Freeskiing

Huge airs and gnarly lines were the theme of this past weekend as SSWSC hosted an IFSA Regional event. U12-18 skiers and snowboarders from all over the Rocky Mountain Region came to test their skills and show off on Chute One. Steamboat had a very strong athlete presence at the comp with strong results. In the U12 Male Skiers division Finn Manning placed 8th and Stratton Bahnsen stood on the podium in 2nd. In the 12-14 Male Skiers division Steamboat had very strong finishes with: Koen Stroock at 15th, Wiley Wagner in 10th, Grady Keefe in 8th, and Gage Adrian coming in at 2nd. In 12-14 Female Skiers Ivy Ladrow came in 4th. Steamboat had two 15-18 Female Skiers on the podium with Maisie Wagner placing 3rd and Rafaelle “Ella” Pietras standing on the top step in 1st. SSWSC had two athletes on the 15-18 Male Skier podium with August Menetre in 3rd and Bryce Zetzman claiming 1st. SSWSC continued to dominate the 15-18 Male Skier category with Logan Spiegel in 13th, Axel Kovachs in 12th, Silas Leeson in 10th and Alex Spiegel in 4th. We would like to give a big Thank You to all volunteers who helped put on a great event as well as the Rocky Mountain Freeride Series.
Photo by Benjamin Calkins, courtesy of Fresh Prints Photography

Cross Country

SSWSC XC fights for top finishes at the D.U. Invitational/Rocky Mountain Nordic JNQ
Hosted by Ski and Snowboard Club Vail

It was a quick turnaround for SSWSC XC athletes from their recent group of races contested last weekend on the Howelsen Nordic Trails, as they competed Saturday and Sunday. They travelled to the Vail Valley for the Denver University Invitational/RMN JNQ, hosted by Ski and Snowboard Club Vail. It was another opportunity for younger athletes to share a competition with Western NCAA athletes, and in some cases race head to head with them.
The SSCV has developed a FIS certified 2.5k race course at their Ski Academy School property in Minturn, CO. There is a climb on course that rates high in difficulty and is one of the toughest climbs many of the SSWSC athletes will see this season.
The two day event comprised a Pursuit race format, which starts with an Individual Start Classic Race and then is followed by a Pursuit Skate the next day- where start order is based on finishing time from the first race. First across the line for Sunday’s Skate Race was the overall two day winner.
SSWSC XC gained many impressive results over the spectrum of age groups.
Result Link= http://www.racerite.com/results.html

Results- Saturday 1/25- Individual Start Classic

U20/18 RMN Male 10k:
1st- Cooper Jones- SSWSC
2nd- Griff Rillos- SSWSC
*5th- Chase High- SSWSC

U20/18 RMN Female 5k:
*7th- Sidney Barbier- SSWSC
*9th- Ellery Kearns- SSWSC
*12th- Karina Romanova- SSWSC

U16 RMN Male 5k:
1st- Grey Barbier- SSWSC
*6th- Thomas Cooper- SSWSC

U16 RMN Female 5k:
2nd- Grace Zannni- SSWSC
*5th- Ellery Hodges- SSWSC
*8th- Charley Lodwick- SSWSC
*10th- Heidi Andre- SSWSC

U14 RMN Males 2.5k:
*8th-Campbell Mclaren- SSWSC

U14 RMN Female 2.5k:
3rd- Nikita Andre- SSWSC
*8th- Grace Olexa- SSWSC

U12 RMN Males 2.5k:
1st- Tristan Thrasher- SSWSC

U12 RMN Females 2.5k:
3rd- Tig Loomis- SSWSC
*4th- Shea Sias- SSWSC
*6th- Shea Rossi- SSWSC
*9th- Rae Olexa- SSWSC

U10/8 RMN Male 1.5k:
*4th- Sawyer Landers- SSWSC
*10th- Fischer Beauregard

U10/8 RMN Female 1.5k:
2nd- Georgia Bishop- SSWSC
*9th-Quinn Loomis- SSWSC

Results- Sunday 1/26- Pursuit Start Skate

U20/18 RMN Male 10k:
1st- Cooper Jones- SSWSC
3rd- Chase High- SSWSC- *fastest U20/18M time of the day
*5th- Griff Rillos- SSWSC

U20/18 RMN Female 5k:
*5th- Sidney Barbier- SSWSC
*7th- Ellery Kearns- SSWSC
*9th- Karina Romanova- SSWSC

U16 RMN Male 5k:
1st- Grey Barbier- SSWSC
*6th- Thomas Cooper- SSWSC

U16 RMN Female 5k:
2nd- Grace Zannni- SSWSC *fastest U16F time of the day
3rd- Ellery Hodges- SSWSC
*9th- Charley Lodwick- SSWSC
*10th- Heidi Andre- SSWSC

U14 RMN Males 2.5k:
*7th- Campbell Mclaren- SSWSC

U14 RMN Female 2.5k:
*5th- Nikita Andre- SSWSC
*8th- Grace Olexa- SSWSC
*11th- Alena Rossi- SSWSC

U12 RMN Males 2.5k:
1st- Tristan Thrasher- SSWSC

U12 RMN Females 2.5k:
2nd- Tig Loomis- SSWSC
*4th- Shea Sias- SSWSC
*5th- Shea Rossi- SSWSC
*9th- Rae Olexa- SSWSC
*11th- Davis Brosterhous- SSWSC

U10/8 RMN Male 1.5k:
*4th- Sawyer Landers- SSWSC

U10/8 RMN Female 1.5k:
2nd- Georgia Bishop- SSWSC
*9th-Quinn Loomis- SSWSC

Tig Loomis in second on the podium

Thomas Cooper

Snowboarding

World rookie tour 1/2 pipe comp from Vail on Sunday Jan 26:

This was our first official USASA 1/2 pipe event for the snowboard squad.  And these athletes have been training hard for this 22ft 1/2pipe - young Aimee Wild whom just turned 9yrs old this month dropped into the pipe and put down her run that she had been training for with a big drop in and some nice solid grabs - she finished her run up with a solid 360 placing her in 4th for the Grommet girls class.

Also Youth boy competitor Jessie Hamric put down 2 solid runs starting with a big indy into a huge method then in to back to back 360’s with tweaked grabs - this landed Jessie a first place finish for the Youth boys class. 
We are super stoked to see these athletes go out and give it their best each day!

STEAMBOAT SPRINGS — Maggie Rose Carrigan may hail from Oak Creek, but she competes in the vibrant green and orange colors of Ireland. As the Steamboat Resort hosted a NorAm Cup parallel giant slalom race, Carrigan wore and won in a white and green suit covered in clovers. She fell in the semifinal but came back to win in the third-place race to make the podium on Thursday, Jan. 23. “I didn’t have a great run to make it into the big final,” Carrigan said. “I definitely had some mistakes, but I’m totally working on it and trying to improve my riding. I’m just happy to go home with something. It’s been a hard season coming off an injury. I’m really glad I can have this confidence back.”Carrigan now has dual citizenship through her grandmother’s side of the family, since the country has a second- and third-generation rule that allowed her to apply for and acquire an Irish passport. After snowboarding for the U.S. for most of her career, she decided to compete for Ireland starting last year. READ MORE HERE

 

Alpine

U14
The U14 Alpine team just wrapped up a GS race series in Winter Park and we had a number of stand out performances!

Saturday Race #1 Boys
Adrian Beauregard 4th
Bruno Bruce 6th
Caman Beauregard 7th
Chris Inglis 12th
Owen Wither 14th

Saturday Race #1 Girls
Abby Olson 8th
Kat Cosby 16th

Saturday Race #2 Boys
Adrian Beauregard 2nd
Bruno Bruce 4th
Curtis Zanni 8th
Caman Beauregard 9th
Owen Wither 11th

Saturday Race #2 Girls
Abby Olson 3rd

Sunday Boys Race #1
Caman Beauregard 5th
Curtis Zanni 11th
Owen Wither12th
Nicholas Bradford 13th

Sunday Race #1 Girls
Abby Olson 9th
Kat Cosby 14th
Anna Rhodes 26th

Sunday Race #2 Boys
Adrian Beauregard 2nd
Bruno Bruce 5th
Owen Wither 12th
Chris Inglis 13th
Nolan Laird 17th
Kade Lawton 19th
Cole Contois 22nd

Sunday Race #2 Girls
Abby Olson 3rd
Avery Olson 19th
Anna Rhodes 22nd

We love out Junior Coaches. Head Coach Linda Curzon takes junior coaches out on a rip session a few afternoons a season! Thanks to these Junior Coaches
• Elizabeth Hager
• Aiden Kerrigan
• Tinsley Moore (has participate in both RIP Sessions so far - bonus points!)
• Griffin Park
• Natasha Curzon

U8
Funky Penguins Update
Last Saturday was Fly Like An Eagle Day and word has it we did at least 150 jumps, but some say 3-400, depending who you talk to. We traversed all over the mountain beginning with our Gondola ride up, then heading to Sundown Lift where we took Tomahawk down 2x and found multiple huge jumps (from snowdrifts) and the Tree tunnel. Then on to South Peak Lift for a snack at Rendezvous. After snack, we cruised down to Elkhead and through the secret (aka candy) trees on Why Not to end the day.

We really got into a great groove and everyone was jumping and bouncing while being stable on their skis.  Key skills were maintaining our balance and control despite speed and being in the air. And of course reading terrain and safety awareness. See pics of Luke, JJ, and Beatrice below!

Powder Hound Snowy Cat Rock Star team update
We have been having FUN!  The last two weeks have been busy and full of fun games and we’ve gotten to explore other parts of the mountain. Last Saturday, we did several laps through the terrain park, skied the bumps down to the adventure zone and then through the tipis and boxes, and on to Thunderhead.  We had fun in Aspen Alley (a group favorite), practiced slipping and steeper turns on Lower Concentration, and found the longest, most fun bumpy trail from the adventure zone to the bottom (this is the summer mountain bike run near Swinger.)  Our goal for the day was to ski all sorts of terrain, make sure the kids were comfortable with terrain changes - bumps, jumps, flats, steeps, powder, and turns, and also to work on moving our feet together and making parallel turns.  Games included screamer turns, J turns, and being ping pong balls.  The kids did great!  I’ll send a second link with videos which show how everyone is making great progress on parallel turns on moderate terrain.  (They have parallel turns nailed on easy terrain.)    When we went in for a snack and restroom break, we chatted about the “Know the Code” safety rules and every single kiddo knew them.

U6
Some of the U6 athletes enjoyed meeting Billy Kidd last weekend! Go Team Orange!

Ski Town USA Initiative

There is only one more day of the Ski Town USA Initiative, on Tuesday, February 4th. Mountain Valley Bank, Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club, Christy Sports, Smartwool, Steamboat Springs School District, Steamboat Resort., and the City of Steamboat Springs - Government come together to provide all the components necessary to run the Ski Town, U.S.A.® Initiative. This program gives every Steamboat Springs School District 2nd grader the opportunity to learn to ski/ride at no cost. Four days of ski lessons are provided to each child who participates in this program. The program is held at historic Howelsen Hill Ski Area during school days in January and February. Each student participates in a two-hour lesson coached by SSWSC athletes and coach volunteers through the SSWSC ‘Champions of Service’ program. We observe our competitive athletes in their role as excellent youth mentors for the kids and are impressed with their kindness, patience and positive energy.

ACE After School Program

Wednesday night was the final night of the ACE Afterschool Ski Program night of skiing! Nearly 30 kids from the Soda Creek Elementary School participated in this incredible program, presented by Alpine Bank, that was offered to kids learning English as a second language. This program included four days of free ski/riding sessions with rental gear provided by Steamboat Ski and Bike Kare and coaching provided by the Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club. It was neat to see most of the kids graduate to using the large magic carpet on their final night and making linked turns. Great job!