How Snowboard Phenom Maddy Schaffrick Learned to Fall & Get Back Up Again

Meet the inimitable Maddy Schaffrick! Previously our Snowboard Director, Maddy recently became the Assistant Coach of the the US Snowboard Halfpipe World Cup Team. A few days before she left Steamboat, we sat down with her and got real - about her career, her philosophy on sport & what's REALLY important in life. 

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Today we cover:

• What it was like to grow up in Steamboat
• Learning to ski at age 3
• The importance of falling - and getting back up - how tai chi taught her to fall (literally) & how dumb-luck injuries taught her to get back up (after rediscovering the joy of snowboarding)
• Meeting & learning from her idol Gretchen Bleiler
• The whirlwind of becoming a very young champion
• What it was like to live an adult-ish lifestyle as a young teen & then reintegrate into her Steamboat peer group after a bad crash
• Is it possible to be a skier & snowboarder?
• What makes snowboarding awesome?
• A speed round of random fun facts about Maddy
• And so much more!

If you take nothing else from this interview...

RIDE THE ENTIRE MOUNTAIN! 

Read Maddy's infamous (and greatest) bio ever!

Hello! My name is Maddy Schaffrick. I was born and raised in beautiful Steamboat Springs, Colorado and grew up in the Winter Sports Club. My list of passions is substantial but snowboarding has always been at the top of it. I love all creatures but lions are my favorite. My favorite color is the Rainbow and my favorite thing to eat is ice cream. I’m allergic to all nuts, which is funny because my favorite people are nuts! Snowboarding is fun. Friends are family. Nature cures everything. Kindness makes a difference. Magic is Real. Love is All. On top of Maddy’s contagious personality and smile she was on the U.S. halfpipe team for seven years. Her resume is packed with impressive results including X Games and Grand Prix events.

As always, please share your questions, comments, feedback and requests. Go to sswsc.org! Now get out there and support, lead or be a champion on and off the mountain!

More pics cuz there are just too many good ones!

Podcast episode photo credit: Jeff Urbahn