Launched in 2005, WellesleyWeston Magazine is a quarterly publication tailored to Wellesley and Weston residents and edited to enrich the experience of living in two of Massachusetts' most desirable communities.
Issue link: https://wellesleywestonmagazine.epubxp.com/i/210435
S Chairs of the Board "I wish I had done it," she says. "Now I'm kind of fine with it. But at first I was pretty upset. I didn't really want to talk about it." Kelsey's mother, Lea Kelsey, says she leaves it up to her daughter to Hannah Kelsey Age 15 When the final results posted at last winter's [2013] national snow- tle scary, having someone who's willing to fling themselves up in the air over snow and ice, with her feet strapped to a board. But it's great to see her so enthused and so passionate about something." That passion comes with a price. Two years ago, Hannah Kelsey boarding championships at Copper Mountain in Colorado, Hannah decided to enroll in a private school in New Hampshire during the Kelsey wished she could have her run back. She'd competed in her age group in slopestyle – an event that allows winters – attending class in the mornings and snowboarding in the snowboarders to show off their most impressive tricks on a run down afternoons – while reenrolling in Weston schools in the fall and spring. a terrain park – and while her rail slides and jumps were good enough She says Weston school officials are none too fond of the arrangement, for sixth place, she knew she'd held back her best stuff, held back the but that it's the only way for her to practice, since her weekends are trick that might have gotten her the gold. booked up with competitions. Kelsey says it would be "awesome" to one day compete in the She'd decided not to do a back flip. "I wanted to, but my coach was like, 'Eh, it's not really worth the risk,'" says Kelsey, who also placed twelfth in boarder cross, a racing Olympics, but for now she's focused on the smaller steps of boarding in the near-elite Revolution Tour and Grand Prix competitions. event that sometimes features collisions. "It was a little bit iffy. I'm not And she has an eye on a better performance at this winter's national 100 percent sure how it would have gone, because I hadn't tried one championships. "This year, I'm going big jump back flip," she says. on at nationals yet." "I'm going all out this year." Want to carve up the slopes yourself? There are plenty of places to learn within driving distance – here's a sampling. Wachusett Mountain Ski Area Mount Snow Princeton, MA West Dover, VT www.wachusett.com www.mountsnow.com S n 52 miles from Wellesley/Weston n 131 miles from Wellesley/Weston n 1,000-foot vertical drop n 1,700-foot vertical drop n 30 percent beginner trails n 15 percent beginner trails n $89 Learn to Turn package includes lesson, n $106 first-timer Learn to Ride clinic includes lesson, We l l e s l e y We s t o n M a g a z i n e | w i n t e r 2 0 1 3 / 2 0 1 4 equipment rental, and lower-mountain lift ticket equipment rental, and learning-area lift ticket Pats Peak Sugarloaf Mountain Resort Henniker, NH Carrabassett Valley, ME www.patspeak.com www.sugarloaf.com n 89 miles from Wellesley/Weston n 235 miles from Wellesley/Weston n 710-foot vertical drop n 2,820-foot vertical drop n 50 percent beginner trails n 23 percent beginner trails n $82 Lift & Lesson package includes lesson n $80 Learn to Snowboard package includes lesson, and full-mountain lift ticket 136 equipment rental, and lower-mountain lift ticket NICE ONE PRODUCTIONS / CORBIS S decide whether she's ready to perform a trick in competition. "It's a lit-