CBMST attacks Copper Mountain

“It was a good weekend for them”

With the USASA Nationals on the horizon, the Crested Butte Mountain Sports team (CBMST) athletes continue to hone their skills in preparation for the season culminating event.

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Mountain Sports Team coaches Ryan Callison and Alex Albers took a legion of skiers and snowboarders to Copper Mountain last weekend for a Rocky Mountain Series event and came home with several trips to the podium to their credit.
Competitors were met with a brutal practice day on Friday, leaving them to familiarize themselves with the halfpipe the morning of the halfpipe competition on Saturday, March 6.
“Conditions were awful on Friday for practice,” says Albers. “They were able to get their runs dialed though during warm-up on Saturday. They hiked the pipe at least eight times.”
Matt Evans stepped up to the top of the podium with a first-place finish in the 13-15 years old age group. Teammate Aaron Blunck has been working diligently on his cork 1080 all season but struggled to put together two solid runs in the halfpipe and finished in ninth on the day.
Sean Johnson and Bradford Coffey took first and second place, respectively, in the 16-18 year old age group.
Blunck recovered from his mishaps on Saturday to dominate the slopestyle on Sunday, March 7, skiing to a first-place finish with Evans in sixth place and first-time competitor Bill Klein taking 16th place.
Johnson finished the slopestyle competition in ninth place and Coffey took 11.
“I was very happy with their performances,” says Albers. “It was a good weekend for them.”
The Healey clan continued their assault on their competition in the snowboard halfpipe and slopestyle events at Copper.
Nora Healey owned the weekend with a first-place finish in both the halfpipe and slopestyle in the 10-11 years old age class. Kevin Healey posted a third-place finish in the halfpipe and fourth in the slopestyle among 8-9 year olds and Colleen Healey finished the weekend with a third place on both days.
“For Colleen to get third over there is a great showing,” says assistant director for CBMST and “all things knuckledragger” Christian Robertson. “She was up against two girls who are up for the national title.”
The CBMST and Crested Butte Mountain Resort is hosting another USASA event this weekend ,featuring a halfpipe for skiers and snowboarders on Friday, March 12 and boardercross and skiercross races on Saturday and Sunday, March 13-14.
The boardercross and skiercross course is set on Cascade off the Gold Link lift.
The event is the last opportunity for athletes to qualify for nationals and should attract a large and talented group from around the region.
“Last year this event drew a bunch of out-of-town riders,” says Robertson.
Anyone interested in testing the waters of halfpipe, boardercross and/or skiercross for the first time can get a complimentary USASA membership for the day of the event.
Registration will be held 8 to 9:30 a.m. each day of the event downstairs in the Elevation Hotel in the Capital Room. Practice will start at 9:30 a.m. and the competition kicks off each day at 11 a.m.