603Podcast with Dan Egan
603podcast explores the people, places and things that create the culture of New Hampshire. From the Great North Woods to the peaks and valleys of White Mountains, in and around the Lakes, on and off the Seacoast, throughout the Merrimack the Monadnock Regions, to the Dartmouth-Lake Sunapee area. This podcast educates, motivates and discovers the stories that shape the "Granite State" and its impact on the country and the world.
Hosted by extreme sports pioneer Dan Egan, you’ll hear inspiring in-depth stories, from our featured guests that are the heartbeat of the Granite State through conversationally discussions with New Hampshire’s most notable, need to know folks and characters make New Hampshire truly special place.
603Podcast with Dan Egan
New Hampshire's Mogul and Freestyle Skiing Legacy at Waterville Valley: Insights from Nick and Suzi Preston
Join us on this episode of the 603podcast for an exclusive journey into the exhilarating world of mogul and freestyle skiing, featuring insights from the dynamic duo, Nick and Suzi Preston, who together founded the Freestyle America training program and coached at Waterville Valley for decades.
Leading up to the FIS World Cup at Waterville Valley, a premier event on the East Coast, this episode prepares listeners with an overview of the lead competitors to watch, like athletes Olivia Giaccio, Jaelin Kauf, and Tess Johnson. Listen as Dan Egan digs into the legacy of freestyle skiing at Waterville Valley and its profound impact on the sport's history. From pioneers to Olympic champions like Hannah Kearney, the episode shares stories of dedication, innovation, and inspiration. Explore the advancements in training techniques, including the revolutionary use of airbags, and celebrate New Hampshire's role in nurturing world-class athletes.
Waterville Valley Resort proudly welcomes the return of the Freestyle World Cup on January 24-25th, 2025! As the birthplace of freestyle skiing, Waterville Valley Resort will host the world’s most talented freestyle mogul skiers for a second time as they complete for gold. The 2025 World Cup will take place on Lower Bobby's Run, a beloved double-black diamond run spanning 246 meters long with a pitch of 28 degrees. This eastern-facing course is perfect for mogul-style events, especially considering the expansive viewing area towards the bottom of the run.
This prestigious event marks Waterville's second time hosting a Freestyle World Cup event, you won’t want to miss out on the competition of a lifetime!
For more information about the 603podcast visit 603podcast.com
Hi and welcome to the 603 Podcast, where we explore the people, places and things that create the culture of New Hampshire. This podcast educates, motivates and discovers the stories that shape the Granite State and its impact on the country and the world. Hi, everybody, I'm extreme sports pioneer Dan Egan and your host of the 603 Podcast. I'm excited about this podcast for so many reasons. First, to share the stories. Second, to meet and get to know the people who create, share and develop the activities, businesses and iconic history of our state. But also to hear from you, our listeners, about the stories and ideas you think that we should share on our podcast. You can check out our website at 603podcastcom to learn more about our guests and to share with us your stories and ideas of people who you think we should interview.
Speaker 1:The 603 Podcast is sponsored by Mad River Coffee Roasters in Campton, new Hampshire. Check them out online at madrivercoffeeroasterscom. The podcast is also sponsored by Waterville Valley Resort, new Hampshire's family resort. Visit watervillevalleycom to learn more and plan your next visit. It's also sponsored by Alpine Adventures, new England's premier thrill destination. Alpine Adventure has it all. Visit alpineziplinecom and let the adventure begin. Looking for summer fun? Whalestail Waterpark New England's favorite splash spot is your place Whalestail Waterpark, where the fun never ends. Visit whalestailwaterparknet today. Ski Fanatics is the ski shop of the White Mountains Located off of Exit 28 on Highway 93 in Campton, new Hampshire. And this summer, don't forget about the Ski Fanatics tubing shuttle on the Pemi. Check them out online at skifanaticsnet. Hi everybody, we're back here on the 603. Of course, I'm Dan Egan, and today we are joined by Nick and Susie Preston, probably the most foremost experts in mogul skiing and freestyle skiing in the country and maybe North America, where it's a privilege to have them both on the podcast here today. Susie, how are you doing?
Speaker 2:I'm doing great, Dan.
Speaker 1:Thanks for having us, yeah it's great to see you, Nick. Everything good.
Speaker 3:Absolutely Can't wait for the World Cup. Come in and skiing together sometime soon.
Speaker 1:We're going to do that, of course and that is big news, of course the best mogul skiers on the planet heading to Waterville Valley January 24th and 25th for the FIS World Cup held on historic Bobby's Run Trail right there at Waterville. It's a phenomenal trail, it's known for its mogul skiing and it's really the premier mogul event in the East Coast, wouldn't you say, nick?
Speaker 3:It certainly is, and it has the best cut of hill where you got 248 degrees and they shoot top to bottom at 28 degrees, but the whole middle 35 turns is 31 degrees. So it's the real skiers that make it down that one, which of course they all are. So we'll see who's got their game.
Speaker 1:Oh, it's a big time race and, like I said, these are the skiers you're going to see in the 2026 Olympics. They're the best on the planet and, susie, what's super exciting for me coming into the World Cup is the US women are doing quite well. Can you give us sort of a snapshot? Look at who these girls are and who we should be watching.
Speaker 2:Absolutely. The women are just a. They're the real deal and they have amazing air packages. They ski fast, they've got great technique and they're almost always three of them are in the top 10. Wow. So we're going to be looking for Olivia Giacchio, and she's a fabulous aerialist, and we're also looking for Jalen Kauf, and she is at the top of the World Cup standings now in the top three, and she skis really fast, excels in duels, and will also be looking for Tess Johnson, who has it all air speed, technical turns.
Speaker 1:I mean how exciting to have these top three and others on the women's team, basically on top of the World Cup. As we come into Waterville Valley and Nick, you know these women are the real deal. Like Susie said, they have the complete packages singles, duels and big air.
Speaker 3:I do, they do and they come from all over the country, but I try to keep my eye on Olivia we call her OG, she's a Killington girl, and Casey Hogg, who's also in the top six or top eight in the Grand Prix standings right now. Casey was second in duels at national championships at Waterville last year and she's a New Hampshire girl. Wow, really, that's right when does she hail from.
Speaker 3:She's got my vote. She comes from southern New Hampshire. I think she's from the town of Hampstead or I'm not really quite sure. She really is a Killington bred skier. Her older sister is also a fabulous mogul skier, so they've been kind of Eastern legends for quite a while and Casey is just really exciting to watch. You know she's probably the smallest mogul skier out there but she's one of the fastest, one of the most acrobatic and just a beautiful skier.
Speaker 1:Of course, Killington is known for moguls and Donna Weinbrecht, of course, legendary skier in her own right. There's a long history of mogul skiing in Killington.
Speaker 3:Oh, absolutely, and it's really fun over at Killington. I mean, the place has a real mogul culture and and that just keeps on coming.
Speaker 2:And Dan, not only the US girls we'll be looking for, but also Perrine Lafont, from France, who is right now at the head of the World Cup list, and also Jakara Anthony, the Australian. And there's a wonderful Canadian mogul skier named Maya Schwinghammer. So they'll be from all the countries all over the world.
Speaker 1:I love that. You know that Australian has been doing really well lately too, right? I mean, she's got full game.
Speaker 2:She absolutely no question. She can be the top skier at any time. So bring your daughters to see these wonderful women ski.
Speaker 1:It is cool and what I like about it, of course, men and women competing on the same course, same jump. And what's the order? Women first, men first. How does it run?
Speaker 2:Well, it's often women first, but not always. They'll switch it up a little bit, but mostly women first.
Speaker 1:And what can we expect to see, you know, on lower bobbies up there, waterville Valley. As far as you know the events that there's two main events is singles and then doubles. Explain to us, susie, what, what that is for people who may not know.
Speaker 2:Well, singles is the was the original Olympic event. It's when the athletes all all run one at a time, and then recently, dual moguls, which is head-to-head. It's an exciting race and one thrill after the next. And that was added recently and we'll see dual moguls coming up in the next Olympics.
Speaker 1:All right, so in 2026, dual moguls are on the agenda. How do they handle that, nick in the duels? As far as the jumps, the jumps are identical.
Speaker 3:The courses are built fairly identically. But not to be fooled, course builders like myself and like my son Wes and the legendary sea dog Chris Seaman course builders, we have a little offense going on there too Throw a little flush in there and throw a little longer turns in there, and so it really still is all about the skier's ability to ski the course and the reactivity. But basically you do have four lines what we call lines, just direct paths through the moguls in any World Cup course and you have two sets of airs. The first air is up very close to the top and everyone knows in mogul skiing that the most difficult part of the course is getting off that air and landing onto the pad and getting back into the 35, 31 degree turns that are ahead of you. So that's the most difficult part of the course. Then on the lower air, it's usually a little bigger, a little more generous.
Speaker 3:On the pad You'll see skiers going 80 feet down there and they'll be throwing anything from the simplest one might be a, a back x, you know, back flip with a cross in it or some grabs which have really gotten popular right now. But you'll see anything from there right up to court 1400s. In other words, you know more or less two flips and three or four twists, and it's, it's really quite remarkable, it's, it's a gasp kind of thing to see in per in person yeah, that that's simply amazing to me.
Speaker 1:You know, of course, the aerials and what they're throwing, and and how crazy it is, you know, and again, it's men and women on the same course. So they're hitting the same jump, suzy, and, and, and the women are throwing the same style tricks.
Speaker 2:They are pretty much and they are really good acrobats one to the next, and so the women's air packages are really impressive and very always moving forward.
Speaker 1:You know, in the world of skiing, and all of our skiers out there listening to the 603, you know who know anything about skiing, know that ski shape has really changed a lot. There's different skis for different conditions, but in mogul skiing we're sort of holding true Nick to the you know. Describe for me what makes a good mogul ski and what these skiers are going to be skiing on.
Speaker 3:Yes, mogul ski is as you say. It's a little more of the old school design. So it's fairly straight side cut. You're making a very quick turn, especially on the World Cup level. You're probably not turning 30 degrees off of a pure fall line. And really what I always taught my skiers is you know the one cue about skiing moguls keep your skis in the fall line. And really what I always taught my skiers is you know the one cue about skiing moguls keep your skis in the fall line. Right, it's still, you're still getting timed, and if your skis are across the fall line you're a little slower. If they're in the fall line you're fast. But of course you have to cut that turn, you know, in the trough of the bump, and so, oh yeah, there's turning and there's carving, there's a lot of steering, a lot of absorption. It's a very high skiing skill event.
Speaker 1:So it's awfully exciting to watch and a lot to learn by watching a mobile skier. A lot to watch, a lot to learn the dynamic motion, the fluidity, the absorption, the extension. I always point out the pole planting and what's happening with the upper body. Keep the shoulders square. Now on the men's side, it's equally exciting. I mean, when you think about the men's mogul skiing, we have literally the best mogul skier on the planet, the Canadian. Come into Waterville Valley, nick, and what an opportunity just to see Mikhail Kingsbury and tell the audience why that is. You know one. You want to see this individual perform.
Speaker 3:Well, one of the things about Mikael that you just got to shout out right away is that he holds the record for the most wins in any single discipline. Now you do have Mikael Schifrin. You know she's closing in on 100 wins, but that's across gs or slalom and uh, super g and some of the disciplines that she's in it for mikhail it's all in mobile skiing. It's all in 82, 83 wins in one discipline that's right.
Speaker 3:so he's. He's the master of the discipline and has been around for quite a while now, and so the up and coming skiers are definitely challenging him. He's not quite the you know. Ok, mchale should win this one sort of thing. You really got to put it down and he has got Swedes and Japanese and Canadian, other Canadians and Americans all right on his tail and it's pretty exciting because the number one is really getting challenged seriously by some amazing up-and-coming talent.
Speaker 1:But we don't want to just gloss over the fact that this gentleman from Canada one, he's been doing it a very long time, right? He foreran the Vancouver Olympics. I think was his debut as a forerunner in his teenage years, right. I believe that's true. And here we have him rolling into Waterville Valley. He's from Quebec, so he's not unfamiliar with us down here in the South. And, susie, he's a sight to behold, right. I mean, this is skiing moguls at its highest level with Mikhail Kinguva.
Speaker 2:It is. It's absolutely masterful. He is the king and we're very lucky to have him here at Waterville Valley. And I also want to say all these athletes, they're just really nice people and they make themselves very available to anyone who wants to interact with them, like the kids can go get autographs and they're interacting with them and having conversations. So it's a really nice environment for meeting these extremely talented individuals.
Speaker 1:Well, it's a really important point, you know, to think that you can get potentially ride a chair with him. You can watch him from the side of the course, you can meet him, his parents, his teammates and all the other amazing athletes here at the World Cup coming up on January 24th and 25th of 2025. This is amazing, nick the access to the athletes and the access to the course.
Speaker 3:That's one of the things about mogul skiing that is really fun and that is that you can be right course side. Well, let me just say this From almost anywhere near the course you'll see the whole course. So from the bottom you see the whole course. Obviously, in most forms of ski racing or other forms of skiing, or big mountain you don't really necessarily see the whole course. You do in mogul skiing and you can even be right outside the fencing and I really recommend if you want to see some amazing action you better be a double diamond skier, because if you're skiing down the side of Bobby's run, I mean you're on the 31 degrees, you know so.
Speaker 3:But if you can get yourself to the top air or the bottom air, it is just incredible to watch from right next to the athletes. And then you see that amazing acrobatics and you see all the turns up close, in duals, side by side. It's really quite exciting. You know, Snow flying all over the place while these skiers just come charging down this course. The speeds are remarkable, the airs are remarkable, the whole course is visible. It's just a remarkable skiing experience. Spend your day at Waterville and I'll tell you it'll probably be the most interesting day of skiing you have all year.
Speaker 1:You won't regret it. And you know I've been on those sides of the course, susie when they're coming down and the noise, what you hear, right when they go by and then boom, they hit the jump and there's a moment there where it's like stillness. Isn't that wild.
Speaker 2:It is amazing. It's just as Nick says go to the top air, the bottom air. Isn't that wild. It is amazing. It's just as Nick says go to the top air, the bottom air. And the fact that you can ski down the side of the course and actually be right there. You're so in the action that, yeah, you hear it, you see it, and the aerials are just, you know, absolutely beautiful.
Speaker 1:You blow your mind. And what we're talking about here is that you can't go to a World Cup ski race and stand on the side of the run. You can't go to Birds of Prey at Beaver Creek. You can't go to Killington. You won't be able to in Sun Valley at the championships this spring for the Alpine Championships. Stand on the side of the course and if you do, it's a moment. You might see a moment. You might see a turn or a gate, but you're not going to see the event unfold in front of you. That's an experience, nick.
Speaker 3:It really is. And right from when they come out of the gate which, by the way, a little different in duels there's a little more aggressiveness going on there. So, yeah, duels has a little more action, you might say. And even though, with four national championships we've run here and the World Cups we've run here, knock on wood, we haven't seen any sleds go out yet, but well, we've seen some pretty good tumbles out there.
Speaker 3:And you're going that hard and that fast and you've got somebody right next to you in the corner of your eye, particularly in duels, yeah, you can see a little too much excitement sometimes.
Speaker 1:The energy level is unbelievable and you know we haven't really jumped into it yet, but Waterville Valley has played a really important role on the legacy of freestyle skiing. Yourselves both you and Susie, have been part of that influence and shaped what we see today. But let's just talk in general before we get too deep into it. The relevance of Waterville Valley when it comes to freestyle and mogul skiing.
Speaker 3:Waterville Valley.
Speaker 3:Interestingly, you can shout that name out or say you're from waterville valley almost anywhere in the world where there's freestyle and they know where it is and and they, or at least they've heard of it obviously the biggest feather in its cap is probably that it all started here in the three event format. There was hot dog skiing, kind of going around the country, and there was the ridge of bell at aspen and people were hot dogging down there and they decided to make a contest out of it. But it was Doug Pfeiffer who was the editor of Skiing Magazine and Tom Corcoran almost a little bit of a wager, you know Tom Corcoran was like hey, you know there's a lot of skiers here that are doing this kind of skiing.
Speaker 3:You know, I wonder if a racer is better, a recreational ski is better. Doug Pfeiffer says well, wait till you see this generation of hot doggers coming up. I think they would outdo the racers and Tom Corcoran's like, I'm not so sure about that. So they actually set up a three event format that included trick skiing, jumping and mobile skiing, and they separated the events out. And that's where Wayne Long he didn't actually win per se, but he captured the crowd because he was the one that was out there that actually kind of pushed the sport forward. He was kind of flipping over his poles and doing these really nice sort of what were like shoulder roll type things, you know snow acrobatics, and he really stood out on that one. And plus he was a fabulous mogul skier also, and even though I think the first event was won by Herman Gallner, you know from Stratton, and so he was had a nice back flip that he could throw, and so very, very exciting stuff.
Speaker 3:But anyway, birthplace of freestyle skiing is what the sign says and as far as, uh, our owners and our president, tim smith, is concerned, the home of freestyle skiing. So that's uh, and he's doing everything he can do to promote that. And uh, you know suzy and I are can't believe what a pro freestyle president of a ski area he is, but probably I don't know if any other president is quite like Tim Smith. So a big shout out to our president.
Speaker 1:Well, it's important, Susie, that the ski area be committed to not only hosting these events but developing youth programs to back that up, and Waterville has both.
Speaker 2:That's really true, dan. It's a partnership between the ski area and a ski club or a ski school, whichever it is at any particular mountain. But it's a partnership to keep these sports relevant. And it takes a youth program to make that partnership really work. So to teach athletes from the youngest age and then have them see these amazing stars of sport coming to the mountain. It keeps the continuity going and it keeps the excitement really high.
Speaker 1:And you know, ultimately what we're talking about from that very first event in the 1970, I believe was the very first event to now having the world best mogul skiers coming on the World Cup to lower bobbies at Waterville Valley. There is a direct line and a direct impact, susie, from Waterville Valley to getting mogul skiing all the way to the Olympics. Would you agree with that?
Speaker 2:Oh, absolutely. And Waterville Valley Ski Club, the Black and Blue Trail Smashers, have had some really influential active members that really helped make that happen, helped take Olympics-level mogul skiing to the top. Really they were there and they pushed it right along and made it possible.
Speaker 1:It made it possible and it's such a huge impact. Waterville Valley has hosted World Cup racing, 11 different World Cup racing, so they were at the height and influence of the FIS World Cup. And, nick, when it came time to adding a new sport to the Olympics, those power players were at the table to help it out.
Speaker 3:Well, absolutely. And we're talking about Tom Corcoran, of course, who had tremendous influence in the ski industry as one of the USSA board members, fis board member, etc. Anna McIntyre, who was also a huge international technical delegate in racing and helped get freestyle skiing and snowboarding. She just loved it all.
Speaker 3:Doc Sossman we're talking about Hall of Famers here, by the way and then Jack Sanders, who was Wayne Wong's first agent and he became a very influential board member and, of course, being a lawyer, he could. He could schmooze a room like nobody I I knew and uh. And then there was the sugarloaf. The really the big, the biggest influence from the east was a fellow named irving kagan, and irving was one of those. Uh, he was, he was really a very successful businessman, but he could move a room, he could take naysayers and turn them into yaysayers, and that was part of it, because freestyle came in as the ugly duckling of the ski world. The bad boys Did not have a lot of friends at first. And so Irving, jack, all that I remember, tom Corcoran, they were all really had to make friends out of their enemies. And so into the Olympics we went.
Speaker 1:And that's amazing. You know, the first ever time it was in the Olympics was 1988 in Calgary, and that event was won by New England's own.
Speaker 3:Donna Weinberg, that's right. And in 92, donna won and Donna also has won 42 World Cups and however it got matched, and it got matched by our own Waterville Valley's Hannah Carney, and Hannah is just, really has been the inspiration for our ski club and really skiers everywhere with those pigtails hanging out to hanging out to her helmet there and what an amazing athlete. Kind of the secretariat of mobile skiers right there.
Speaker 1:You know, of course Hannah is going to be inducted in the US Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame this coming March, and quite an achievement from Waterville Valley. Gold medalist in Vancouver, bronze medalist Susie in Sochi. What does she mean to Waterville Valley and you personally?
Speaker 2:Oh, hannah grew up skiing at Waterville. She actually lived in Hanover, new Hampshire, and came when she was what would you say, nick, about seven years old or eight?
Speaker 3:Yeah, I think she was more like nine.
Speaker 2:As a young skier.
Speaker 3:Early on.
Speaker 2:Early young skier and was very dedicated, never went to an academy but she skied every weekend and she also would train in the summer and got the training she needed when she could get it, and she just was an exceptional talent and took it right up to the olympic level. Well, susie.
Speaker 3:Very exciting. If I could just interject on that one, she also had an exceptionally talented development coach, and that's the person sitting next to you, dan suzy preston was the development coach and and that's the person sitting next to you Dan Susie Preston.
Speaker 1:Susie Preston was the development coach and when you start them out, that strong, they develop beautifully.
Speaker 3:And so a very talented young lady, but also coached by a very talented coach.
Speaker 1:Thank you guys. I love that. Susie, that's awesome, and would you have any memories of Hannah? You know, at that early age and learning that you want to share.
Speaker 2:Oh, absolutely she was. She was a very perceptive learner in all the sports that she did and she was always there. She worked hard and brought in other good athletes too, especially attracting more young ladies to the sport. It was really a lot of fun and she did all the events. She did ballet skiing, she did aerials and she did mobile skiing. So she was really a well-rounded skier and, I think, loved it all and took it to the top.
Speaker 1:She told me recently she's part of the movement to bring ballet or aggro back. She still loves it, she misses it and I find that so exciting. Nick, you shared a story with me which I really enjoyed hearing about Hannah. When you coached her in Vancouver for the gold medal, she was having an issue with her dog and I'd like to hear that again.
Speaker 3:Well, you know, she had the most so many stories. Well, the story started she was on the US ski team, but I think her first Olympics didn't go quite the way she wanted it to and I think she felt that she really needed a little more coaching and a little more help. As she put it, I need somebody in my corner, and she really gave me the honor of being that person, you know, to be in her corner and to coach her. So, really, my attitude, the whole thing, is well, look, she's the strongest athlete, she's the most intense athlete out there. Ok, she wasn't winning.
Speaker 3:She had Jenny Heil and she had Christy Richards, two Canadians that wore the number one and number two bib. On World Cup, she was wearing the number three bib. At the Olympics, she was wearing the number three bib. Okay, but we had amazing training going on, very intense. However, my biggest job was to kind of clear the pathways of success, as much as coaching Hannah and, unfortunately, this wonderful pet of hers, lola, a Rhodesian Ridgeback that used to chase us all around the soccer field at summer camp.
Speaker 3:Summer camp yeah, unfortunately, as pets do you know? We outlived them and this one was in the throes of its last days. Well, for Hannah, this was a major interference. I'm on the phone every night crying and talking to the vets and I'm sort of playing the sympathetic coach. You know it's.
Speaker 1:oh yeah, well, you know Lola would really want you to win a gold medal.
Speaker 3:And you know I'm really trying to make this happen and under my breath I'm just kind of like geez, would this dog please, you know, leave us alone. So anyway, I did. Finally, there was a lot of interference, but Hannah, she's very focused, she knew what she really wanted to do and that was win that gold medal. So, with the dog drama, I finally just said to Hannah. I said, hannah, look, lola is a beautiful pet. She would lay down her life for you, which is what she's doing right now. So go in your room, cry your eyes out and when you're ready to come back and get back to our mission here February 13th we're all going to be in Vancouver Knock on my door and tell me you're ready.
Speaker 2:That's some tough love. Yeah, it is.
Speaker 3:So the next morning she knocks on my door and she goes, let's go. That very day the dog died, oh wow. So all of a sudden the pathway was cleared.
Speaker 1:Well, there was quite a day February 13th 2010. The winning of the gold medal was at night.
Speaker 3:It was at night.
Speaker 1:It was raining, it was raining.
Speaker 3:And you know there's another one we're training in Whistler, and she's actually this is right before the Olympics and I'm out there with a regular camp and Hannah's like well, I just want to be a camper, I don't want to coach your camp this year, I've got to train, I've got to train, so, okay, so we wake up one morning and we're supposed to be up in the glacier. It's pouring rain, it's miserable up there, and all the campers are like Nick, can we change our day off to today and maybe go up tomorrow, when it's supposed to be nicer? Hannah walks in the room and goes no, this is what Vancouver might be like. We're going up, I'm going up, I don't know if the rest of you are going up and this camper turned to me and goes Nick, I think we're going up, and which we did, and by golly, I mean, it was almost exactly what we faced in Vancouver.
Speaker 3:Look at that. Yeah, you know, a little fog, a little rain, softer snow, and we were training in it. And that's how you get ready you train in all of it.
Speaker 1:Train in all of it and then, when the time arrives, you've got to perform Hannah Carney. The rest is history, as they say winning the gold from Waterville Valley in 2010 in Vancouver, winning the gold medal in moguls. I'll never forget it. I watched it, I was there. It was amazing to be there. It was amazing to interview her after that. You know, since those days, nick, really you know 2010, and one side isn't that far away, but another side it is, and there's been a lot of development in training mogul skiers, freestyle skiing, big air tricks, all this and one of the things I mean, you've always been on the forefront of training with water ramps and dry slopes. But airbags I just wanted to touch on airbags, the significance of airbags and how they've really changed the game when it comes to training.
Speaker 3:Well, airbags come in all different configurations. Now for acrobatics, for instance, we have an airbag here at Freestyle America that is a trampoline onto an airbag which is more replicating the foam pit type of acrobatics. So you can really kind of have at it into an airbag, even from a trampoline. The real key to airbags right now is, of course, building ramps into them and getting your jumps going on airbags. There's flat bags, there's slant bags, which are a little replicate kind of the slope of a jump a little bit more. You might call those a stage two airbag.
Speaker 3:Most of us learn on flat bags but they're available. You can buy a bag for anywhere from probably 20 to 50, I don't know what they are now, but $1,000. But that's not building a swimming pool or taking care of one. So an airbag is something you can roll up and put it away, and building a ramp into it has made the airbag itself has given availability to anyone that really wants to establish a jump site. So right now Waterville has one, holderness School that Freestyle America uses has one. Killington has an airbag. They are really throughout the West. There are airbags that have come into programs and it has really made acrobatic training during the off-season very valuable.
Speaker 2:They're not so good in season.
Speaker 3:They're a little tough to get the snow off of or they're kind of a hassle. Quite frankly, they are really a three-season training device. In the offseason and they have absolutely been a boon to all freestylers big air, halfpipe, you name it. They've really lent an amazing training opportunity to all forms of freestyle.
Speaker 1:It's quite something to you know, really, within a 5 to 10 mile radius of your center here in Campton, new Hampshire, just down the road from Waterville and just north of Holderness, new Hampshire, to have two major airbag sites, of which you helped design and lay out both of them.
Speaker 3:Yes, that's right, and the one at the Holderness School was a real pleasure because that was the second one that I was involved in designing In fact I really had authority to design it and it was a real fresh start and very well financed. The Holderness School was just very intent on getting beautiful facilities for their freestyle program, so we really started by taking out a squash court and putting in a trampoline, and it's a beautiful facility. And then stage two was to get a ramp, and so that ramp went up and Holderness School just really went whole hog. And it's a beautiful ramp and so Freestyle America uses it. The ramps that are up at Waterville are a little more advanced. You know, some of the kickers are just a little bit bigger, the bag is bigger, and so that's very nice for the free riders that are trying to get their double corks, and you know you can go nuts on that bag. They want to hold in this a little more development, you know, and so it's a great opportunity.
Speaker 3:But you mentioned the area around here Between Loon and Waterville and the athletes that we attracted Freestyle America and Proctor Academy, holderness School, whaleback, sunapee there are probably 500 kids that participate in freestyle skiing out of those programs and they show up at our meets, and so freestyle skiing in New Hampshire is alive and well. You might even call it an epicenter, along with places like Colorado and Utah Park City, of course, and out in California where you have North Star and the Palisades, and those are the real hotbeds of Well, that's quite a legacy, you know, for Waterville Valley to, you know, be at the center of this epicenter is really what we're talking about here today.
Speaker 1:And you know, moving freestyle skiing forward from the 70s to now. And you know, susie, you've been involved really since the beginning. I wanted to see if you would give some advice to parents out there about training with kids from an early age. Nick touched on it earlier building the foundation, but the importance of it beyond skiing, how good it is for kids.
Speaker 2:Oh, I think it's just really character building and it's really important to find a program in your area and put that athlete in a program where they can be safe and learn progressively all the skills that they need for that sport. And yes, the you know, it's just so character building and they're on the hill in every kind of weather and being challenged. I mean, they're learning tough things and they're have to overcome fear and be willing to learn progressively. And it's a wonderful thing For my kids every day that they weren't at the mountain. I felt that they were missing out. So I highly recommend the programs and being in a well-managed, well-coached program.
Speaker 1:And, you know, transformative in a way. Right, they see themselves the athlete kinds that get to know themselves differently and in a different way. To be challenged, to persevere but you touch on it progressively takes patience, and that's an amazing thing to learn as an athlete at such a young age.
Speaker 2:It does take patience and they learn. They just learn a lot. They're in an environment that they're like a tribe and they support each other. They're supported by their coaches, but they support each other and they become quite fearless and very capable of what they're doing.
Speaker 1:I think it's amazing to watch the confidence in these kids. Just last night there was a young mogul skier from Loon who came up to me at the end of the film and he said if you had just one piece of advice for me and the moguls, what would it be? You know and I was what a great question really. It just talked a little bit to him about balance and the importance of remaining in balance to realign yourself through all the different things you do while you're speeding down the mountainside with moguls and jumps. But, Nick, this is really a time where maybe you could enlighten us and inspire our audience here at the 603 on. Just go through the list of Olympians that you personally have been involved with, who they are, what they've accomplished, and just give us the nickel tour, the highlight of that long list.
Speaker 3:Well, it was very exciting to also have had an aerial program at Waterville and we were being very successful with aerialists as well. So Nikki Stone was a level 10 gymnast at the age of 14, I think showed up at camp and we saw this young lady who had outgrown gymnastics a little I think she was already 5'7 or something like this and on trampoline and everything else I mean this girl was going to go places. She also became an outstanding mobile skier and a ballet skier. Oh my gosh. I mean she was remarkable from her gymnastics training so she really had all the goods. But acrobatically she was superior. She was throwing double fulls at the age of 14. We were trying to figure out back in 1985 how to do a single full and Nikki would stand there and go go.
Speaker 3:Well, you're coaching it wrong. You have to be more core centric and stop throwing your heads. You know, and we were listening to, this little four-teamer goes like, yeah, what she said because she was so good. So she goes, uh, she went through the whole thing and, uh, finally in nagano, wins a gold medal. We also had a young lady named Ashley Caldwell, another girl that outgrew gymnastics really and whose father always had them skiing. So she showed up at the academy and again, just an incredible athlete with an incredibly intelligent, athletically intelligent mind and overall, and she ended up winning the gold medal in the last Olympics in aerials, in team aerials. So we've had the three gold medalists. And then there's Chuck Martin, a fabulous mogul skier, and we know Chuck, you know him. He went on to the pro mogul Tour and had a marvelous Olympics and he was in team. I believe no, that's not quite right, I'll figure it out in a minute. But also Stacey Bloomer was another Olympian that we've had. I think Mack Bohannon was an aerialist in the Olympics in Sochi. I think we've had 10 overall, and so it's been really fun kind of watching those athletes.
Speaker 3:But also, just to pick up a little on what you were talking to, susie, about. I want to give a real shout out to the parents, because our sport of skiing and it's true in racing too, it is a parent-funded, parent-involved, parent-volunteer support system that has created, arguably, the strongest skiing systems in the world. So, parents, good job. This is not federally funded. We are not Austria, we are not Switzerland, we're the United States, and we parent fund our athletes all the way to the top. So, parents, keep up the good work.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's quite, quite amazing to see that, from the judges to the coaches, to the course workers Setting these courses up, you know it takes days, the events take long hours and always, in some challenging weather, it can be cold out there, right.
Speaker 3:We've got them heading up to Sugarloaf this weekend. It'll be lucky to scratch any number at all above zero, zero.
Speaker 1:So it's just amazing to be here in New Hampshire and to see all that's going on. I'm, for one, just so excited that World Cup is back for the second year in a row. We've talked about the dedication of the resort, the resources they're putting into it, the influences of it all, but really I think it's this New Hampshire mindset of you know this whole thing of. We are doers in New Hampshire, we're not talkers. We take the bold step. I always say we're not afraid to put our chin to the wind and move forward. And I'd just be really love to hear, susie, from you why you love New Hampshire so much.
Speaker 2:I think that I love New Hampshire because there is so much available land. It's open land the state parks and national forests are just remarkable and it's public, it's open to everybody. And the lakes also, lakes, mountains. There's just so much exploring to do and just one beautiful spot after another. It's truly exceptional and it's really available to the public.
Speaker 1:I've heard you say that before and it's always made me think to appreciate where we are more, you know, when I hear you describe it because we're really in an idyllic setting the White Mountains, the rivers, the coast is nearby. I know you love the water the white mountains, the rivers, the coast is nearby, I know you love the water.
Speaker 2:Um, you just wake up and go wow, I can't believe I ended up here in paradise, that sort of thing well, I do say that and, uh, I grew up skiing at cannon mountain and uh, and then for some crazy reason, just ended up here in campton and at Waterville Valley, right in my own neighborhood that I grew up skiing in, and just really gorgeous. One gorgeous ski area after the next, and cross-country skiing, you name it, the hiking, it's all available to all of us.
Speaker 1:I love that, nick, and for you I mean raising your family here now, having grandkids out there flipping, twisting and doing their thing. You know I see you on the sidelines at soccer games. And now you know you're a course builder, building World Cup courses, and you've lived an amazing life, but you've stayed here in New Hampshire.
Speaker 3:Well, we have Susie and I came down from Maine. We were Colby College graduates and really started our freestyle careers out of Pleasant Mount way, you know, 1972 or whatever, when it all came along. And really there's something about freestyle skiing that we have almost a little joke about it. It's like the Jean-Paul Sartre there's no exit. I mean you get into freestyle and it's hard to leave. There's no exit. I mean you get into freestyle and it's hard to leave. I mean they turn into judges and coaches and that they're children. We have generations coming down. We're actually a legacy sport right now. When, dan, when you and I were competitors, I mean we were vagabonds.
Speaker 3:We were sort of blazing the trail trail. Well, right now we're down to. I have grandchildren doing it, so we're we're really a legacy sport and uh, it's, it's really just taken root and I I'd give credit to all in new england for that. You know, new england is full of families that come to the skiers, very family-based, and I just said before, these sports are family-driven. You know, whether you're a racer, a snowboarder or a freestyler, it's mom and dad and any other relative that's really helping to drive it. And if I could just make one plug on behalf of the ski area, we could use some volunteers for the World Cup, yeah nice for the World Cup.
Speaker 1:Yeah, nice.
Speaker 3:And it takes something upwards of 120 volunteers by the time we're fixing and building the course and people who are supporting the meet in other ways. You certainly have people that are making sure that people have the right credentials coming through, but really a lot of coursework and I'll tell you if it's still open and you'd like to volunteer. Volunteer for either the top air or bottom air.
Speaker 1:Right where the action is.
Speaker 3:That's where the action is Parents sign up for that one quickly once they learn about our sport. That's amazing Because, yeah, you're really in the thick of it. It's work up there. You're taking care of the jumps, you're keeping the landing pad soft, so I mean it's work. But once the meat is engaged there, you are front row for the action. So come on out, volunteer, enjoy it. It's going to be incredible.
Speaker 2:And you can go on the Waterville Valley website to their World Cup section and there is an opportunity to sign up right there. You just put in your email, put in your information and if you have any expertise already, fine, just put that down. Otherwise just say hey, I'll do whatever needs to be done and easy to sign up, really accessible.
Speaker 3:And Dan, look, $350 gets you a VIP pass. Here we go, now that couple days of skiing, parking right in lot one. Okay, you're in the VIP building, so you get a beautiful food, you know, breakfast, lunch and, if you're like me, and you fill your pockets dinner, get dinner, that's good. Yeah, and the athletes are in there and and and it's, it's actually, you know, when you look at it, it's not a bad deal yeah, I mean it's a bargain, cost whatever, just for a day of skiing these days.
Speaker 2:so for just a little extra, the parking and the, the VIP tent and everything that goes with the nice VIP beds you are in the same area that the athletes are in, so you know, while you're inside you might be able to say hello to one of the athletes, to like Olivia Giacchio or Mikael Kinsbury.
Speaker 3:Or stand in line and say hi to Wayne Wong.
Speaker 1:That's it.
Speaker 3:Get a picture with Wayne. Get a picture with Wayne.
Speaker 1:You know there's so much happening. I mean, I think, when I think about it from this point of view, people would think this is not possible to have a place where freestyle skiing was born, a place where freestyle skiing was born, to have an icon like Wayne Wong right there with us still, who came here then and is still here now, to have Olympians from you know, hannah Carney, on down gold medalists, three gold medalists from this one program. When you add all this up, it's so unbelievable, you know, and to encourage people to come out and actually be a part of it. To be a New Hampshire native is to know this history and to witness this and to be a fan, be a volunteer, participate and come see it. And I think you know it's an honor to interview both of you and I just wonder from both of your points of view start with you, susie. When you add all that up, including your living in paradise, and help steer a sport all the way to the Olympics, do you ever just pinch yourself? How do you sum all that up?
Speaker 2:Oh, it's just been such an honor and such a pleasure, them all that up. Oh, it's just been such an honor and such a pleasure and, you know, I don't know how we were lucky enough to end up in this situation. One thing I did want to say is that the next Olympics is next year, in 2026. And so the drama begins now. The athletes are all in the process of starting to vie for their own national team Olympic spots, and so this is a really nice place to start watching them earn those spots, and it's important to these athletes to do well in this event at Waterville.
Speaker 1:It's important, nick, and you know here we have a place rich in history. All these amazing things and the world best athletes are still coming and they need to be relevant. They need to qualify for the Olympics mogul skier of all time in Mikhail Kingsbury. All this lining up for January.
Speaker 3:It is. And that women's team, I mean they are a cohesive, talented six in the top ten at any given event. Jalen just won the most recent dual mogul event and Olivia just won the most recent dual mogul event and Olivia just won the most recent single run event, which is amazing, going into this, because they've kind of been on the podium but Perrine and Jakara have been kind of winning the trading off the wins, and now, all of a sudden, the Americans have finally stepped to the top of the podium, just in time to come to Waterville, to their home court, and really, really enjoy it. And what I would like to really say to skiers out there when you attend something like the races at Killington or you come here to the World Cup, you are at the heart of skiing. These are people whose lives have been dedicated to skiing, families who are dedicated to skiing, and so if you're a skier, this will be your home for that weekend.
Speaker 2:And Dan. I wanted to emphasize one more thing. This event is really accessible to the public. You can walk up in your shoes they've got a really nice walking alley or skin up on your skis you can get a single lift, ride up Valley Run and you don't even have to have skis on Go up in your snow boots and then you can download also or walk down. So, whether you're on skis or not, this is a really exceptional, world-class event and don't miss it.
Speaker 1:Don't miss it. The FIS World Cup Mogul event at Waterville Valley January 24th, 25th I imagine they're going to be up there warming up sometime around the 22nd 23rd World's best skiers rolling into Waterville Valley. It is accessible. You don't want to miss it. What an opportunity it is for the state and really, susie and Nick, thanks for joining us right here on the 603.
Speaker 3:Dan, thank you very much and, by the way, everybody, I mean. We're sitting here with Dan Egan, a legend in his own right and a Hall of Famer, and, dan, what a pleasure to be your friend and to be talking with you. It's made my day.
Speaker 1:And Dan one last thing yeah, bring it on Suze.
Speaker 2:When you mentioned that they'll be up there training those earlier days. Just come ski water with those days and you can see all this training in action. See them jumping.
Speaker 1:Yeah, don't miss it. I mean you show up early. I mean they're the world's best athletes. You can probably ride the lift with them. You probably best athletes. You'd probably ride the lift with them, you'd probably just hop on the lift.
Speaker 3:You hear it over and over again.
Speaker 2:If you can't make it to the event days, you'll see almost equally as good action coming earlier. So lots of ways to enjoy the World Cup at Warlcum.
Speaker 3:Ride the lift with a World Cupper and you'll hop off the lift with their name on your helmet.
Speaker 1:That's right, you get autographs and this is you know what. It's fun. The idea that this level event coming here to new hampshire is mind-blowing. When you turn on nbc and you're watching the olympics in 2026, these are the athletes you're going to be watching, these are the stories that are going to be unfolding right there in front of our eyes jaylen kopp and these women, olivia going for the gold at the Games and here you can ski with them. Here you can meet them, right here in New Hampshire. It's so exciting blowing me away.
Speaker 2:And kids bring your Sharpies so that you can get that autograph on your helmet.
Speaker 1:Absolutely. Thanks, everybody, and thanks for joining us right here on the 603 Podcast.
