PGS racers: They're just like us
Michelle Gorgone heads out on the road to the Vancouver Olympics
November 12, 2009, 2:33 PM
By: Alyssa Roenigk
Courtesy of Michelle Gorgone
Michelle Gorgone won her first race of the season at Copper Mountain's Race to the Cup on Nov. 12.
Nov. 4 marked 100 days to Vancouver. That means less than four months to study up on the hundreds of athletes from more than 80 countries who will compete in 86 events in 15 sports at the 21st Winter Olympic Games. Better get started.
Read More »
Shaun White On ESPN First Take
Olympics, video games, and ... a wedding?
November 6, 2009, 5:26 PM
By: Tracy Anderson
As the 100 day countdown to the Vancouver 2010 Olympics has begun, five-ring poster child Shaun White has undergone a recent media blitz, hyping the Games up, along with his new video game, "World Stage," which hits stores next week. Along with this appearance on ESPN's First Take, we've seen a battle of redheaded wits on Conan, some misplaced Danny Kass stock photos on The Today Show, and a frank discussion of both Tony Hawk's Twitter habit and Shaun's own Halloween costume on Jimmy Fallon (who apparently has had his own show for years -- who knew?).
Olympic-bound! (Via Malibu)
U.S. Olympic hopefuls gather for fundraising demo in snowy SoCal.
October 26, 2009, 12:50 PM
By: Alyssa Roenigk
Imagevenue
Pamela Anderson gets a lesson in shred from Bud Keene.
Oh, the things Olympians do for money.
The Olympics are 100 days away, which means a few things for aspiring five-ring snowboarders. The mountains are opening, the Grand Prix qualifying season is around the corner and the number of obligatory fundraising and glad-handing obligations is steadily increasing.
On Sunday, U.S. Olympic hopefuls Elena Hight, Greg Bretz and Tommy Czeschin flew to sunny Malibu, Calif. for a fundraising event held at Tony and Jeanne Pritzker's weekend home in Topanga Canyon. Cameos were also made by Johnny Mosely and Errol Kerr, the only member of the Jamaican ski team. Last year, the event raised nearly $100,000. This year, they were looking to top that. For their part, the riders chatted up potential sponsors and taught their kids how to hit rails on a few makeshift snowboard runs constructed (by the riders) out of manmade snow trucked in for the event. U.S. Snowboard head coach Bud Keene pitched in and gave Pamela Anderson a lesson on how to boardslide a box in a tube dress. When these folks make it to Vancouver in February, there will be no doubt they've earned it.
Live Free or Die Fundraising
Olympic hopeful Caitlin Ciccone sets her sights on Ski Cross in Vancouver.
October 16, 2009, 3:11 PM
By: Colin Whyte
Courtesy Caitlin Ciccone
Ciccone gets accustomed to having her skis off the ground.
Twenty-four year-old Caitlin Ciccone is no stranger to the podium but, this season, she has her sights set on the big one: the Winter Olympics in B.C.
After a successful, 16-year career running gates — including two years on the World Cup, eight on the US Team, and a US National GS title in '06 — Ciccone (pronounced "chick-COnee;" Madonna's last name) has ditched the strict world of Alpine and transitioned into the rough and tumble world of Ski Cross full-time. But now she needs the money to help translate her dreams into real life. We caught up with the New Hampshire born, Jackson Hole livin' ripper to find out what it is about Ski Cross that pushes her buttons and to take a closer look at her creative fundraising scheme to take it all the way in 2010.
Read More »
Vancouver Winter Olympics 101
Action sports five-ring circus 101
October 19, 2009, 2:29 PM
By: Matt Higgins
Tracy Anderson
The 18-foot Olympic pipe at Torino in 2006. At Vancouver 2010, the walls will be 22 feet.
If the only stupid question is the one not asked, perhaps it's time to ask some questions about the Vancouver Winter Olympics. Because with the Games just four months away, no one wants to be left wondering, what is parallel giant slalom anyway? So with the help of Mason Aguirre, Olympics course designers, U.S. Snowboarding head coach Peter Foley, and the folks at FIS, here are some answers to how events will shape up and go down in the pipe, on the cross courses and through the parallel giant slalom gates.
Read the full story here.
Uncorked!
Breaking down the most hyped up pipe trick of the year
September 21, 2009, 2:24 PM
By: Alyssa Roenigk
Adam Moran
Luke Mitrani has the double cork. Find out who else has the trick in the bag.
Sometimes, just believing something is possible makes it so. (Isn't that what they fed us in "The Secret"?) The double cork is a perfect example. Six months ago, no one was sure the trick was even possible in the halfpipe. The learning process seemed downright dangerous, not to mention scary as hell, and no one seemed willing to step up and take the risk of attempting the trick to snow.
Read the full story here.
Riders To Watch
A look at the top contenders for an Olympic run
July 30, 2009, 9:41 PM
By: Alyssa Roenigk
Crispin Cannon/Red Bull Photofiles
Shaun White in a world of his own, literally: sessioning at his own private pipe at Mt. Hood, Oregon.
White is the easy selection for halfpipe frontrunner in Vancouver. He's the 2006 defending champion and four-time Winter X Games champ. (He'll have a chance to make that "five-time" two weeks before heading toVancouver.) Last season, White's armor looked penetrable, especially after dropping the Burton European Open for the second-straight year to
Kevin Pearce, the hands-down crowd favorite in Aspen. But during several weeks spent training in his own private, secret halfpipe this past spring, White pocketed at least two never-done-before tricks he will begin debuting during the Grand Prix Olympic qualifiers this fall. Not to be outdone by White, Nike built Pearce his own private halfpipe as well in Mammoth Lakes, Ca, where he has also been secretly at work on some new moves.
Sure, Louie Vito is stomping double cork frontside 10s and Pearce, Danny Kass, Mason Aguirre and Scotty Lago all have legit shots at making the four-man roster. But if he stays healthy, White is a lock for the first spot on the 2010 team.
Read More »
Six Months To Showtime
Breaking down the basics for 2010
July 30, 2009, 9:03 PM
By: Alyssa Roenigk
Kim Stallknecht/Getty Images
A look at Grouse Mountain: site of the 2010 Olympic halfpipe.
Three snowboard events will take place in Vancouver for both the men and women. That means six gold medals are up for grab. And only six months for you to study up.
Read More »
Progression Session
U.S. riders wrap up at Hood and make preparations for New Zealand
July 29, 2009, 5:44 PM
By: Alyssa Roenigk
Burton
Kelly Clark has the most formidable frontside air in the business.
The U.S. Snowboard team has just finished a two-and-a-half week summer halfpipe camp at Timberline Resort on Oregon's Mount Hood. Most of the riders will now head to their respective homes to take a month off and spend time working on strength coach Brad Jones' summer conditioning program. Then it's off to New Zealand August 18 - September 7 for the second half of summer training, an FIS World Cup contest and a week of freeriding. Some riders will arrive early to compete in the Burton New Zealand Open held in Cardrona August 11-15.
"New Zealand is not the place to progress," says halfpipe coach Ricky Bower. "It was a zoo down there before the last Olympics. This year will be even worse." The New Zealand session will be used to perfect tricks learned in Hood and lock in the contest runs riders will use during the Grand Prix qualifying season, which begins Dec. 11 at Copper Mountain, Colo. But the time in Hood was all about progression.
Read More »
The circus is coming to town
On February 12, the 21st Winter Olympic Games descend upon Vancouver, Canada. Let's get this party started.
July 9, 2009, 1:25 PM
By: Alyssa Roenigk
Getty/Bob Thomas Sports Photography
Shaun claims it in 2010—er, um, 2006.
Next Wednesday, July 17, the U.S. Ski and Snowboard association is holding an Open House at its newly completed Center of Excellence in Park City, Utah. (Go! It's free! Park City is a fantastic place this time of year.)
During the next seven months, many of the U.S. team's best hopes for Olympic medals will train at this 85,000-square-foot playhouse in preparation for Vancouver. During that time, we'll deliver a twice-monthly look at the country's best snowboarders and freestyle skiers as they jockey for a spot on the U.S. team. But first, the Cliff's Notes version of what to watch for this winter.
Read More »
