NASTAR-Struck
SNAPHOTS FROM THE 2012 NASTAR
NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS By Jake Bright
Late last month, I traded New York City asphalt for Colorado snow, escaping for some last-minute training to compete in the Nature Valley NASTAR National Championships. For an
avid NASTAR racer, participating in Nationals is like competing in the Olympic Winter Games
— only with less pressure and more fun. After training at Copper Mountain, I headed to Winter
Park for two days and four runs of racing. I also took in the festivities on and off the hill and met
some of the NASTAR unique competitors along the way.
DAY1
The connection with Copper is my grandpa, Frank
Walter, a former assistant ski coach and Copper
Ambassador who still skis more than 100 days a year. I
talked him into running NASTAR with me. It was really
inspiring to see him fly through the gates at 89 years old.
This year I qualified for the most competitive class in NASTAR Nationals,
platinum. With the Eastern snow drought, I had not been on skis for more than
three weeks. It was time to click the start wand and get in the gates on Copper’s
NASTAR course.
