U.S. skiers rebound from tough injuries

The last six years have been a long, painful, disappointing and, yes, thrilling ride for aerialist skier Emily Cook and moguls specialist Shannon Bahrke.

Both women won the Gold Cup in their respective events on New Year's Eve 2001, which gave them spots on the 2002 U.S. Olympic Team for the Winter Games in Salt Lake City a couple of months later.

But Cook suffered heartbreak almost immediately when she broke both her feet at a World Cup competition in Lake Placid, N.Y. Instead of competing in her first Olympics, she watched from the stands.

Bahrke, however, made the most of her trip to the Games and earned a silver medal on the same course, the Champion Run, that she will ski this weekend as part of the 2009 Visa FIS Freestyle World Cup.

While Cook struggled to recover from her injuries, Bahrke then began struggling with her own. She broke her jaw in Japan in 2003, which kept her out for the rest of the season. Then, the Tahoe City native blew her knee out in the second event of the following season.

Both athletes say their struggles to make their way back to the top of their respective sports have not only made them more determined competitors, but more grateful people.

One thing they're both grateful for is the chance to compete in front of what is essentially a home crowd at their favorite World Cup venue ?Deer Valley.

In preparation for the 2011 FIS Freestyle World Championships, this year Deer Valley is teaming up with Park City Mountain Resort to offer a weekend of freestyle events. This is the 11th consecutive year Deer Valley has hosted the Freestyle International World Cup, which brings more than 300 athletes from about two dozen countries to Park City. The annual event begins with mogul competitions on Thursday, with the women's final at 1:15 p.m. and the men's final scheduled to start at 2:30 p.m. on the same course where Bahrke won her silver medal.

On Friday night, Cook will get a chance to podium for the second time this season with finals in women's aerials slated for 6:30 p.m. The men's final is scheduled for 7 p.m. There will be a fireworks show immediately after the awards ceremony.

On Saturday, at Park City Mountain Resort's Eagle Superpipe, the world's best snowboarders will compete in the half-pipe. The qualifying rounds begin at 9:30 a.m., with the finals scheduled to start at 12:30 p.m. On Saturday night, Deer Valley will again host the mogul skiers on Champion run under the lights for Dual Moguls. The finals will start at 8 p.m., with fireworks following about 9:35 p.m.

All events are free to the public.