Halfpipe snowboarder Elena Hight, 20, hopes to kick and carve her way to a podium finish in Vancouver. Hight began snowboarding in Bogus Basin, Idaho in 1996, at age six, after a snowboard caught her attention while she was skiing with her father and sister. Within a year she was on the Snowboard Halfpipe competition circuit.
Hight’s star rose in 2003 at age 13 when she became the first woman to land a 900 in competition. Her signature back-to-back 900s are still envied by many of her fellow shredders. Hight happily notes that respect for females in the sport has increased as women become more competitive.
“Acceptance for women has come far, especially in the past five years,” Hight said.
Hight’s slight 5’0, 115-pound frame is offset with a huge, effusive enthusiasm and drive. While she displays the stereotypical unworried snowboarder attitude, her dedication to the sport is apparent. She was home schooled throughout high school and is now enrolled in an online college.
“It just wasn’t possible to attend a public high school with my competitive schedule,” Hight explained. “I’m continuing my education with University of Phoenix Online classes.”
Hight now trains in Lake Tahoe in the winter and divides her summer training between Oregon’s Mount Hood and Whistler, B.C., the site of the 2010 Olympic Halfpipe competition. She also spent part of last summer training in New Zealand.
Despite the increased respect for snowboarding as a competitive sport, Hight enjoys the informal nature of the snowboarding community and governing body. When asked about her training and nutritional regimen, she laughs.
“We’re still a mellow sport,” Hight explained. “We’re not overly regulated.”
In 2006 at just 16, Hight represented the United States in her first Olympics in Turin, Italy, where she placed sixth. In the following quad (four-year stretch between Olympics), she gathered nearly a dozen podium finishes at major events including the Winter X Games, US Grand Prix, Burton US Open, the Winter Dew Tour and Vans Cup. In addition, the press has taken notice: public nods have included Transworld Snowboarding Rookie of the Year and Snowboarder Magazine Minor Threat.
This season, Hight has been focused on the Olympics. She has been home only five days since November, as her competitive schedule, including five Grand Prix events, has kept her on the road. An unpretentious athlete, she often drives in her Toyota Tundra pick-up truck to competitions throughout the country.
Last month, Hight was again named to the US Halfpipe Team. She will attend both opening and closing ceremonies, an increasing rarity among Olympic athletes who often arrive just before their events and depart immediately afterward.
“I’m really excited because I didn’t get to attend closing ceremonies in 2006, and I want to make the most of the Games this time around.”
While Hight plans to stick around until the 2014 Games in Sochi, Russia, she plans to make her mark in Whistler.
“I want to come home with a medal for Team USA.”
For more on Hight, visit her website at www.elenahight.com or follow her on Twitter at Twitter.com/elenahight.
Sarah Wyatt is a travel and outdoors writer living in Seattle.
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