Olympic gold medalist Seth Wescott of Farmington is inviting the public to snowboard with him on special course at Sugarloaf USA on Saturday
CARRABASSETT VALLEY – Ever dreamed of being an Olympian? Or at least riding with one?
Visitors to Sugarloaf USA will get the chance to find out Saturday, when Olympic gold medalist Seth Wescott of Farmington returns to his home ski area to talk about his experience and offer an opportunity to “ride with him” down a specially prepared snowboard course at the mountain.
The 29-year-old learned to ski at Titcomb and Sugarloaf, graduated from Carrabassett Valley Academy and, one week ago, became the first person to win an Olympic gold medal in snowboardcross.
And like the kind hometown boy everybody from his mother, to his schoolteachers, to his friends and coworkers can’t seem to stop saying he is, Wescott is bringing back a little of the gold to share with all the people who couldn’t be there in Bardonecchia, Italy, when he won it.
“We couldn’t be at the Olympics, but he’s bringing a piece of the games back with him” on Saturday, Sugarloaf representative Bill Swain said Wednesday. Wescott wanted his first official U.S. appearance after winning gold to be at home, at Sugarloaf, Swain said, and the Olympian has been working hard the past two days to put it together.
Swain said Wescott will arrive home sometime between “Thursday and Saturday,” but noted the Olympian hopes to have a relatively quiet return before his big debut on Saturday morning.
“Saturday is the big day,” Swain said. “It’s going to be a great event.” When Wescott called home from Italy to start planning his homecoming, Sugarloafers sprung into action, Swain said, and “scrambled and got everything in place” for Saturday’s event. It will include a talk by Wescott about the Olympics, a lesson in snowboardcross, a ride down the course with the Olympian, an autograph session, and free Sugarloaf/USA Seth Wescott posters for everyone who attends.
Around noon, “Seth is going to share the Olympic experience” with people on the mountain, Swain said. Then, he plans to talk to people about snowboardcross, demonstrate a few things and explain how the sport works.
But what Wescott really wanted for Saturday’s event was for people – friends, fans, skiers, snowboarders and even sneaker-bound onlookers – to get a chance to share in his excitement and “be able to ride with him,” Swain said.
So on Saturday, the Olympian plans to introduce his sport to locals the old fashioned way – by teaching them himself.
“He’s going to invite the crowd to take a run with him,” Swain said.
He explained Sugarloaf/USA will build an snowboardcross course on The Landing, just above the base lodge, in an area all skiers and riders are able to navigate. He said the run will be at a slow speed, so even inexperienced people can feel comfortable taking part.
Swain said that although he expects large numbers of children on vacation from school this week will clamor to ride with Wescott, the “Ride with Me” event is open to both “kids and kids at heart.”
“I hope I’m pretty close to the front of the line,” the 36-year-old Sugarloaf representative said.
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