End of the Season at Plattekill...

Heaven, that's what it looked like there at Plattekill on Saturday. Above the clouds. And it was heavenly too, but also bittersweet because Saturday was the penultimate day of skiing for the season. The hill was melting fast and for the mogul competition skiers had to ride over on an ATV fitted with ski racks. 

I have to say I'm still sad. Yeah, I've been playing tennis and cycling this week (and the end of the season is very good for my novel-in-progress), but that doesn't quite cut it. So, I leave you with these last parting shots. And some results of the bump competition too. I judged with Harvey Road of the NY Ski blog. I was on jumps. He was on style; Eli from the ski patrol manned the stopwatch. Top prize went to Ted Battesh from Sarasota Springs who got a season pass for 2012/13, and then second prize to Caleb Jensen and third to the awesome Joe Supp (brother of Elaine who is ranked in the top 3 nationally in boardercross and of Steve Supp, aka Vintage Skier Man, and his long skis). 

And for all who hoped Steve might compete – and come on a Saturday rather than his usual Sunday – a dapper gentleman in a pink button-down and long straight skis took to the bumps between competitors. He rocked quite a line, not a zipper, but the man had style. That shirt alone was a bold statement. 

I will miss you all till next year. Maybe we could even get a dumping of snow still. I've not put away my skis or poles yet. (Though we have planted broccoli, peas, spinach and chard... ). Oh and if anyone can tell me who that is rocking the bumps below send me a message, okay? Or just send me a message so we can shed tears about the end of the season....

Photo by Dick Sanford at the Catskill Mountain News

Photo by Dick Sanford.

Photo by Dick Sanford

Till Next Year... 

Elaine Supp, Plattekill Rider, Rocks the Boardercross

Elaine Supp is like a Plattekill fairytale. Her dad (my ski hero) could be called the mascot on the mountain with his long skis and excellent style, and Elaine on her snowboard is bringing fame to our little hill.

She is ranked third in the nation in boardercross (it’s like motocross on snow with jumps berms and 3 other racers on the course with you going gangbusters). And this is a sport she only started competing in last year. As you might recall, she got her start when she saw a boarder cross race on TV and thought, “Hey I could do that.”

For most people that kind of idle idea dies away – or should. Not for Elaine. She entered a race the next weekend. And won. Now talking about it on the lift recently she says she stayed up late reading and re-reading the rules, and they said there was an inspection at nine AM. “So, I thought that just meant they wanted to make sure I had the right bib and helmet and board since you need specific ones,” she laughs. “No it meant we got to ride the course. I had no clue.”

She went from no clue to medal stand. She kept racing and winning, wining and racing and went to the Nationals and placed third. Now having won pretty much every race she’s entered this season she’s about to go back to the Nationals in Colorado in early April. And she even has sponsors. There’s SPY, Swany, Sno Life, Berma, sending her gear, but skiers at Plattekill have  (and still are) to make sure she can make it to Colorado and represent the little mountain that could… 

Boardercross Beauty

Elaine Supp’s making it to the USASA National’s in boardercross is somewhere between fluke and fairytale with a dash of fate added in. For those of you paying attention to Winter in the Catskills her father is Vintage Skier Man (his superhero title) and she a snowboarder.

At the end of January she was watching the Winter X Games and in particular the boardercross and thought, hey, I could do that. Now I should add that she is a particularly excellent boarder, not one of those who goes down the hill face first perpendicular with the slope scraping off all the snow. She’s well prepared for all the jumps and obstacles the nascent sport requires thanks to Platty’s terrain.

Boardercross (and skiercross, there is a 2-planked version) is a relatively new sport. It made it to the Winter Olympics last year in part because the IOC wanted to up the youth quotient. In each heat there are 4 riders on a course at a time. They have to tackle jumps and berms and obstacles – and finish first – a bit like motocross on a snow (or ice).

As Elaine explains it, she texted her sister saying, “I’m going to try this.” Her sister understandably thought she was joking. After all, the sport is intense, competitive and dangerous – few women decide to start in their early 20s. But Elaine was undaunted. She went to the USASA website and found an event in Windham the next weekend. “I wanted to see if I could do it,” she says with a laugh.

Shockingly she won, beat all her competitors and did it again last weekend, taking gold in her category, which to make it more competitive had her racing girls in a younger age group. Now, with those two victories she’s ranked number one in the Catskills making her eligible for the Nationals in Copper Mountain Colorado this April. With the same verve and determination that got her to her first race, she’s determined to go – and because it’s such a new sport she could actually break out to the level of pro riders.

Bob Basil head of the Catskill Mountain Series of the USASA put Elaine’s win in context. “Most girls her age are pros already,” he said “but with the sport’s size and her dedication she could go forward. It’s amazing to see someone in her age group up for riding and racing girls younger than her. She’s clearly a strong athlete.” He also said that the sport itself favors athletes in their late 20s. “You’re facing downhill going fast and making on the spot decision about obstacles. That takes intellectual maturity, but few women in her age group would decide to just go out there and try this – and win. Particularly after combining her group with another age group to make it more competitive.”

For her part Elaine is still adjusting to her wins. “Everything is new, just the layout of each course, and all the kids at these events show up with a coach.” Not Elaine though. No, she dragged her boyfriend along, and he brought a backpack full of snacks. Now she’s approaching local businesses and her employer to help her make it to the Nationals. Others who want to help can make donations on Paypal and on Facebook.