Gold medal adventures

BEAR HOLLOW — Olympians do it, so why not everyone? Why not … take a long slide, a couple of jumps, a few spins, a flip and put the hands in the air. Then quickly step to the podium for the medal ceremony.

Only in Utah, at all levels, anyway, and only at the Utah Olympic Park in Park City.

The Utah Olympic Park is known, obviously, best for the 2002 Olympics. Fourteen Olympic events were held there. Some have carried forward from the Games. Others haven't.

Those that have carried over have started to attract a range of athletes, from complete beginners to experienced experts. And, they come here from around the world.

Colin Hilton, president/CEO of the Utah Athletic Foundation, overseer of the park, said roughly a third of the daily visitors are from local areas and two-thirds are out-of-state and foreign visitors. They come for a variety of reasons, but most arrive looking for a taste of the Olympics.

And it can start at one of the signature features — the splash pool.

Freestyle aerials is one of the Olympic glamor events. Athletes on short skis and heavy boots completing multiple twists and flips in the air and landing skis first on a steep slope … hands held high after a successful performance.

At the park, new recruits start in the FLY program with a climb up a ramp where they position themselves for a start. On signal they slide down the in-run, go airborne a couple of feet off the water and in most case, land upright, skis first, like a falling brick on the surface.

The three-hour program is an introduction to freestyle skiing made doable thanks to the forgiving surface of water as opposed to snow or hard ground.

Students first don jumping gear — wet suit, life vest, helmet and a somewhat soggy pair of ski boots and short, stubby skis — and then jump into the very same pool as the Olympians in training.

The degree of difficulty depends on the daring of the participant.

But, it adds another dimension to the park, noted Carl Roepke, event and tour host and voice of the park.

"It's the first step in getting involved," he noted. "It's an opportunity to try different sports and, maybe, find one you like. … Then you can sign up for more complex training. The park is here not just to look at, but to try all the stuff."

Which, in the summer, would also include a Comet ride down the bobsled course.

The summer sled-on-wheels is only slightly slower than its winter cousin, a bobsled in runners. Winter sleds run at 80 miles per hour on ice, while summer sleds top 70 mph and pull up to 4 G's in the turns.

With a professional pilot at the wheel, up to three passengers act as crew on the run … keeping heads down, bodies packed close together and leaning, where possible, in the turns.