because I ended up crashing.

But I'd say the majority of the time it ended up to be in my favor.

[Kate] I recently read a quote from the great marathon runner, Joan Benoit Samuelson, and she said, "When I'm about to run a marathon, I don't like to look at the course.

I like to be surprised because what you don't know can't hurt you."

And it made her run faster.

[Lindsey] Very much the opposite.

[Kate] And you are the opposite; because I understand you like to really map everything out and visualize it.

[Lindsey] Yeah.

What you don't know can hurt you (laughs).

[Kate] Going down a mountain.. [Lindsey] You're going 85 miles an hour.

If you don't know where you're going, what's coming at you.

You definitely will get hurt.

I mean, and I was especially in my later years when I had already been injured many, many, many times, I had to be more careful, not in the way I skied, but in my tactics, knowing where I needed to make a line adjustment so that I had enough directions that I wouldn't crash.

You know, I just was tactically I had to be much smarter but I memorize everything, you know, every bump, every role, everything in the course, I- I knew, like the back of my hand, I would visualize over and over and over.

So that when I got in the starting gate, I don't have to think about it.

I knew where I was going.

I knew everything I had to do.

It was something that my dad taught me how to do um, and he always said that his dad, my grandfather, had a photographic memory and he had it as well.

And I, I definitely have it as well.

So, I can very easily visualize things.

It's literally like a photograph in my mind or if you're watching a video and it's just playing in my head and I visualize everything that I do and sometimes I'll make mistakes and I'll you know, figure it out.

[Kate] If you've done the pre-work, if you've done the visualization, the day of the race should actually be in a way the easy part because the work is prior.

[Lindsey] Yeah.

Exactly.

That's why I was so confident, you know, I knew what I was doing.

[Kate] The confidence and grit she built on a mountain is something Lindsey is now sharing through the Lindsey Vonn Foundation.

Through camps and clinics across the country, Lindsey and her team are working to empower underprivileged youth, especially young girls, teaching them that they can have a voice and a place within their communities to reach their dreams.

[Kate] Let's talk about your inspiration for the Lindsey Vonn Foundation.

What was your vision?

What did you want it to be?

[Lindsey] I really wanted to in some way emulate what Picabo did for me to other kids and um, not just in skiing, but in life.

[Kate] To inspire.

[Lindsey] To inspire you know, sometimes it just takes, you know, one person to say you can do it for them to say, "Well, they believe in me and I can do it."

It's so crazy.

I can't tell how many people have told little girls that they can't do something, that they will never be able to do something.

It's mind blowing.

[Kate] And don't you think part of grit is failing and having bad days?

[Lindsey] Absolutely.

That's the thing is, grit is not just about, you know pure strength.

It's about falling and getting back up and trying and trying and trying until you finally get to where you want to go.

And success is also not winning.

It's doing the best that you can do, but it's not giving up you know, that's the biggest thing that I try to tell kids is just don't give up.

[Kate] As you said, you can't have grit without the failures without getting back up.

You can't learn that until you do get back up.

[Lindsey] And honestly, when you do achieve something after you've fallen and picked yourself back up; the success is so much more sweet.

I can't tell you how much it meant to me to win after my injuries, you know?

And every time I hurt myself and I got back up, it just felt like a renewed sense of motivation, of success, and achievement to such a different degree than I'd ever felt before.

You know, when things come easy, it's- it's honestly not that fun.

[Kate] Right.

Right.

[Kate] Lindsey's highly successful skiing career has had its share of interruptions from injuries, from a fractured ankle, to a concussion, to a broken arm, and multiple knee fractures and tears.

You can say she's done her fair share of picking herself back up.

[Lindsey] I feel so lucky.

And that's how I always felt when I skied.

[Kate] Yeah.

[Lindsey] It started that way when I crashed in the Olympics in 2006.

I thought I broke my back, I was helicoptered off the mountain.

I was in the hospital and I was like, if I can make it back on the slopes, I will never waste a single second.

And I made it back out, and I had that same mentality the rest of my career.

I felt I felt like I was skiing on borrowed time, you know, every day was... a blessing.

I was lucky to be there, and I enjoyed every second of it.

You know, I wouldn't change anything that I did because I always gave my best.

[Kate] That is fascinating.

So, the 2006 injury... [Lindsey] Was the best- one of the best things that ever happened to me.

[Kate] That's what it sounds like.

[Lindsey] Like, gave me perspective because I thought before I was invincible the fearlessness was, you know, carried on a little too far.

[Kate] Yes.

[Lindsey] I am human.

When I crash, it does hurt.

[Kate] Take me to one of your hardest days on the mountain.

[Lindsey] There's been a lot.

(Both laugh) Which one are you going to pick?

[Kate] Is there one that comes to mind immediately where maybe you thought to yourself, I don't want to do this anymore?

[Lindsey] I never thought, I don't want to do this anymore.

[Kate] Never?

[Lindsey] Never.

Um, I had one time when I was 16, 17, I didn't finish in 50 out of 55 races.

And my dad was like, listen, you know, what are we doing here?

[Kate] It was a bad season.

[Lindsey] A bad season.

My dad was not happy.

I literally, if I didn't make the- finish the races and make the points, I had to do a finish, at least a minimum of two races to...to get my points status in order to make the U.S.

Ski Team.

[Kate] Ok. [Lindsey] I made the very last two races of the entire season in the world.

We traveled all the way to Sweden to try to get these points.

And I didn't finish and my dad was about to lose it.

He's like, you better get these points.

[Laughs] I did.

If I hadn't if I hadn't have done that, I wouldn't have made the U.S.

Ski Team.

I may not have, you know, made the Olympic team.

[Kate] You came back.

It was a comeback.

[Kate] In 2019, after achieving everything there is to win in skiing, Lindsey announced her retirement.

Skiing had taken too much of a physical toll on her knees and she had to think about her future.

[Lindsey] You know, I've always had such a deep passion for the sport, which is why I think retirement was so hard for me, because I never wanted to stop skiing.

And I knew eventually it would come, obviously.

But, you know, I love it.

It's kind of part of my DNA.

[Kate] It's who you are.

[Lindsey] Yeah.

[Kate] And you have spoken very publicly about how when you did retire, it brought on some depression.

[Lindsey] Yeah.

There's a big difference from being mentally tough, being able to sit in a gym and grind away day after day and pick yourself back up and keep working hard towards a goal.

Than.. than depression.

Depression is totally different, you know, and especially when I was injured, you know, I can't tell you how many times I was in bed and just never wanted to get up... this is distracting again.

[Kate] Oooo is this distracting.

[Lindsey] This is what I've been waiting for!

This is what I've been waiting for guys.

[Server] This is what keeps the lights on.

[Kate] Mario's meatballs and the spicy rigatoni or the spicy rig as they call it are both signature dishes and are designed to distract.

They are simple, creamy, and crave worthy and definitely worth a pause in conversation to enjoy.

[Lindsey] This is happy.

This is happy food right here.

[Kate] This is happiness.

Oh, wow.

[Lindsey] Told ya.

Yeah.

[Kate] In the midst of this phenomenal pasta, it's kinda hard to shift back to depression.

[Lindsey] I know, I'm so happy right now.

[Kate] I don't want to take you out of your happy place.

(laugh) [Lindsey] I'll keep eating it, it'll keep making me feel better.

To my point earlier, you know, skiing is who I am.

It's in my DNA.

But what I realize now is it's not necessarily who I am, it's what I love.

[Kate] And there's a difference.

[Lindsey] There's a big difference.

And it took me awhile to get there.

It took a lot of therapy.

And, you know, skiing for me was so therapeutic in my life.

No matter what was going on in my personal life, I always was able to be on the mountain and I had the freedom to do whatever I wanted.

[Kate] It was almost like your therapy.

[Lindsey] Yeah it was.

No one could control me, no one could say anything.

This is my space.

And I was in charge of it.

And so when I retired, it was... that was gone.

[Kate] And what replaced that?

Was there an activity that you found that you loved?

[Lindsey] Nothing replaces it.

[Kate] Nothing replaces it?

So, is there still a bit of a hole?

[Lindsey] Yeah, there always will be.

I always watch ski races and I'm sad.

[Kate] You wish you were there.

[Lindsey] Yeah, of course.

[Kate] Yeah.

[Lindsey] You know, I always will, but I know that's not where I am right now, and I'm very very happy where I am.

[Kate] It's amazing that you didn't experience depression before you retired, from skiing.

[Lindsey] I did.

[Kate] You did?

Oh, Ok. [Lindsey] I never talked about it because it wasn't something anyone ever talked about.

I didn't even tell my parents.

I didn't tell anyone.

I think the biggest thing is understanding and you know, how can you feel depressed when you're on top of the world?

It's a hard concept for people to understand and it's honestly hard for me to understand, like why am I not- why am I not happy?

But, you know, I am now so it's great.

[Kate] What do you think about the future for you?

Obviously the work with the Lindsey Vonn Foundation's incredibly gratifying.

But what is, what is next for you and what do you see on the horizon?

[Lindsey] Oh, I just I'm looking for new challenges, you know, I mean, again it's, nothing's going to be like skiing but I'm kind of more into venture capital now and that's giving me, you know, some bit of adrenaline.

[Kate] So the business aspect you're like... you're leaning into that.

[Lindsey] Really leaning into it.

You know I, again it's not the same as ski racing.

I'm not going 85 miles an hour.

[Kate] Would you ever consider coaching like the coach that had such an impact on you?

[Lindsey] I definitely mentor.

[Kate] Skiers in particular?

[Lindsey] Yeah.

I don't think I'll ever be in, you know, a specific coaching role.

I don't like the cold so that's...hard [Kate] Wait a minute.

You don't like the cold?

[Lindsey] Why do you think I moved to Miami?

[Kate] Are you kidding me?

[Lindsey] No, I'm not.

I wish I was.

I've been out in the cold my whole life.

I'm, like, still de-thawing from like, my whole career.

-Is that why you ski so fast?

To make it end?

(laughs) [Lindsey] Yeah to put my clothes back on.

Yeah, exactly.

It's cold.

All the food here is so good.

[Kate] That looks amazing.

[Server] This is Dover sole piccata.

[Kate] Dover sole piccata.

Wow.

[Server] This is a fantastic dish.

[Kate] Now, are you deboning it?

Is that what this process is?

[Server] That is correct.

[Lindsey] He's a master at work.

[Kate] I thank you for not making us do this.

[Server] Part of the Carbone show.

[Kate] Yes.

[Lindsey] Exactly.

The outcome of hard work is success.

Not winning, but reaching goals, making improvements, making it, you know achieving something.

I can't say how good it feels to see kids, you know, learning that and understanding that and... and you know, reaching their goals.

It's like giving someone else a Christmas present.

I enjoy giving Christmas presents more than I enjoy receiving them.

It... feels so good to empower these kids.

And um, I think it's the best thing honestly, that's come out of my entire skiing career.

[Kate] Really?

[Lindsey] Yeah.

[Kate] Is your foundation work?

[Lindsey] Yeah.

[Kate] Because it makes you feel how?

[Lindsey] I've done my job.

You know, I'm doing my job.

I'm giving back.

I'm empowering others, too.

You know, I...I broke certain glass ceilings in my career.

But I hope that others will go far beyond what I've done.

And I just want to continue that cycle of empowerment.

It's just about being the best you can be.

And I just want to give that to them.

[Kate] What a meal with Lindsey Vonn.

After all that food, we had to indulge in the carrot cake.

You only live once, right?

What I will remember most about this meal with Lindsey is her incredible fearlessness.

Every elite athlete works hard: discipline, desire, structure, sacrifice.

But few have the ability to as she says "hurl themselves down a mountain with abandon."

Courageous?

Sure.

But more precisely, a certain special mindset that allows for a champion to take shape.

And now she's helping others soar; helping other young athletes find their inner strength, knowing that mindset moves mountains or at least, gives you the ability to fly down them.

[Kate] I honestly didn't think we would make it to dessert.

[Lindsey] Really?

[Kate] Well, there was so much food that I, you know, I didn't know that we would- [Lindsey] There's always room, for dessert.

I don't know.

Make room.

[Kate] This was like- Mind over matter.

[Kate laughs] Mind over matter.

You can do this.

[Kate] It's the psychology of eating by Lindsey Vonn.

[Kate] If you would like to know more about the guests, the restaurants, and the inspiring stories of success, please visit todinefortv.com or follow us on Facebook and Instagram at To Dine For TV.

We also have a podcast, To Dine For the podcast is available on Apple podcasts, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts.

To Dine For with Kate Sullivan is made possible by... [Announcer] There are people in your life who count on you for what matters most.

American National agents are close to home and committed to our communities.

They'll help you find the right coverage for you, your family, even your farm and business.

You can learn more at americannational.com.

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