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By DOUG ALDEN AP Sports Writer
PARK CITY, Utah (AP) -- Katie Uhlaender didn't notice that the competition seemed to be slowing down in the final turns on the skeleton track at Utah Olympic Park.
The American racer wasn't paying attention. She held the lead after the first heat of the World Cup on Thursday and kept it in the first race on a U.S. track this season.
"I wasn't focusing on results," said Uhlaender, who won easily and is 2-for-2 in the World Cup. "I try not to even listen to what's going on because it's not going to change what I do going down the hill."
Uhlaender finished her heats in 50.11 and 50.79 seconds for a combined time of 1:40.90, which was .39 seconds ahead of Maya Pedersen of Switzerland (1:41.29). Michelle Kelly of Canada was third (1:41.60).
Uhlaender, who won last week's opener in Calgary, will try for her third straight World Cup victory next week on her home track in Lake Placid, N.Y.
Uhlaender was the top American in Olympic skeleton last year, finishing sixth. She spent the summer in the Cook Islands, running and lifting weights to build up her leg strength for even faster starts on the ice.
It also cleared her mind, especially after the pressure of making the Olympic team a year ago.
"Just show up to throw down and so far it's working," said Uhlaender, a 22-year-old from Breckenridge, Colo.
Uhlaender led after the first run and was the last to go in the second run after several sliders lost time in the final few turns. She was fast enough on her start that it didn't matter.
She had the fastest start of the day at 5.01 seconds in the second heat and easily navigated the curves that slowed her competitors as the sun warmed the ice.
Noelle Pikus-Pace, of Orem, Utah, finished sixth (1:41.93).
(Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.) APTV-12-07-06 1338MST
