Sunday January 31, 2010

Uncle Pete(email): "Great race, enjoy the bronze....nice to see you were safe.. Congrats and have fun getting ready for the O Games"

K-SER (email): "Yay i survived, and now some sweet time off :)"

"Yay I survived" I think that comment pretty much sums up the X Games last weekend. Ahhh, The X GAMES. The made for TV championship of action sports. The Women's final featured the who's who in ski cross on a crazy course in Aspen, Colo.

"Burly" is the word I think that Kelsey used. The end result for Canadian girls: a silver for Ashleigh McIvor and a bronze for Kelsey Serwa! Kelsey's first X Game medal...yahoo! Oh, and a podium sweep for the Canadian men. Booyah! Just as good, is the news that they finished in one piece. The X Games have not been kind to skicross competitors...some had their season end there.

Flashback to the finals in X Games 2009. Kelsey moved up from back of the pack to third, pushing for second and...launched big time off one of the crazy jumps and hit the side of the landing area for an epic crash. It's the type of crash that gets you as much TV time as the winner of the race. The type of crash that ages her parents a couple of decades, and, the type of crash that can end a season.

Lady luck and great conditioning was on Kelsey's side and she walked away...slowly. (I would have been in the fetal position for a month.) The weekend after, she qualified #1 at Cypress Mountain outside Vancouver.

That was 2009. So huddling on the sofa and watching the 2010 finals last weekend, our nerves were crazy. Why? Well ...

1) Kelsey's crash last year.

2) Daron Rahlves' crash earlier in the finals, where he dislocated his hip and could be out of this year's Olympic Games.

3) My kids' commentary about the "gnarly" and "sketchy" course.

4) Kelsey's all or nothing competitive attitude.

5) Kelsey's desire for redemption.... look out!

Now don't get me wrong, I have great confidence in Kelsey and want her to win, but this year a safe run is top of the list. Next year she can PIN IT and kick some A** ! .

X Games, you've got the O Games coming up! But these ladies race to win, no matter if it's the X , O, Y or Z Games. It doesn't matter about the year before, or the previous run. It's about the now. They compete, it's in their blood.

So last Sunday, mere weeks before the debut of skicross in Olympics, they lined up in the start gate, six competitors across. The gate dropped and they went for it.

That's why they are the best in the world. That's why they are Olympians. And that's why you will become hooked on ski cross.

Enjoy your "sweet time off", off Kels, you deserve it. And we need it. :)