The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
Additional athletes competing at freeride Nationals this week
By Than Acuff
Crested Butte Mountain Sports Team (CBMST) snowboard coach Andrew “Arnie” Arnold and coaches Ian Ash, Kristen Tyson, Grace Gibson, Josh Gallen and Kyle Anderson were determined to expand his athletes’ minds outside of the freeride experience this season. While numerous CBMST athletes spend the season on the IFSA freeride qualifying tour testing their mettle riding steep terrain around the state and country, Arnie and his crew have also been on the freestyle circuit competing in slopestyle, rail jam as well as the boardercross.
“It’s been a goal to bring back the freestyle element to the snowboard team,” says Arnold.
And the program appears to have gained some traction this year as the CBMST snowboarders, and even some skiers, took part in various freestyle events throughout the season and in the end, snowboarders Sawyer and Scarlett Bak, Colton Parr, Hugh Raines, Nolan Gardner and Temple Robertson qualified for the USASA Nationals at Copper March 29 – April 3.
“We had 10 competing throughout the season and had six kids at Nationals, so we’re hyped on that,” says Arnold. “We’ve had one or two in the past, but this was the first year we were able to bring a squad.”
USASA Nationals is really the only time all season when young freestyle skiers and snowboarders from all over the country are in one place for one week of training and competing and Arnold was ecstatic with how everything played out.
“It was a great week,” says Arnold. “There was a lot of good riding and some good results but, more importantly, it was a really fun experience for the kids that were there. It was the culmination of all of their work this year to get better.”
Given the peer group and collection of riders from all over the country, the CBMST athletes stepped up and embraced the opportunity to stretch themselves and what they are capable of in snowboarding whether it be new tricks or better form in boardercross.
“Scarlett had a hole shot in her boardercross that left everyone in her heat behind,” says Arnold. “Temple landed a new trick in competition for the first time and Colton and Sawyer were learning new tricks all week long and continuing their progression.”
Arnold points out that improvement is what his staff and the entire CBMST program is really about. That and helping to develop their athletes in a broader sense.
“I’m super hyped on the camaraderie they have for each other. From the high school kids to the middle school kids to the groms,” says Arnold. “It’s what youth sports should be. Results are great but snowboarding is a lifetime sport so enjoy it.”
It is Arnold’s hope to keep the freestyle torch burning into next season and he knows that the success of the program this year is dependent upon coaches, kids as well as families.
“We could not do what we do without everyone on board, big shout out to the parents,” says Arnold. “It’s been a great year and it’s a big responsibility for us and we are super stoked when we’re able to see real progress in these kids on and off the slopes.”
With the resort closed, the CBMST athletes are headed into the off-season. That is, except for the freeride team as several skiers and snowboarders are currently competing at the IFSA Junior National Championships in Kirkwood this week.
