Steamboat Pilot & Today

Steamboat Springs — The members of the Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club's development freestyle team returned home last weekend with a car full of top finishes.

They also had the security of knowing that the biggest meet of the season is yet to come, and it will take place in Steamboat.

"We had quite a few newcomers last weekend," Steamboat coach Kirra Dyer said. "It seems that at each event, we get a few more kids that decide they want to come along and experience competition. That's what the development program is about and all the kids had a blast."

And why wouldn't the local skiers be having a blast?

The local team, which is made up of skiers between the ages of 8 and 12, looked strong in Aspen during an aerial event on Feb. 15 and a mogul event on Feb. 16.

Camille Bucci, who was competing for the first time since injuring her knee at the beginning of the season, highlighted the girls results by finishing first in the aerial event on Feb. 15 and then second in the moguls on Feb. 16.

Other top finishes in the aerial event included Dalton Lee's fourth, Chappy Geer's fifth and Luke Kamieniecki's sixth in the J-4 division. Jesse Kamieniecki was fourth and Taylor Johnson placed seventh in the J-5 class.

Sam Harrelson led the local mogul results with a first-place showing in the J-6 class. Lee placed third, Luke Kamieniecki was fourth, Geer was 13th and Kyle Hornor was 16th in the J-4 division.

Jesse Kamieniecki (fourth), Connor Garrecht-Connelly (sixth), Matt O'Donnell (seventh), Johnson (eighth) and Drew O'Donnell (18th) all had top finishes in the J-5 class.

Bucci led the girls with her second in the J-4 class. Jessica Mader was third and Shelby Dyer, who was in her first competition, shook off a case of the butterflies to placed sixth in the J-5 class.

Dyer thinks the finishes will boost the local skiers' confidence and enthusiasm as they start preparing for the Rocky Mountain Division's Junior Development Championships, which will be held March 15 and 16 in Steamboat.