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Medalist Plans Free Ski Contest

April 01, 2009 - NEWRY -- What do you do for an encore after shattering the world record soaring on skis seven stories above the snowy ground at Sunday River? Simon Dumont has decided to host another big showdown at his home mountain, exactly a year to the day of his 35-foot Guinness World Record jump on April 11.

"I am psyched to host the best free skiing contest in the East. The Dumont Cup will be an opportunity for kids to show their stuff," Dumont said.

I spoke to the Bethel native and seven-time X Games medalist while he was training in Keystone, Colo., last week.

"As I came up through the ranks, I had to travel to the West Coast to compete," he said. "I want to make it easier for local talent to break into the circuit and save their parents money from having to travel far away for events."

Dumont, now 22, started skiing at age 3 at Sunday River, made his first X Games appearance at 15, and won his first gold at 17.

The Dumont Cup at Sunday River on April 11 is open to 75 amateur skiers who will compete in the morning to qualify for the afternoon showcase event with pro skiers.

Dumont has assembled a cast of big-name freeskiers – TJ Schiller, Peter Olenick, Jossi Wells, Tom Wallisch and, of course, himself – who will serve as judges of the amateur talent during the selection jam session, then perform head to head with the chosen 10 amateurs in the finals. Prizes include $18,000 in cash and a scholarship to a freestyle training camp for the winner.

The slopestyle course will be built on Dumont's favorite trail at Sunday River, Rocking Chair, according to his specifications.

"Sunday River management has been awesome. They are very willing to build whatever we want, like last year with the quarterpipe," he said.

"Watching Simon Dumont is like watching Tiger Woods play golf. His athleticism is amazing. He is taking the sport to new places with the stunts he's able to execute in midair," said Stephen Kircher, president of Boyne Resorts, Sunday River's parent company.

There is something supernatural about Dumont's aerials. At 5 feet 7 inches tall, he is surprisingly forceful and fluid when he's flying, flipping and twisting – typically 20 feet above the crest of the superpipe or jump.

Dumont's amplitude and acrobatics in Big Air events have garnered him big-name sponsorships including Target and Red Bull, appearances on the national TV shows "Dr. Phil" and "Ellen," numerous ski film clips and recognition in ski publications such as Freeskier and Powder.

"I have always done my own thing with the sport," said Dumont, who was a gymnast as a youth. "With any sport you need to practice and figure it out. You do things in the gym, on a trampoline, it's progressive and you have to commit to it."

Dumont has had some harrowing crashes, including an 80-foot plummet at age 18. He was towed by snowmobile at 60 mph to a jump and overshot the landing, rupturing his spleen and fracturing his pelvis.

"You are going to crash; it's an inevitable part of the sport," Dumont said.

But he continues to come back bigger and better than before – performing the awesome acrobatic stunts, like his original Truck Driver 540, that won him two gold medals.

"I ski every day I can," he said. "When I'm not on snow, I run, go to the gym, mountain bike, to stay in shape till I ski again."

Dumont straight-lined his ski career from high school in Bethel to global freeskiing competitions and major ski film cameos with Matchstick and Poor Boyz Productions.

With rapid success comes the responsibility of running a ski career empire. Dumont and his entourage of friends actually launched a high-end ski attire company called Empire.

"Just like in my skiing, we want to keep the ideas fresh and ahead of the curve for Empire," Dumont said. "We don't want to rush a lot of product out. We want to focus on one thing at a time, and do it top-notch with the best design and materials."

Dumont (a name that translates, appropriately, to "of the mountain") travels to ski mountains around the world with his childhood buddies, including Jake Largess, team manager of Empire.

"I get to travel all over – Europe, Japan – but my friends have to be with me," Dumont said. "As long as I have my friends, that's what makes it awesome. I need to be with people I trust."

Dumont said he's stoked to get back to Maine for his inaugural Pro Am slopestyle event.

"Sunday River will always have a place in my heart, and I take any chance I get to be back to Maine with my family," he said.

His parents live in Bethel, and his sister runs Kai clothing store there, where Empire gloves, mittens and bandanas are sold.

"My hope for the Dumont Cup is that everyone has fun, that they are doing what they love, that they are passionate like me," Dumont said. "This year's event will be a prelude of what will become really big in years down the road."

If it is anything like Simon himself, then, indeed, the Dumont Cup is going up and going off big time.

HEATHER BURKE, Portland Press Herald, March 26, 2009


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