Sporty Saturday Spotlight presents Whitney Frankovic

This Saturday the sporty spotlight shines bright on twenty-one year old snowboarder Whitney Frankovic. Check out Whitney’s in-depth interview below where she dishes about how she overcomes frustration, traveling, makeup, and much, much more.

Name: Whitney Frankovic

Age: 21

Sport(s): Snowboarding

Hometown: Cleveland, Ohio

High School/Middle School/College: I went to middle school/high school in North Royalton, Ohio. I am currently a senior at the University of Utah.

What’s your fave sport?

Definitely snowboarding, but I love to watch baseball too. Go Tribe!

How many years have you been playing your fave sport?

I started snowboarding in ski club with my school in 7^th grade, so it’s been about 10 years.

What was your fave sporty moment or memory?

I love traveling, especially to new resorts, so I love getting the chance to explore a new mountain.

What was the biggest lesson you’ve learned from playing your sport?

Don’t worry about the other people that are out there, ride for yourself and do your own thing.

What lessons have you learned about work ethic from your sport?

Sometimes learning something new when it comes to snowboarding can get frustrating. It’s important to not get mad and loose confidence when you fall. You’ll never learn if you don’t take a few good crashes. It will be worth it when you get the trick down.

What have you learned about teamwork?

I think teamwork is great because everyone is there to support each other, push each other to excel and just be there to just have a good time with. It’s fun being around people who aren’t there to judge you, but there to give you confidence.

How do you balance school and sports?

In high school it was easy, because my home resort in Ohio didn’t even open until 3:00pm every day, so I would just head up after school. I didn’t really do much studying so there was never really a conflict with that. In college it’s a little harder. I try to schedule my classes as early as I can in the morning so I can head up to the resorts in the afternoon then study at night. Sometimes I’ll have to take a day or two off during the week to get some things done for school. I think it’s important to get school stuff out of the way, because then I’ll be worrying about it when I’m out riding.

Who’s your fave athlete, both male and female?

It’s really hard to just pick two, because there are so many great athletes out there, but I guess if I had to pick, it would be Marie-France Roy and Euro Ettela.

What’s the girliest thing you like to do? (Pretty Tough signature question)

I really like makeup for some reason. I don’t even wear it all the time, but I have tons of it! Sometimes I get up a little early and put makeup on before heading up to the mountain (haha).

Thanks, Whitney! So many amazing life lessons you’ve shared! Great stuff and best of luck with your snowboarding career.

Do you or someone you know want to be spotlighted? Send an email to Keri Mikulski at kerimikulski(at)gmail(dot)com.

Happy Saturday!

Winter X Games 14 – Women’s Results

Over and out. Winter X Games 14 has wrapped. Four days in Aspen delivered five-peats, double three-peats, and back-to-back golds. Read on to find out how the women fared.

Friday, Jan. 29th – Women’s Skiing Superpipe

A deserving  Jen Hudak won Women’s SuperPipe Gold. In her sixth Winter X, the 23 year old Utah local spent the last three years pushing progressively harder toward the top of the podium. Last year she finished second by a microscopic margin and Winter X 14 turned out to be her year.

1. Jen Hudak
2. Megan Gunning
3. Roz Groenewoud
4. Mirjam Jaeger
5. Anais Caradeux
6. Sarah Burke

Saturday, Jan. 30 -  Women’s Snowboard X

In the Snowboard X Lindsey Jacobellis defended her title, but not without a lot of heat from Helene Olafsen. Watch for this rivalry to be another one that will  be continued in Vancouver.

1. Lindsey Jacobellis
2. Helene Olafsen
3.  Joanie Anderson
4. Maria Ramberger
5. Alexandra Jekova
6. Emilie Aubry

Saturday, Jan. 30 – Women’s Snowboard Superpipe

As expected, the Women’s Superpipe ended up being  a competition between Gretchen Bleiler and Kelly Clark .  In her final turn, Clark needed to best Bleiler’s 96.66; she dropped and stomped her entire run, but it was too close to call.  Gretchen probably had more technical tricks, but Kelly had a lot of amplitude and tricks, too.  In the end,  Bleiler took the top prize, becoming the only woman to win four times. Hannah Teter took third but her score was 26 points shy of Bleiler’s.

1. Gretchen Bleiler
2. Kelly Clark
3. Hannah Teter
4. Soko Yamaoka
5. Ellery Hollingsworth
6. Elena Hight

Sunday, Jan 31 – Women’s Slopestyle

Jenny Jones won the Women’s Slopestyle final for the second year in a row. She out-shredded Jamie Anderson and Janna Meyen-Weatherby, neither of whom were at Winter X last year.

It was a progressive day in the park. Janna Meyen-Weatherby was incredibly close to nailing a cab nine, which would’ve been a Winter X first for women. Unfortunately, the landing ended up earning her bronze behind Jamie Anderson’s silver but she certainly lit a fire during the comp.

1. Jenny Jones
2. Jamie Anderson
3. Janna Meyen-Weatherby
4. Kjersti Oestgaard Buass
5. Hana Beaman
6. Cheryl Maas

Women’s Skier X

History was made when France’s Ophelie David took home her fourth straight Women’s Skier X gold medal, making her the first skier — male or female — of any Winter X skiing discipline to four-peat. The 33-year-old mother of two passed two Canadian women — Kelsey Serwa, 20, and Ashleigh McIvor, 26 — wjp finished second and third respectively, halfway through the course and outlasted them to the finish to claim a record fourth gold medal.

1. Ophelie David
2. Kelsey Serwa
3. Ashleigh McIvor
4. Fanny Smith
5. Marte Gjefsen
6. Aleisha Cline

Oh, and if you hadn’t already guessed, Shaun White took home gold in the Men’s Superpipe final.

Winter X Games 14: Bring it on

As temperatures drop, the excitement heats up in Aspen, which is hosting the Winter X Games for the ninth consecutive year. Most of the action will take place over the next four days – and the invited rider list reads like a who’s who of winter sports. This year’s Games should prove to be a showcase for the progress female action sports athletes have made in the genre.

Highlights of WX14 will include snowboarder Torah Bright and freeskier Sarah Burke who are both returning to Aspen in a bid to reclaim gold.

You’ll also see a lot of halfpipe queen Gretchen Bleiler. The only woman to win WX SuperPipe 3 times, Gretchen also has silver from WX ‘07, silver from the 2006 Torino Olympics Halfpipe and an ESPY as 2008’s Best Female Action Sports Athlete.

In boardercross, 24-year-old Lindsey Jacobellis is considered royalty and ranked #1 in the FIS World Cup for 2009. She is an Olympic silver medalist from 2006 and five-time WX Games gold medalist.

Two years ago , Jamie Anderson became the youngest X Game gold winner when she won the women’s snowboard slopestyle. The Two-time WX Slopestyle gold medalist Anderson fractured her hip two weeks before WX ‘09. At the U.S. Open two months later, she ruptured her spleen, bringing a cruel end to the roughest season of her young career. But she kicked off the 2009/10 season right: winning the Billabong BroDown in Aug., Burton New Zealand Open in Nov. and Dew Tour Breck last month.

Also not to be overlooked is Kelly Clark, 26, who is competing in her tenth Winter X Games. One of the most decorated women in competitive snowboarding; Kelly has collected 6 WX SuperPipe medals, Olympic gold from the ‘02 Games, an ESPY for 2002 Action Sport Athlete of the Year and has won the Grand Prix Halfpipe title each of the past three years.

As one of the most X-treme winter sports events in the world, Winter X attracts an international array of gravity-defying athletes. Money (record purses this year), medals and worldwide fame are all up for grabs as athletes compete in skiing, snowboard and snocross so catch all the action today through Sunday.

Get ready to be X-cited for X-cellent performances. Some of the weekend’s highlights include:

Sat. Jan. 30: 2:00 – 3:30 pm Snowboard Snowboarder X  Women’s Final
Sat. Jan. 30: 7:30 – 8:30 pm Snowboard SuperPipe Women’s Final
Sun. Jan. 31: 10:00 – 12:15 pm Skiier X Women’s Final
Sun. Jan. 31: 12:00 – 1:00 pm Snowboard Slopestyle Women’s Final

Winter X Games 14 is on in Aspen, Colo., from Thursday, Jan. 28 to Sunday, Jan. 31. Much of the event will air live on ESPN and ESPN2.

Pretty Tough Trivia: “Superman” is not the man of steel; it’s when a rider lays flat in the air, both hands reach under the board to grab the toe side and or the shin of each boot, both legs are bent and the board is pulled up behind the rider.

Preparing for X Games. A journey through the mind of an athlete.

Preparation for X Games is always a little bit intimidating because the expectations are typically so much higher than at any other contest. The jumps are bigger, the crowds are bigger, all the sponsors are there and to top it off it’s a world wide televised event. This year I am switching things up and am going to do my best to maintain a clear, confident, and determined mind, while also remembering that I snowboard because I love it and not because of what others think about me.

My preparation has begun with the 2nd stop of the Dew Tour, which is taking place as I write this at Snowbasin in Utah. I had a few hours of practice on the course yesterday and this morning and we competed in qualifiers this afternoon. Today proved to be a day of transition, in which my mind remembered how park felt in comparison to powder. Considering I was up in Canada for the last two weeks shredding bottomless powder I am feeling rather comfortable back on the slopestyle course. I qualified 3rd and will compete in the Finals on Sunday.

Bouncing from powder back to park can be a hard transition because each task takes different mental planning. Though I have to be really focused for both, the backcountry is really quiet and feels like a giant soft playground with endless options and limited high impact consequences. In contrast, contests are on hard pack snow and the jumps are fairly big and potentially intimidating. Contests also have a lot more distractions, i.e., friends, crowds, judges, event coordinators. These distractions can add to an athlete’s riding or possible take away from their riding. I am in the process of learning how to be in control of my mind during these transitions. With X Games only a couple weeks away I am trying to find a balance between a focused and controlled mind while still being able to push myself to learn new tricks. I want to be having fun while I’m competing and training but I also have to stay motivated to reach new limits.

My current focus is to be calm, collected, and patient with my riding. My goal for this weekend is to turn off my mind and let my body do the work it has been programmed to do.

(Ed. Note:  The Winter X Games 14 will take place January 28-31, 2010 in Apsen Colorado.  Join us as we cheer Kimmy on and be sure to catch the Snowboard Slopestyle Women’s Final on ESPN on Sunday, Jan. 31)

Snow Business – Stay in Shape for Winter Sports Season

It’s time to hit the slopes. How do you get through the winter season in one piece? After all, mogul mashing or straddling a board downhill aren’t easy tasks, even if you are a daredevil.

You should have started training months ago but if your pre-season conditioning didn’t exactly prepare you, there are still steps you can take. At the very least, warm up by doing some stretches and abdominal crunches, and take a few runs on a beginner slope before you tackle a double-black diamond. Even better is to start a conditioning program that will help you have more fun on the slopes and avoid common injuries.

You’re probably eager to build yourself up as quickly as possible but remember that consistent training is what is really required. Even a minor ankle sprain can mean a major setback for the more serious athlete so take all the precautions you can.

Strength & Conditioning

A regular fitness program will make snowboarding or skiing easier and help prevent injuries. One of the basic rules of training is to start slowly and build up to the desired level of fitness.

If training time is limited, focus on muscular endurance and strength circuit training. Pick exercises that work more than one muscle group at a time, like squats, dead lifts and dead rows.

Muscle balance is critical in skiing and boarding, and you can help keep your knees safe by equally working the big muscles of the leg — the quadriceps, glutes and hamstrings. Pretty much any kind of strength routine is better than none, but for maximum benefit you’ll want to mix a variety of body resistance (i.e. push-up, sit-up, dips, pull-ups, etc.) and weight exercises (i.e. lat pull downs, upright rows, curls, etc.).

Following a phase of general conditioning, move on to more specific training, to condition the body and the mind for specific tasks.

Sport Specific Drills

Try drills that include core control, balance and endurance drills; pilates and yoga to build core strength and balance; jumping rope; and plyometrics — short bursts of exertion that build leg power such as squats.

For example, skiing uses quads (front of the thighs) and glutes. So it stands to reason that jumping exercises are the most specific way to train off the slopes for skiing. However, jump training puts tremendous shock on the legs, knees and joints. Best bet is to practice the movement of the jump, but minimize the landing impact.

If you’re a XC skier, the more you can isolate primary XC muscles in the back, abs, legs, shoulders, etc. in your strength workouts, the better. If you can find rollerboards and double pole machines, they’re super-effective at building XC ski-specific strength.

Lateral drills that mimic the side-to-side motion used in skiing and snowboarding will help strengthen and tone ski-specific muscles.

Boarders don’t use as many muscles as skiers, but they use their muscles differently and have different considerations. In particular, boarders need to be aware of space and balance.

The muscles that are used the most in snowboarding include the quadriceps, the adductors (inner thighs), the glutes, and much more than you might realize, the abdominals and lower back. These postural muscles are critical to maintaining balance and alignment, and any conditioning program should include a heavy component of crunches and lower back work. In addition to the usual squats and lunges, try to include some pylometric exercises like squat jumps. Developing explosive power in the legs will serve you well if you’re a snowboarder.

It also makes sense for boarders to work with a fitness or Bosu ball for balance and a medicine ball for upper-body strength and improved reaction time.

Endurance

This is where what you do matters less than how long you do it. For example, if you typically ski for two hours each time you get out in the winter, you will want to get in the habit of doing aerobic activities for at least two hours before you hit the slopes. These activities can include hiking, running, cycling, paddling, swimming, or any combination of these activities.

Do you need to “go long” every time out? Simply getting out for a longer workout one to two times a week is going to be enough — especially if you can supplement these longer sessions with a couple shorter aerobic sessions and strength workouts each week.

Also, interval training that includes harder sessions alternated with easier ones helps build endurance.

Tips for Avoiding Injury on the Slopes

Members of the ski-patrol see lots of snowboarders with wrist and shoulder injuries and skiers with injured knees. Here’s what you can do to avoid these common injuries.

Warm Up: Get your muscles fired before you go out. A good warm up increases your range of movement and lowers your risk of injury. Remember, warm muscles are pliable and less likely to be strained. Cold muscles are brittle and are more easily injured.

Stretching is always best done when the muscles are warm, so don’t just go out into the freezing cold and start grabbing for your toes. Stretch before you hit the mountain, while you’re warm.

A good warm-up takes approximately 15 minutes to increase the body temperature. Start gently with a slow but controlled increase in intensity. The warm-up always contains elements of the activity which is to follow. A warm-up for a XC skier is different from that of a snowboarder or ski jumper.

Contrary to popular belief the warm-up takes just as long when the weather is warm. A cool down following your time on the slopes will assist the gradual return of the body temperature to normal so definitely add some stretching after your runs.

Know How to Fall: Most ski instructors say that knowing how to fall is one of the best ways to protect your knees. If you feel yourself losing control, don’t try to sit; instead, give in to the fall, keeping your knees flexed and land on your side. Use your skis or poles to stop your slide rather than standing up. If you put a knee, an elbow or a thumb down first, you’re more prone to injury.

Stay Balanced: If you’re skiing, position yourself over the center of your skis. Keep your hands forward, and sense the soles of your feet at all times.

Know Your Terrain: Familiarize yourself with snow conditions and new runs. Examine the consequences of a fall — a harmless slide down the middle or a rough ride into rocks? Adjust your style accordingly. Use slopes that have packed snow and aren’t too crowded. Always avoid icy slopes.

Wear Good Goggles: Glare off snow can lead to accidents. Consider using goggles or glasses with lenses that automatically adjust to varying sunlight. If you want to use just one color, make it orange; it works on bright and overcast days.

Dress for Success: Choose the right clothing and equipment for the conditions. Proper boots can really help prevent injury (e.g. soft boots for beginning snowboarders). Although you pay more for specialized clothes and boots, it is worth it in the long run as it will contribute to safety and enjoyment. Dress so you’re not too hot and not too cold. Wear layers of high-tech fabrics that breathe. Cold skiers or boarders are slow to react, and overheated ones tire easily.

Drink Plenty of Water: You can become dehydrated long before your body senses you’re thirsty, sapping strength and impairing judgment. Carry water with you, and drink plenty and often — at least 8 ounces for every hour you’re on the slope.

Know Your Capability: Avoid skiing or boarding with people who are a lot better than you are, unless they’re willing to slow down and ski at your speed.

Quit While You’re Ahead: Fatigue is probably the greatest cause of injury. Don’t take “this one last run” if you really don’t feel up to it. Almost 90 percent of all accidents happen on the last run of the day. The end of the day also means the worst lighting (harder to see the bumps and icy patches) and the bumpiest snow.

Wear Wrist Guards: If you’re boarding, wear wrist guards made for snowboarding or in-line skating. This is particularly important for newbies If you don’t use wrist guards, keep your hands in a closed-fist position, which prevents falling on a hyperextended wrist.

Wear a Helmet: The back of the head is a frequent impact area, especially for beginning snowboarders.

Have a happy and safe winter season.

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Kimmy Fasani: Adventures in filming

The opportunities that cross the paths of athletes are abnormally incredible. I find that I have to pinch myself on a usual basis because I can’t believe what my “job title” is. I am outside all day, I travel consistently, and I meet amazing people all over the world. Really?

This season, similar to last season, I am focusing most of my energy on filming, while still trying to find a good balance of doing contests to promote the companies that represent me. However, this season DC has provided me the opportunity to film with Standard Films. Standard Films is a very prestigious guys movie project that documents some of the most standout guys riding in the industry. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity to push myself to a level of riding that could be archived among the other few women that have filmed with a guy’s crew. The added benefit of this project is the film crew has also brought Hana Beaman, Raewyn Reid, and last year’s veteran Leanne Pelosi into the mix. The four of us ladies have our own filmer and it’s our job to make our parts happen. Challenge? YES! Exciting? YES!

With that said, my season started off quickly and efficiently with a two week road trip to the interior of British Colombia. Hana, Leanne, and myself met up with a photographer, Christy Chaloux, and filmer, Aaron Whitley, in Nelson, BC on the 2nd of January. The mountains were getting thoroughly filled in with blankets of snow for days.

We started off our adventure at Baldface, which is a very well known cat skiing operation. Riding at this operation would give us a chance to get comfortable with each other and the waist deep powder, while also allowing the backcountry to become a little more stable. Everybody was warning us about a high avalanche danger in the surrounding mountains so we figured we might as well play it safe and utilize terrain that had guides and advanced avalanche safety equipment.

Two days at Baldface was the perfect warm up and with stability rising in the backcountry we were beginning to feel confidence in our snowmobiles. From the 5th of January until the 10th we took to the back roads and headed out on our snowmobiles to find all the untracked layers of snow. We struck gold and each day we were riding about 2 feet of fresh tracks and no body else was around. The two-week adventure came to a close on January 11th and I drove down to Park City, Utah for a couple events. Filming in the quiet mountains heavily outweighs doing contests but each are components of my “job.”

Life is beautiful and powder is my favorite!

Kelly Clark heading to Vancouver

Snowboarder Kelly Clark secured a trip to her third Olympics this week.

Clark defeated 2006 gold medal winner Hannah Teter to make her two for two this season in the U.S. Grand Prix events, which are being used to determine the riders who will represent the U.S. in Vancouver next month.

“Before the last Olympics, I qualified last,” Clark said of the 2006 effort, where she was a late qualifier and finished fourth at the Games. “So, yeah, this feels really good. It gives me a chance to use the rest of the season to work on things, practice my harder jumps in competition.”

There are three more Olympic qualifiers this month, starting Friday with another event at Mammoth Mountain. The full team will be selected at the end of January.

Throughout the comp, signs in the stands paid tribute to injured snowboarder Kevin Pearce, who suffered a brain injury during a fall last week while training.  Fortunately, news comes today that his condition has been upgraded and he’s improving.

2009 Salute to Women in Sports

Other WomenTalkSports posts of “Best of ‘09″:

• From Because I Played Sports, Best of ‘09: Forming a community, WomenTalkSports.com

• From One Sport Voice, The “Best” of 2009 and the State of Girls & Women in Sports

• From WakeGirls.com, Best of ‘09 – A Year for Women in Wake

Winter Fun – wanna try something new?

From backcountry snow camping to snowshoeing, there’s more to winter than skiing and ice skating.

Cross Country Skiing With origins in Scandinavia 4000-4500 years ago, cross country skiing has come a long way from being the sole method of transportation for snow and ice-bound Northerners.

Today, cross country skiing (aka Nordic Skiing or XC Skiing) is, in the opinion of many, the world’s best aerobic fitness activity. The sport involves simultaneous use of arms and legs utilizing ski equipment including boots, poles, and skis. Because you can XC Ski just about anywhere with snow, you can match the terrain to suit your fitness level and interests.

Dog Sledding It’s that time of year, many distance mushers are focused on training for the Iditarod – the “Last Great Race”. Of the 71 mushers who have already signed up for this dog sled race, 56 are veterans, 15 are rookies, 15 are female and 56 are males. Mushers have until Dec 1st to sign up for the 2008 race.

Ice Sailing Ice sailing, or hard water sailing—is navigating a frozen surface in a sailboat outfitted with runners. The fundamentals of this exhilarating sport can be learned in just a day or two. The most proficient sailors can adapt to rapidly changing ice and wind conditions but novices often exceed their limits and get in trouble. For those who master the sport, ice sailing offers the best of summer and winter pleasures.

Skijoring Cross country skiing has gone to the dogs. A popular sport from Scandinavia called “skijoring” can be a great workout for you and your canine. Fido is outfitted with a special harness and leash so he can pull you, wearing your XC skis, along pristine trails. Once your and your pooch are proficient you can search out races and more.

Snow Kayaking Know of a pristinehillside covered with newfallen snow? If sledding or tobogganing seems old hat, grab the kayak from your garage and improvise. A kayak will work fine if the snow is really cold, so the kayak doesn’t stick. You can get some speed going and use the paddle to carve out snow and stick the paddle behind to use as a rudder. It’s not as accurate as a sled but about the same as a toboggan and a lot more fun.

Snow Kiting Fast growing and simple to learn, skiers and boarders across the world are discovering the fun of snow kiting. All you need is snow and a power kite and you can turn a cold winter’s day into a blistering, adrenaline-soaked experience. Speeds of over 60 mph have been recorded as snow kite riders blast themselves along with just the power of the wind.

Wind power is one of life’s few free rides and already snow kiting enthusiasts have achieved incredible things. From a ground breaking unsupported journey to the North Pole and back to huge kite-powered adventures through Alaska, the world of winter sports is embracing this fantastic new sport.

Snowshoeing
Try winter’s fastest growing adventure fitness craze – snowshoeing!

The sport has grown in popularity among female Americans since 1998. The participant  level has increased 163% to 2.1% of females 16 and older. Source: Outdoor Recreation Participation Study 2003

It’s easy to see why snowshoeing is the trendiest and friendliest on-snow winter activity considering anyone who can walk can snowshoe. Until the 1970’s, snowshoes were used primarily for survival rather than recreation. Today, enthusiasts who strap on a pair of snowshoes range from casual snowshoers who hike trails for pleasure, to those who trek through the backcountry, and competitors who race. One of the best things about snowshoeing is just about anywhere you hike or mountain bike in summer, you can snowshoe in winter.

In addition, snowshoeing can help enrich your health. Known to help maintain or improve cardiovascular fitness, the sport helps burn more than 600 calories per hour. Snowshoers can burn more than 45 percent more calories than walking or running at the same speed, according to Snowsports Industries America (SIA).

Telemark – Get off the groomed trails and experience backcountry skiing! For most, tele skiing is all about the stoke, the sensation, that feeling of excited exhilaration that comes from getting into the groove of the tele turn.

Norwegian Sondre Norheim, recognized today as the father of telemark skiing, popularized this new style of turn where one ski is advanced in front of the other and the heel is raised on the rear ski, with the skier in a very bent knee position . The telemark turn is ideally suited for the moderately steep mountains and the soft, deep snow found in the Telemark region of Norway.

Burton goes denim & plaid to outfit the US Olympic snowboard team

Earlier this month, Burton unveiled the US Snowboard Team Uniforms for the upcoming 2010 Winter Olympics.  And in sharp contrast to other nations, the Vermont based company has  given the team a distinct ‘un-uniform’ edge – utilizing well worn denim plus a special red, white and blue plaid.  When the US Snowboard Team steps onto the World’s stage this February in Vancouver, they will look and feel unmatched with designs that speak to both individuality and heritage, key hallmarks of the Burton brand and the snowboard culture.

The Olympic uniforms feature a fresh and progressive style while also managing to pay tribute to more classic Americana fashion staples. The pants seamlessly integrate the look of real, worn, vintage denim (very cool), and the jackets feature plaids adorned with leather patches and chenille crests with both pieces incorporating the performance benefits of Gore-Tex fabric.

All product development at Burton is rider driven and this Olympic outerwear is no exception. Burton held a roundtable discussion with top pro-snowboarders and Olympic hopefuls Elena Hight, Mason Aguirre, Danny Davis, Kevin Pearce, Jack Mitrani, Luke Mitrani, Steve Fisher, Scotty Lago, and Louie Vito to review design concepts for the outerwear before arriving at the final creation.

“Since its inception, Burton has been a rider driven company,” said Jake Burton, Founder and Chairman of Burton Snowboards. “For the creation of the US Snowboard Team uniform, we listened carefully to the riders’ needs and used their input to ensure that the final fit, fabrics and overall design would maximize their performances and take these riders to the podium. It was also absolutely critical to ensure these Olympic uniforms were worthy of bearing the Burton name.”

“Although we are creating a uniform, our first objective is to express the individuality of snowboarding. As such, we are taking vintage American looks and interpreting them in a very unique and unexpected fashion.” says Greg Dacyshyn, Senior Vice President of Creative at Burton.

Looks like they’ve successfully managed to straddle both patriotic and street-influenced factors for the Games. What do you think?

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