Men’s Freestyle Aerial Skiing

 

On February 19th, we packed ourselves into our SUV and started driving off to Park City. We were going there to watch our last event of these Olympics: Men’s Freestyle Aerial Skiing. It turned out to be our most difficult event to attend, but one that was worth the effort.

 

We drove through the Provo Canyon, around Deer Lake, and across Soldier Hollow to the parking lot near the corner of I-80 and Highway 40. This parking lot turned out to be a muddy, slushy field in the middle of nowhere. But, it was the only place to pick up the buses that were taking spectators into Park City for the events. In fact, the buses were the only way to get into Park City because the town was closed to non-resident (and non-VIP) vehicles.

 

We trudged through the mud to the lines for the buses. The lines seemed particularly long, especially considering that the event was only an hour and a half away. We soon found out that there weren’t too many buses in service that day. And those that were in service were getting stalled in Park City traffic.

 

After a 45 minute wait, a small fleet of buses arrived. We boarded and began the trip to Park City. After about ten minutes, we were at the Park City city limits. I thought, “We’ve got plenty of time.” Then, I saw the traffic jam all the way up the one lane road which led to the venue. Considering the jam was moving at about a half mile/hour, I began to get worried that we wouldn’t make it in time. Evidently, my fears were shared by the rest of the bus. After crawling through traffic for about 30 minutes, some people on the bus asked the driver to let them out so that they could run to the event. The driver agreed and opened the doors. That led to a mass exodus by most of the bus’ riders. We then began to sprint to the event. That was not an easy trip. The Freestyle Aerials venue was midway up one of the hills surrounding Park City, about a mile from where we had been deposited. So, we had to sprint to the base of the hill, and then continue to run up the snow-covered mountain to the venue. Between the snow and the many layers of clothes we were wearing, the run turned into a trudge. Only the sound of the event’s crowd cheering the first skiers motivated us late-comers from abandoning this trek.

 

We finally made it to the venue. Three skiers had already made their first jump, which meant that nine more were left. We set up position in the snow field between the bleachers and the jump area. A lot of other people had the same idea, because we were jostled left and right by the shifting crowd. Still, it didn’t take long for us to find a good spot to see all the action.

 

The last nine jumpers finished their first jumps in quick order.  Eric Bergoust of the United States was the leader. That Bergoust was in the lead was no real surprise. He had won a gold medal in this event in Nagano, and was a heavy favorite to repeat. However, there was one competitor who had the crowd buzzing: Ales Valenta of the Czech Republic. Valenta was planning to try a jump that had never been done in competition before: a triple back flip with five twists. If anyone could deprive Bergoust of the gold medal, it was Valenta.

 

I hadn’t seen enough freestyle aerial skiing before the Olympics to appreciate the sport’s nuances. But, I could definitely appreciate a jump unlike one that had been done by any other competitor. Such was the case with Valenta’s jump. Eight other jumpers went before Valenta, and all their jumps looked the same to me. But, Valenta’s jump was clearly different. It looked like he was stationary in the air, flipping to his heart’s content, and only descending when he willed it. He topped off these acrobatics by sticking the landing. It was an amazing jump. Valenta immediately moved to the top of the standings.

 

Two more skiers made their jumps before Bergoust got on the ramp. The anticipation was palpable as he started off down the slope. The jump looked fine. But, as his skis hit the ground, his momentum carried his back into the snow. Bergoust fell from first to last in the blink of an eye.

 

The competition was over, and not a moment too soon for my taste. The temperature sign on the mountain said 32 degrees. However, it felt a lot colder with the presence of some cloud cover that moved overhead. We trudged off the mountain and back on to the busses.

 

The ride back to our car was much more uneventful than our ride to the event. As we slogged our way through the mud to the car, we realized that our Olympic experience was at an end. Overall, we had a great time seeing the best athletes in the world and enjoying camaraderie unlike anything else on the planet. But, we knew we’d miss the excitement, the friendship, and the atmosphere that makes the Olympics one of the best experiences in the world. While we were glad to be heading home, we secretly started making plans for Vancouver – 2010. It could happen….

 

Final Results:

 

Ales Valenta (Czech Republic)– Gold

Joe Pack (United States) – Silver

Alexi Grichin (Belarus) - Bronze

 

Pictures (from top left):

 

  1. Alexi Grichin’s bronze medal winning second jump. (ML)
  2. Ales Valenta’s record setting gold medal winning second jump. (ML)
  3. Dmitri Dashinski's second jump.  (ML)
  4. Eric Bergoust crashing on his second jump. (ML)
  5. The crowds trying to exit the freestyle aerial skiing venue. (DL)

 

 

 

Alexi Grichin's second jump.                 Ales Valenta's record setting, gold medal winning jump                Dmitri Dashinski's second jump.

 

 

  Eric Bergoust crashing on his second jump                        The crowds trying to exit the Freestyle Aerial Skiing venue.

 

 

 

 

                                                                                                     

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