New England Olympians
This week, as the world focuses on Vancouver for the start of the Winter Games, we take a look at some of the New Englander’s who’ll be hoping to bring home the gold, and we’ll visit with some young people who are hoping to join the ranks of elite athletes. Comment here, and join us this Friday at 1.
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Great show! My children snowboard. Like your guest Jonathan, they are “weekend warriors” who come up to train and compete part-time. In fact, they race with the series Mr. Cheever cut his teeth on in Maine. (We’ve been rooting for you Jonathan!)
It *is* harder for kids who cannot devote full-time resources to rise to the Olympic level, but not impossible, as Jon has shown. But the sport can be very cost-prohibitive. My son would love to attend one of the academies that gives the kids full-time snow training but we feel it’s more important to spend the money on college tuition rather than boarding school. Would he excel if we sent him to Gould or Carrabasset Academy? Maybe. But we do what we can to encourage and support them.
Personally, I don’t think snowboard training ever becomes “work” for these kids. Even if they are on the snow for eight hours, they have a special friendship and camaraderie that doesn’t make perfecting your skills seem like a chore. Ian could be ride all day with coaches, and then spend three hours in the terrain park with his friends hitting rails. For them, hiking back up and trying to land that 720 spin “one more time” is all part of the fun and thrills of snowboarding.
Hi Gina,
There is no doubt your kid would develop his shredding skills faster if he went to a school where snowboarding is part of the curriculum. The full time coaching at those schools is awesome. Needless to say, it is a big step. Those places can be a different jungle too. Sometimes it can be a real cut throat, sink or swim attitude between the kids. At the same time it could be the time of your kid’s life.
If I could do it all over again, I still would choose the way I grew up. I feel I am more diverse in all aspects of life because of my upbringing, being around my family more and going to the school I went to. Would I have progressed faster snowboarding if I went to another school? Probably, but mentally I don’t think so.
There are plenty of things to consider, especially with the financial commitments involved. There are cheaper options for college that are just as good academically than other schools. UMASS Lowell, as a commuter student was cheaper than my high school, Malden Catholic. There is also options for high school and riding, like home schooling, tutoring or even private coaching.
If your son Ian has the drive, I am sure he can succeed either way. A mountain academy will help with direction as far as a snowboard career goes. My parents and I have made decisions when I was younger that in hindsight we had no idea about. Some may have not been the best call, some were awesome, but all were learning experiences. It was a baptism by fire for sure. Coaches can help with decisions like that. Especially when comparing your son, to other top athletes at their school, region and country to see if you should spend X amount of dollars chasing an event in New Zealand or the other side of the country.
I hope this is helpful, my contact info is on my website.
Thanks for the support,
Cheever
Team Cheever LLC, http://www.jonathancheever.com