X marked the spot for Carle Brenneman when the Comox Valley snowboarder went to Aspen, Colorado for the 2012 Winter X Games 16.
The 22-year-old, who is enjoying her first year on the Canadian national snowboardcross team, was one of five Canadians at the Jan. 26-29 Games, which received world-wide coverage on ESPN.
In her X Games debut, Brenneman finished third in the small final (consolation) and ninth overall in the 12-person field. "I was really excited," she said of the chance to compete at the Games.
"My first heat didn't go the best. A girl ended up falling in the beginning in front of me so I had to go around and I just couldn't quite get back in the heat to finish in the top three. The next round went much better," she said.
Brenneman originally had an alternate spot to go to Aspen, so she booked a ticket and went with the team. "I guess some girls ended up pulling out and getting injured, so I got a spot to go in it." To receive an invite, participants must be ranked top 16 in the world. Brenneman is currently ranked 14th in World Cup and 19th by FIS.
Brenneman said the course was all man-made snow. "(It) was really big and really fast so it was super fun. (The experience) was awesome. It's kind of like the Olympics of snowboarding, so it's definitely a pretty cool event to go to."
Brenneman was at Blue Mountain in Ontario this week for a World Cup event and was heading to Utah right after for the U.S. Grand Prix. She said her first year with the Canadian team has been awesome.
"I've had a few big crashes but hopefully I'll do well on my home turf (this week). "It's been awesome to get to train with (2010) Olympic gold medallist Maelle Ricker and Dominique Maltais who won gold at the X Games.
"It's been a blast. It's been a good season, riding all these big courses and travelling around. The X Games was definitely the biggest highlight so far. I want to go every year, and I'm gonna get the gold one time," Brenneman said.
Described by Canada Snowboard as "a bright, young up and comer on the snowboardcross scene," Brenneman had a breakthrough season on the FIS World Cup Tour last season and has been posting consistently good results this year.
Brenneman, who grew up riding Mount Washington, was recently awarded the Neil Daffern Award For Excellence. Daffern was one of the pioneers of snowboarding in Canada as a competitor, sport advocate and snowboard designer.
He died in a helicopter accident while taking part in a heli-snowboarding competition near Blue River in April 1990. "His commitment and love for the sport is reflected in this award as he always encouraged others to strive for excellence themselves," an award spokesperson noted.
Brenneman was delighted to receive the award. It comes with $5,000 that she will put toward her travels for the rest of this competitive season.
