In one of the more useful articles that they've ever produced, the US Ski Team web site recently wrote about exactly what is required to represent the United States in the Olympics as a snowboardcross rider. The quick and dirty version is this: it takes A LOT.
The team can only take a total of two men and two women (base on World Cup results) and if there's enough room on the overall Team, they might be able to add one more. Considering that 6 of the top 20 SBX riders in the world right now are Americans, that's a pretty tall order.
As the top American finisher in the season's first World Cup, Seth is already well on his way to earning one of those two spots.
For all the info you can handle on how to be an Olympic SBX rider, check out the full article right here.
Over the summer we told you about Seth's trip to NYC for a photoshoot with Sega for their upcoming Vancouver 2010 video game. Yesterday Sega put out an official press release to announce the athletes who were featured on the cover, complete with an image of the game. Here's the cover, and you can check out the full Press Release here.
In between presentations to the town selectmen, working on his restaurant, and (of course) training for the upcoming Olympics, Seth still has to find time for the periodic publicity function for the US Ski and Snowboard Association. Such was the case this past weekend, when our favorite Gold Medalist took a quick jaunt down to the Big Apple for a brief appearance on the Today Show along with fellow snowboarder Ryan St. Onge, and then attended the US Ski and Snowboard Ball at Gotham Hall.
Seth was a headliner at the event, along with other former Olympic medalists and ski team stars Bode Miller, Donna Weinbrecht, Billy Kidd, and Tommy Moe. While it's more than justified, it's still very impressive that Seth is now regarded among these legends of US skiing. Check out the complete story here.
And in other fun news, we stumbled across this video the other day on NBC's Olympic web site. We think you'll enjoy it :-)
Tomorrow marks the start of Sugarloaf's annual Homecoming Weekend, and Seth will be around to join in the festivities. He'll be hosting a showing of one of his movies, Play Gravity, in the Sugarloaf Mountain Hotel starting at 6pm on Saturday evening. If you've never heard of Play Gravity, you're not alone. It never really made it into the mainstream ski/snowboard movie culture, but it's certainly more than worthy, with a fairly lengthy segment featuring Seth descending some Alaskan mountains.
But the most incredible segments in the movie have to be the unbelievable footage of athletes combining paragliding with skiing and snowboarding, descending faces that would truly be unrideable without the aid of a parachute.
So come on out tomorrow night, check out this incredible movie, and say hi to Seth.
Here are a couple of photos from the movie:
Seth talks to WEBN in Boston about the US Snowboarding team heading into the Vancouver Olympics:
As the saying goes, a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. Seth's journey back to the Olympic podium began with a gigantic leap over the weekend, with a second place finish in the first World Cup and Olympic Qualifier of the season. Seth finished just half a board length behind Pierre Vaultier of France and was the top American finisher, putting himself in great position to make the Olympic team again this year along with teammate Graham Watanabe, who finished third.
In an interview with US Snowboarding after the race, Seth credited much of his success to the "Rocky Balboa training program," he's been on here at Sugarloaf during the offseason. That includes mountain biking, paddling, running, and all sorts of other activiteis that incorporate Sugarloaf's natural environment. Check out the full write-up at http://www.ussnowboarding.com/news?storyId=1955, and the full results at http://www.fis-ski.com/uk/604/610.html?sector=SB&raceid=8584.
Seth will have a bit of a break before the next World Cup race, which will be in Telluride in December.
Seth warms up on race day in Argentina. Photo courtesy of US Snowboarding
Yesterday was a big day for Seth and the rest of the US Snowboard Team -the first official day of the World Cup season, and the start of the road to Vancouver. Riders took qualifying runs on the freshly built course in Argentina, and Seth emerged at the end of the day in second place, just behind Pierre Vaultier, and one spot ahead of last year's World Cup champ Markus Schairer.
He was the top American, and had the fastest second run in the field. An auspicious start to the season to be sure, but the real test will be in the actual race today. For the most up to date results check out
www.fis-ski.com, and for a write of yesterday's qualifiers, check out
http://www.ussnowboarding.com/news?storyId=1954.
And be sure to check back here soon for Seth's take on the weekend and his outlook on the season
We got an update from Seth over the weekend from down in Argentina, where he and the rest of the US Snowboard Team are getting ready for the first World Cup event of the season, and the first step towards qualifying for Vancouver. Sounds like training was put on hold for a bit, however, while the powder piled up on the mountain. Up to a foot deep according to Seth. September powder - another perk of being a World Cup snowboarder.
For a little more info check out this article posted on funsporting.com, and be sure to check out http://www.fis-ski.com/uk/disciplines/snowboard/ for the latest news and results from the World Cup stops.
