I've been dabbling in ski mountaineering racing for 3 seasons now.  Unless you are supremely talented, the sport takes some time to figure out.  It's true that the winners of the gene pool lottery, the guys who get out of bed with a VO2 max in the 80's are going to have an easier time.  But if you can't get down the descents on tooth picks without stacking heavily or transition smoothly without dropping your skins in the snow, you're going to be playing catch up.  And if you aren't one of the aerobically gifted, you can make up some time on those guys by being better in the other aspects of the game.