Crested Butte Mountain Sports Team geared up for winter

Solid coaching staff leads local kids on and off the hill

The Crested Butte Mountain Sports Team (CBMST) is looking forward to its strongest year this winter working with the skittle thugs in the trick ditch, the speed freaks banging gates and the next generation of big mountain skiers.
Their efforts may provide an opportunity for a handful of local athletes to make the jump onto the national scene with visions of the 2014 Winter Olympics swirling through their heads.
This year marks a phenomenal transformation as the CBMST, Crested Butte Ski Club and Peak Education and Consulting joined forces to offer a chance for athletes to get the training they want and need throughout the winter.
“It’s created more avenues for athlete and fund support,” says Mountain Sports director Drew Cesati. “Our new synergy is a fantastic thing.”
The efforts of all three entities created 20 scholarships for athletes this season alone and in just its third year, the CBMST has exploded to involve more than 80 kids from both inside and outside the valley.
In addition, almost the entire staff from last year who coached the young athletes to podium finishes in events across the board will be returning this season, and Cesati has big plans for them as well.
“It’s definitely a positive thing to have these coaches come back,” says Cesati. “This year I’m really pushing the coaches so we have a fully certified staff.”
In an effort to bring in anyone and everyone interested in the CBMST program, every discipline has a variety of options, from one day a week to full-time instruction and training.
They kicked off the 2010-2011 season back in October with dry land training and strength and fitness testing to build a sound foundation of fitness prior to getting on snow.
“We had a full spread of ages, big group and real positive energy,” says Cesati. “It got the kids together and got them training and in a more formal setting with the testing. Fitness is certainly the cornerstone to success in these events.”

Skiing
The CBMST provides an opportunity for young athletes to shine in all ski disciplines from alpine racing and skiercross to halfpipe and slopestyle, as well as big mountain coaching for alpine and telemark skiers.
Cesati will head the alpine racing program again this season with Connor Lynch, Nate Coady and River Winquist, all back to shepherd the 21 athletes currently signed up.
New this year is a J5 (ages 9-10) Acli-Mate program geared toward building a skills foundation for skiers.
Cesati sees two tracks for skiers to follow, racing or freeride. It is his belief that the Acli-Mate program gives the skiers the skill set necessary to follow either path.
“We build a solid foundation,” explains Cesati.
It is Cesati’s hope that the new program will lead to a large alpine racing program in the next age group, J4 (ages 11-12), and beyond.
“That’s the swath of athletes we need to hook,” says Cesati. “My goal in two years is to have 20 J4s. We need to grow that base.”
Woody Lindenmyer returns as the head freeride ski coach with Hans vonBriesen back on board to work with kids in the park and pipe.
New to the crew is Will Dujardin who is fresh off the Freeride World Tour and homegrown talent and big mountain competitor-turned-coach Francesca Pavillard-Cain.
The team had a phenomenal season last year and Lindenmyer hopes for a repeat performance this season.
Two athletes in particular will make the jump to the big pond in slopestyle and halfpipe, Aaron Blunck and Matt Evans.
“Both Aaron and Matt will be doing the Revolution Tour,” says Lindenmyer.
According to Lindenmyer, the Revolution Tour then leads to the Grand Prix, which will line the kids up for a shot at a pipeline to the Olympics.
Mark Robbins is back at the helm of the telemark program this winter.
Last season the team hit the road for a big mountain competition for the first time and hopes to do more of that this year.
“Our one try was a success,” says Robbins. “That’s kind of what the kids and myself are interested in, the telemark competitive scene. Everyone’s psyched to get out there and get to events.”
Robbins hopes to get four, maybe five skiers into competitions this year.
Klara Wohlers will lead the charge again after stomping the junior scene last season with a third-place finish in Canada and winning the Crested Butte event, scoring well enough to be on the podium among the adults.
“This is her last year competing as a junior and she’ll be totally ready for the adult events,” says Robbins.
Currently, Robbins has the kids skiing together once a week on the ski area, getting them ready for the steeper terrain once it opens.
“We still need work on fundamental techniques,” says Robbins. “Then take the skills from the groomers and apply them to the upper mountain as it opens up.”

Snowboarding
The snowboarding program has a mix of old and new coaches this winter but the overall substance is as solid as ever.
“When I take a step back and look at the staff, we have some of the top riders on the mountain,” says Cesati.
Christian Robertson left the head coaching position to turn his attention to the new terrain park and halfpipe at the resort.
Cesati called on Brett Conover to fill Robertson’s boots as head coach. Conover went to Western State College and spent the past three years as a snowboard coach in Aspen.
“He brings in experience working with a bigger club and experience with elite athletes,” says Cesati.
Royal White and Ryan Callison return to bring in “the stoke factor” and “all around ripper” Brady Farr will be on staff also.
Conover has 15 snowboarders signed up for the season, with a majority of the numbers coming from the youth movement in snowboarding—“Primarily young guys, which is good for the future of the program,” says Conover.
Conover and his crew will take their athletes through all things knuckle, boardercross, park and pipe, as well as running gates.
“We encourage them to do it all,” says Conover. “The edge work we do for racing carries over into keeping your speed in the halfpipe and in boardercross.”
CBMR will host the Southwest Series of USASA sanctioned events offering the local riders much needed competition experience and a look at their peers from the surrounding resorts.
“We’re excited to have that local again,” says Conover. “We’ve got a brand new park and pipe to host it and I’m excited to see how it all shakes out.”
With this year’s crop of riders so young, Conover doesn’t plan on taking them to the big time yet, though he feels the talent is there for the future.
“We have some kids who are really talented but still young,” says Conover.
That said, he does hope to get a few riders into the Gatorade Freeflow Tour, a feeder to the Dew Tour, for a look at the next level of competition.
CBMST athletes will jump into the competition fray starting in December, with the schedule peaking in January and February.
“I’m definitely excited to get it rolling,” says Cesati. “We’re already ahead of where we were last year.”