Nate Roberts wins men's moguls title; Jillian Vogtli defends women's title

By Published On: March 26th, 2005Comments Off on Nate Roberts wins men's moguls title; Jillian Vogtli defends women's title

Nate Roberts wins men’s moguls title; Jillian Vogtli defends women’s title{mosimage}PARK CITY, Utah (March 24) – Newly crowned World Champion Nate Roberts (Park City, UT), who was marking his 23rd birthday, and defending champion Jillian Vogtli (Ellicotville, NY) overcame erratic weather conditions Thursday to win moguls titles as the Sprint U.S. Freestyle Championships got underway in snow, fog, sunshine and more fog at Park City Mountain Resort.

Outdoor Life Network will broadcast coverage from the Championships April 4 at 9 p.m. ET.

After 15 inches of snow Tuesday and more through the night Wednesday and during the event, course crews were kept scrambling to keep the course cleared as much as possible.

Roberts clicked with his signature backflip off the top jump and another backflip with a cross (skis pulled up under him in a X) off the bottom jump, receiving 26.45 points. The silver medalist at 25.82 was Jay Bowman-Kirigan (Salt Lake City) with Holt Haga (Boise, ID) in third place (25.69). World Cup champion Jeremy Bloom (Loveland, CO) and Olympic medalist Travis Mayer (Steamboat Springs, CO) elected not to ski at the Championships after a long, weary winter.

Both champions also led qualifying
Vogtli, a 2002 Olympian who used her first U.S. title a year ago at Heavenly resort at Lake Tahoe as a springboard to her best World Cup season – including her first victory, did a heli (vertical, 360-degree rotation) up top and a backflip with an iron cross on her bottom jump. She had 25.54 points to 25.16 for Shelly Robertson (Reno, NV) with the bronze medal going to Michelle Roark (Denver), who had 24.50 points.

Roberts, whose mother was among the cluster of fans and athletes’ relatives at the bottom of the course on Sampson, agreed with Vogtli: the changing conditions were better for veterans, who had the experience not to get rattled. Both led the qualifying round and held on for the title with a solid final run.

“It was crazy,” he said. “Training the course was awesome, but then the sun came out and heated the snow, packed it down, and it got to be pretty tricky. I’m glad I got the ‘W’ [Win]. There’s never a bad time to get a win.”

Vogtli took advantage of her early start (No. 3) when the snow hadn’t become too chopped up or too ragged. “I was third and the snow was great, just beautiful, perfect flakes. Everyone certainly skied two different courses, though, because the conditions kept changing,” she said.

McIntyre: continually changing
Coach Liz McIntyre said the conditions made it extremely difficult on veterans and development-level skiers. “Nobody had an easy day…

“The snow changed a lot and what they skied on in the morning was different by finals. Every time they got on it, things were difficult…and it as difficult for everyone. But Nate’s second jump was GIANT, so big…and we saw some strong skiing – Jillian did a great job again – despite the weather,” she said.

The Championships resume Friday with aerials at Utah Olympic Park and conclude Saturday with dual moguls back up on Sampson at PCMR.

2005 SPRINT U.S. FREESTYLE CHAMPIONSHIPS
Park City Mountain Resort
Park City, UT – March 24, 2005
Men’s Moguls
1. Nate Roberts, Park City, Utah, 26.45 points
2. Jay Bowman-Kirigan, Salt Lake City, 25.82
3. Holt Haga, Boise, Idaho, 25.69
4. Sho Kashima, Stateline, Nev., 24.78
5. Jimmy Discoe, Ridgeway, Colo., 24.41
6. AJ Dakoulas, Hartland, Vt., 24.37
7. David Digravio, Farmington, Maine, 24.18
8. Joseph Discoe, Ridgeway, Colo., 24.04
9. Toby Dawson, Vail, Colo., 23.55
10. Louis Panther, Louisville, Ky., 22.99

Women
1. Jillian Vogtli, Ellicotville, N.Y., 25.54
2. Shelly Robertson, Reno, Nev., 25.16
3. Michelle Roark, Denver, 24.50
4. Heather McPhie, Bozeman, Mont., 24.10
5. McKenzie Golding, Reno, Nev., 23.48
6. Ali Levy, Denver, 23.24
7. Kayla Snyderman, Winchester, Mass., 22.58
8. Kylie Douglas, Steamboat Springs, Colo., 22.49
9. Jordan Poyfair, Englewood, Colo., 22.47
10. Erica Damoh, Clinton, Conn., 22.09

For complete results see Freestyle Frenzy.

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About the Author: Pete Rugh