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West Geauga grad takes skiing to Olympics level
(by Steve Novak - March 31, 2010)
West Geauga grad takes skiing to Olympics level
By STEVE NOVAK
If someone asked Brian Currutt his occupation, he could give the short answer and say flight instructor.
But if you want a little more detail, the former West Geauga student who now lives in Utah was one of the coaches of the U.S. Freestyle Aerial Ski Team, which just competed in the Olympics in Vancouver.
Currutt has a lot to be happy about with last month's Olympics. His team marked the first time that a United States team won a medal in freestyle aerial when Jeret Peterson won a silver medal in men's freestyle aerial.
Scores in aerial ski jumps were awarded by judges, who gave points based on the skier's takeoff, midair stunts and landing. Of the three, the stunts in midair accounted for about 50 percent of the scoring.
For Currutt, 35, this year's games represented a return to the Olympics. In 2002, Currutt was a member of the U.S. freestyle team that competed at Salt Lake City.
During the 2002 Olympics, Currutt placed sixth in a personal ski performance. In the next few years, he continued to compete as a member of the U.S. team, but also took on a minor coaching role.
That led to his being appointed one of the team's primary coaches in 2006. Less than two decades after his 1992 graduation from West Geauga High School, Currutt had scored an Olympic double, both participating in the Olympics and then coaching other Olympians.
Currutt said his interest in freestyle skiing began with watching television, and then soon moved to some s/s at Alpine Valley Ski Resort in Munson. Aerial skiing involves twists, turns and somersaults done in midair from the loft achieved by a ski jumper.
Currutt said the s/s at the Alpine Valley were the result of snowlowing efforts. Although the drifts weren't meant to serve as launching pads for ski tricks, such as somersaults and midair twists, a teenaged Currutt and his friends saw them as the perfect springboard to jump and then do midair stunts.
"It was something I'd seen on TV as a youngster, and I wanted to do the same trick," he said. "When the people there (Alpine) saw what we were doing, they just plowed over the drifts. But that just fueled the fire, and we built up the drifts so we could jump some more."
Currutt convinced his parents that he wanted to take this type of skiing seriously and they arranged for private lessons in Lake Placid, N.Y., during breaks from school. A fellow classmate at West Geauga, Mariano Ferrario, went with Currutt and also took lessons.
"My parents were awesome enough to get us out there to Lake Placid," Currutt said. "That was the first time we had some real training."
After these lessons, he participated in competitions in several states. A couple of years after graduation from high school, Currutt was one of many young skiers who went to Utah.
Like many other young skiers, Currutt moved to Utah where skiing is year round. He qualified as a member of the U.S. ski team in 1995. He traveled and competed as a member of the team for nearly 10 years.
Although participation in the 2002 Olympics remains one of his highlights, Currutt recently was reminded that few people can claim they both participated in the Olympics, and later served as a coach for an Olympic team.
"I guess I never really thought of it that way, but I guess I am in a pretty small club," he said.
He said that in addition to 2010 marking the first time a United States athlete won an Olympic medal in aerial ski competition, there is another reason that he is so pleased with Peterson's silver medal.
"He's an old teammate of mine. We used to be on the same ski team," Currutt said. "It's good. It validates all the hard work he's put in."
Currutt, who lives in Park City, Utah, said he still tries to get back to Chester once or twice a year to visit his parents, Dennis and Charlene.
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