Mary Boddington returns to big mountain circuit at Snowbird

Takes fourth at Snowbird event

Local rider Mary Boddington stomped onto the competitive big mountain snowboarding scene last year here in Crested Butte at the North Face Masters of Snowboarding event.

It was her first competition, and she took second place and won the North Face Young Gun Award for the top rider among men and women 25 years old and younger at the event.
This year Boddington appears poised to continue her success on the big mountain snowboarding scene. She opened the 2010 season with a fourth-place finish at the North Face Masters of Snowboarding competition held at Snowbird, Utah on Monday, January 25.
Preparation for her first big mountain comp of the season was somewhat limited locally, as the Extreme Limits terrain of Crested Butte Mountain had not yet opened.
Nevertheless, Boddington made the most of what Crested Butte Mountain had to offer.
“Monument to Twister all day,” says Boddington. “That was all I could do.”
Snowbird was on the cusp of a massive storm as riders prepared for the competition. While athletes managed to get in a day of inspection runs on Friday, the resort closed the venue and the competition was delayed.
Initially, riders were scheduled to have one run on the first day and two runs on the second day, but due to the onslaught of snow, the schedule was crammed into a one-and-done format.
Typically, Boddington plays the first run safe to ensure she advances to the next round and then hangs it out there in the final stages.
But with only one run, she had to mash her three-run strategy into one hit.
“I wanted to keep it fluid, stay on my feet and get some airs in there if possible,” says Boddington. “Not go huge and blow up but try to impress the judges.”
Boddington had a little trouble at the top, having never been there before, but found her line at the bottom to ride to a fourth-place finish.
“I didn’t know the top of the venue so I just tried to go where the snow was good, but I found my line at the bottom,” explains Boddington. “I’m okay with fourth. I didn’t win any money, but that’s all right.”
Now Boddington has her sights set on the next stop of the North Face Masters tour at Crystal Mountain in Washington in two weeks.
“I’ll do what I can to try to get that going,” says Boddington.
In other words, put together the cash for travel and get work shifts covered.
“It shouldn’t be too hard to get my shifts covered,” says Boddington. “People around here are pretty psyched to support that kind of stuff.”