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TEAM UTAH BOARDERCROSS REPORT: OLYMPIC QUALIFYING
The first four World Cup BoarderCross races for the season are complete along with the Olympic qualifying process. Team Utah BX had great showings at all the races so far this season. Our season started with a great training camp in Pitztal, Austria. Temps were a little on the colder side, but not uncomfortable. Plus, we had a couple of bonus pow days. Waxing for the camp was pretty straight forward using mostly Toko LF or NF waxes to condition bases for the upcoming race season.
Immediately after our camp, we made our way to Montafon, Austria for the World Cup season opener. Temps were pretty variable throughout the week, but qualification day was on the cooler side. As is pretty typical at BoarderCross races, the snow was mostly man-made, fine grained that had a lot of grooming done to it. We opted for a combo of LF Bruiser (black and blue) topped with some HF Bruiser. For race overlay, we chose Helix Blue which seemed to do the trick with Jarryd Hughes qualifying in 12th and Mick lacing his run to finish 4th in time trials. Finals day was a little warmer, so we threw in some Toko LF Red and HF Red to our layers and ran Helix Red for heats. In snowboardcross, wax is a vital component, but there are a dozens of other factors that lead to successful racing. Jarryd was able to make some great runs and finish in 8th place. Meanwhile another rider slid into Mick's line preventing him from advancing to the semifinals and he would settle for a 17th place finish.
Our next race was in the glorious Lake Louise, Canada. This has to be one of the most stunning back drops for a race anywhere in the world. The course was a little on the flat side, so wax would play an important role in the results. Again, temps were somewhat on the colder side throughout the week, but the snow was pretty clean so we dropped the Toko Black out of the equation. This decision immediately proved to be the right call with Jarryd qualifying in 7th place and Mick once again the top US rider in 18th place. Race day, Jarryd got on a roll. He was really seeing lines and making moves. After an epic battle with Nick Baumgartner of the US in semi-finals, Jarryd took the lead in the finish stretch to make his career first Big Finals. Not satisfied with just being there, Jarryd made a great pass on Germany's Konsti Schad in the final turn to take the lead and win his first World Cup of his young career. To cap it off, he also took over the yellow bib as the World Cup tour leader. With the next two weeks off for the holidays, Jarryd could relax knowing he was the world #1 heading into 2014. Despite some bad luck, Mick had 2 solid results and his boards were moving fast. Going in to 2014, he was one of the top US riders and had a good shot of making the US Olympic Team.
After the New Year, we crossed the pond again landing in Barcelona and making the drive to the tiny country of Andorra for a double race in a stunning mountain setting. With the announcement of the postponement of Veysonnaz, SUI due to low snow, these 2 races in Andorra would wrap up Olympic qualifying for all the attending nations. After enduring some really cold days in Austria and Canada, it was quite a pleasant surprise to be treated to warm temps (+1C to +5C) and blue skies. It was typical coarse European snow that tended to hold temps pretty evenly despite the rapid warming of the air temps during the day. The course started out fast but had a flatter, slowish section in the middle. It was a wide open course with lots of passing opportunities. Overlay calls were gonna be a little tricky. Did we want to get out of the gate with initial speed to take the lead early or did we shoot for later release to take advantage of drafting and have more speed lower in the course? We opted for a middle ground and mostly ran powder with a couple of secret combos to get the right blend of speed and durability.
Race #1 quali's again went well with both Mick and Jarryd qualifying in the top 24 on their first runs eliminating the need for a second time trial. In the finals, Mick was in a group that went four wide into turn 2. Unfortunately for him, the guys on the outside pinched down to the gate and the rider behind him clipped his tail causing Mick to take one of the hardest crashes he's ever taken. Luckily, he walked away a little bruised and sore, but no major damage. Jarryd, on the other hand, was able to avoid any carnage and advanced to his 3rd straight semifinals. In the end Jarryd landed in 11th place for his 3rd straight top twelve result and another day in the yellow World Cup Tour Leader bib.
Race #2 in Andorra was the last Olympic qualifier for the US team. Things were starting to take shape and basically Mick needed a top 3 to secure a spot on the team. This day, we would be running qualifiers in the morning and finals in the afternoon. This made for some tricky waxing since the sun doesn't really hit the course until around noon. In the end, we prepped a colder board for qualifiers and a warmer, higher flouro board for finals. Just checking them at the top of the course, they felt fast and slick. After so much course time, however, everyone had the course really dialed. Times were fast and close. There were over 30 riders within 1 second of each other during qualifications. Mick and Jarryd were .13 seconds from each other which equated to 8 places! In the first round, Mick once again had someone go down right in front of him leaving him at the back of his heat with no chance to catch up. Despite consistently being one of the fastest US riders on the course, a few unfortunate incidents cost Mick his shot at the 2014 Olympics. But, he walks away knowing that he is capable of running with the best. Jarryd, on the other hand, rode clean heats to his 4th straight semifinal. In the semis, a momentary mistake caused him to spin out of the course sending him to the small finals. A great ride in Small finals landed Jarryd in 8th place on the day. Omar Visintin from Italy took the win in the Big Finals and took the Yellow bib from Jarryd....for now.
With the Olympic qualification process complete, Jarryd will be competing in Sochi, but it's just not in the cards for Mick this time around. Both Mick and Jarryd went toko to toe with the best riders in the world and, not matter the outcome, can be proud of themselves and their efforts. In this sport, however, there's not much time to rest. A short few days off and then we're in Aspen for X-Games. Then, we get another few days off before we make our way to Sochi for the 2014 Olympic Games. There's still lots of racing left this season and we are grateful for the support from Toko to help our boards go REALLY fast. It's been a great ride so far and the NorAm season hasn't even started yet! Stay tuned for more updates from Team Utah BoarderCross.
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