Ah, HOMESICK. What an unbelievable gathering of friends, old and new. Some with hopes to make it through the three-day celebration of snowboarding with an in-tact ACL, others putting it all on the line, shredding and searching for a place on the podium. Despite having different intentions or goals, at the end of the day, when the lifts come to a halt and the southern Vermont sun falls beneath the horizon, everyone in attendance is here for the same two things; Snowboarding and Community.
Day 1: OG Downhill
As we all know, weather can certainly dictate an event. The overall vibe, process and outcome of an event are, arguably, at the mercy of good ol’ Mother Nature, especially a snowboarding event on the East Coast. This, however, does not apply to HOMESICK. Friday was, to be candid, not nice in terms of weather, and certainly not ideal for the opener OG Downhill Race that involved hundreds of competitors making abrupt turns down a slick, hard-pack and pitchy course.
The energy radiating off of the competitors, coaches, judges, photogs and spectators did not reflect the less-than-favorable conditions that the day provided us. Actually, it was quite the contrary. I couldn’t keep up with the overwhelming amount of smiles and hugs that were exchanged at the top of Suntanner on Friday, nor did I hear one complaint pertaining to the weather or course conditions. The riders acclimated and got it done. The Ice Coast has nothing on HOMESICK.
Day 2: Retro Powers Pipe
As I woke on Saturday morning following a fun evening at the Grizzly’s welcome party where communion was had among countless snowboarding enthusiasts, I took a gander out my window and was pleasantly surprised to see the sky blue and the sun shining. A slightly different scene than last year when over a foot of snow fell making just getting out of the Powers Retro Pipe a challenge in itself. Good things come in threes.
The temps this year on Saturday, even early on, were spring-like, resulting in soft and forgiving surface conditions, those perfect for hucking and stomping a proper 900 (shout out Elijah Pyle), re-learning new tricks after 15+ years (shoutout Todd Richards), or handplanting a 20′-high tombstone (shout out Tyler Troy, Pat Moore and Lane Knaack). Lady legends, namely Shannon Dunn, Tina Basich and Tricia Byrnes were rolling through the U all day long catching air time and pulling grabs like it was 1995 all over again. The banter on the pipe deck was unmatched, especially among the OGs.
“My Rheumatoid arthritis was acting up, so I went to ride pow in Japan.”, I overheard one of the more seasoned competitors explain.
Young guns like Connor Cavanagh, Skylar Koeppe and Noah Avallone put on a clinic as well, not to mention Zeb Powell and Lucas Magoon doing their thing, in style of course. It was truly an honor to be on the pipe deck spectating and shooting video of these very talented guys and gals. If you were in attendance, you can resonate when I say that I did not want the day to come to an end.
Day 3: Planet Zebulon Rail Jam
But, all good things must come to an end. Sunday was the Planet Zebulon Rail Jam, a proper wrap-up to what was arguably the East Coast’s most important and impactful snowboarding event of the season. Keeping in mind that soon everyone would be on their way to Last Call or their respective homes, the community got together one last time for a rowdy jib session on East Byrnes Side. Even after 2 long days, the vibes were high and the people were hyped. Fans lined up along the fence and cheered on their favorite riders through the morning and into the afternoon. The absolute joy that Zeb provided these young spectators with by signing countless helmets and snowboards was and is something to be revered.
As I spoke with a number of the characters who were gathered at the top of the Planet Zebulon Rail Jam course early Sunday afternoon, there seemed to be a recurring theme of pure, genuine stoke and appreciation for HOMESICK and East Coast Snowboarding at its core. Founder of Slush Magazine, Pat Bridges, was kind enough to offer some sentiment around the event. I asked Pat to describe HOMESICK in one word.
“Resonant.”, Pat replied. “As much as we love snowboarding, we love the snowboarders that we do it with.”
We want to extend an enormous thank you to Gary and Barry of East Street Archives, as well as all of the competitors, spectators, media and Stratton employees who showed out and contributed. Your efforts do not go unnoticed and we appreciate it all. Snowboarding. Community. HOMESICK.
Event Results
Published by Harley Smith