CARRABASSETT VALLEY — The crowd listened intently as a fellow patron grabbed the mic and gave a rousing play-by-play from the stage at The Rack while on the phone with a friend in the stands at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver. Dozens gathered in the Carrabassett Valley restaurant co-owned by Olympic Gold medalist Seth Wescott knew their beloved hometown hero made a miracle comeback to capture America’s second gold medal before the news even hit the airwaves.

“Everybody is wiping champagne off of them right now,” laughed Chase McKendry, another co-owner of The Rack, shortly after Wescott’s amazing victory. “Nobody even knows what to say to him. Everybody is just so excited right now.”

Excited indeed — and with good reason.

Wescott stunned the crowd during Monday’s snowboardcross race down Cypress Mountain. The Maine man helped put the sport on the map during its introductory appearance at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin when he took home the gold then too. The 33-year-old who calls Carrabassett Valley home came from far behind in the last half of the race to snag the gold from Canada’s Mike Robertson.

McKendry, a close friend and business partner of Wescott, said the restaurant opened at noon Monday instead of its usual 4 p.m. and was jam-packed by the time Wescott took the course for the final.

“The place is just on fire,” said Sarah Strunk, wife of Jeff Strunk, another friend and business partner of Wescott. “The bar is filled with young and old. The whole community is here in support of Seth.”

McKendry was quick to point out that it was likely Wescott’s laid-back attitude that kept him from panicking during the race, where he was in last place at one point. He said that calm approach likely helped his friend focus on what needed to be done to win the race.

Both Strunk and McKendry praised not only Wescott’s athletic ability, but his strong bonds with the Carrabassett Valley community.

“He’s real. He’s Seth. And nothing changes that,” Strunk said. “Nothing changes where he’s from and what he believes in.”

Echoing McKendry and Strunk was Chip Cochrane, a longtime coach at Carrabassett Valley Academy, who praised Wescott’s commitment to the local community as much as his Olympic Gold.

“It brings it right close to home for us here,” Cochrane said. “Seth has been a great community member around here. He gives a lot back to this community.”

Cochrane has coached at the Carrabassett Valley Academy for the past 18 years. One of his own CVA students, Bode Miller, took home the bronze Monday in the closest Alpine downhill race in Olympic history. The New Hampshire native was thought to have won the race down Whistler Mountain until the sun broke through the clouds and two skiers topped his score. He was a mere 0.09 seconds off gold medalist Didier Defago from Switzerland.

A third former CVA student, Emily Cook, is also set to compete in the Freestyle Ski competition. Cochrane said that all three success stories not only keep staff at the renowned academy coming to work everyday, but proves inspirational to the school’s students.

“Honestly, it’s what keeps me coming to work everyday. You get to see great athletes being produced,” Cochrane said. “It definitely gives students a boost and makes them believe in all their hard work. It’s real for them and that’s irreplaceable. You can’t have better inspiration than that.”