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Seth Gets Some Air, Catches Breath

March 17, 2009 - NEWRY -- Following the recent World Cup Snowboardcross at Sunday River, I had the opportunity to catch up with Maine's Seth Wescott before he set off for Spain and Italy to complete this season's snowboardcross tour.

Wescott said he was "psyched" to be back home for a week, although he wasn't just resting up or arcing turns on his favorite Gondi Line. He spent part of the time in a snowcat designing the Sidewinder Snowboardcross (SBX) Course for the top junior snowboarders in the country competing in the Revolution Tour at Sugarloaf earlier this week.

"Working on the course with my friend Tim Norton, Sugarloaf's terrain park builder, is great," Wescott said. "We're trying to give these young competitors the best (course) possible. It's neat to be able to help out while I am home and bolster this grass-roots event for young snowboarders."

That's typical of 31-year-old Wescott, a Farmington native and Carrabassett Valley Academy graduate who gives back to the mountain community and the sport that has put him on so many podiums – for Olympic Gold in 2006, and a record eight X-Games medals.

Wescott serves as a spokesman for Maine WinterKids, appearing in TV commercials. "We live in a state with troubled health issues, particularly among young people," he said. "I feel like I had such great opportunities growing up to ski and snowboard in the Maine mountains, so I am glad to give back by reaching out to kids and encouraging them to get outside and participate in healthy winter sports."

Wescott switched from skiing to snowboarding at age 10.

"It's all about finding the best tool," he said. "My own personal connection with the snow is best on a board. I love laying into a turn and having my head near the snow."

Wescott said his father, Jim, a retired Colby track and field coach, took up snowboarding in 2003 and has "taken to it really well – it's great when we can ride together now."

Wescott is now in his 10th year on the U.S. Snowboard Team. "Athletically, I plan to compete in the 2010 Vancouver Games and the 2014 Sochi Olympics (in Russia)," he said. "As I get older, I pick and choose my race days more. You have to assess your situation and keep yourself safe. I have had two friends on the World Cup die. Boardercross can be a dangerous sport."

Wescott makes a tradition of closing out his snowboard season by going to Alaska to freeride in the big mountain backcountry. He had a close call in 2003 when an avalanche swept him almost 750 feet.

"That's when my Mom worries about me more than in competitions, when I am in avalanche country, but we are very careful and respectful," he said. "I have even considered guiding heli-operations in the Chugach (Alaskan backcountry).

"I look forward to the off season, my time in Alaska, surfing in Costa Rica and returning to Maine. I have had a lot of time traveling, and that gets old. I always have a huge sense of peacefulness when I am in Maine, especially in the summer when I can mountain bike and trail run in the western Maine mountains" (part of Wescott's rigorous cross training to stay in shape for the demands of SBX racing).

When Wescott is home at Sugarloaf, it's also a time to check up on his partnership in the Rack, which opened in 2005. "Our restaurant has been really well-received," he said. "The apres scene there has been neat – it adds another aspect to the Sugarloaf experience."

Wescott admits he goes to the Rack partly out of responsibility and partly for fun. "I like to play the role of meet-and-greet when I am home, and I love our chef's new lobster pasta dish," he said. (Virgil Brown, Wescott's best friend from childhood, is the new chef at the Rack.)

Wescott is now racing in La Molina, Spain. He was second in overall points after Sunday River's World Cup event, where he fell in a semifinal heat and placed seventh. "It's not impossible that I can close the gap and win the Overall World Cup this season," he said.

As for further down the road, Wescott said he has many opportunities to pursue.

"As a competing athlete, you have to stay focused and not become distracted by thinking too much about what you might do later," he said. "I hope eventually to branch out to be more involved at Sugarloaf, and possibly coach for the U.S. Team. I want to give back where I received so much support."

If you have heard Wescott speak in public, or spoken with him personally (lucky me), you might add motivational speaking to his list of career options.

WHAT IS SBX?

Four snowboarders (or skiers) simultaneously break out of a gate and ride down a 3,000-foot course (like a downhill race combined with a motocross track). It's a roller derby on snow as they fly over jumps and along banked turns. The pace is fast, and collision is a reality. Elimination heats dwindle the pack and exhaust these athletic, often airborne, riders. The winner of each heat moves on to the next round until they finally duke it out for first. No style points are awarded, just first over the finish wins.

EVENT

Black Mountain is hosting a Rail Jam from 6 to 9 p.m. Friday. It's open to skiers and riders of all ages. Cost is $10, which includes a night ski ticket.

HEATHER BURKE, Portland Press Herald, March 12, 2009


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