The New York Times-20080128-White Cruises to Win After a Near-Perfect Run

Return to: The_New_York_Times-20080128

White Cruises to Win After a Near-Perfect Run

Full Text (681  words)

With the snow and wind flying through the Elk Mountain Range, many of the riders in the halfpipe final at the Winter X Games on Sunday night were somewhat grounded. But not Shaun White.

While many of his competitors fell on the halfpipe on the side of Buttermilk Mountain here, White, the 21-year-old Olympic halfpipe champion from Carlsbad, Calif., had a nearly flawless first run. He landed all of his tricks, including two stylish 1080-degree spins (three full rotations) for a score of 93.

But White was not done. He bumped up his high score to 96.66 on his final run when he landed a 1260-degree spin (three and a half rotations) on a stunning run that is sure to push the progression of halfpipe riding.

He stepped up and it was a pretty perfect 12, said Kevin Pearce, who won bronze. I've seen guys do them but they don't really grab them. He grabbed it all the way around, so that's good to see.

After qualifying first, Ryo Aono, a 17-year-old from Japan, had the final run and a chance to knock off White. But he could not top White's score and settled for a silver medal with a high score of 88.

All three of White's scores were higher than those for any other competitor.

Several riders fell early in their runs as they appeared to struggle with the winds, and snow accumulated on the bottom of the 500-foot-long halfpipe.

The weather was brutal, White said. I had to switch goggles every time I dropped in.

For White, the gold medal in the halfpipe capped a prosperous week. On Thursday, Burton Snowboards announced a 10-year endorsement deal with White.

Bryan Johnston, senior vice president for global marketing for Burton, would not disclose the financial terms of the deal. But he said it was structured around the White Collection, White's signature line of snowboards and clothes for Burton.

We definitely wanted to be in business with Shaun, not just his likeness to sell products, Johnston said.

White already had endorsement deals with the likes of Red Bull, Target and American Express estimated at $10 million annually.

The 10-year deal was actually my idea, White said last week.

I've been riding with them since I was 7 years old, he said about Burton. I don't think I've ever ridden another company's snowboard.

Jake's always been there to support me since I was young, White said, referring to Jake Burton, the company's founder. I don't think I would have gotten this far without having the opportunity to get free boards.

The only relative blemish on White's week was a third-place finish in slopestyle competition Saturday. Before his first run, his Burton board cracked and he could not find a replacement quickly. He wound up riding it anyway.

With White receiving such a high score on his first run in halfpipe Sunday, the event was somewhat anticlimactic. In the run-up, a rivalry had been hyped between White and Steve Fisher, who won a gold medal in the halfpipe at the X Games last year. But Fisher failed to qualify for the final, and the suspense fizzled.

Fisher expressed some resentment last week that White was taking more than his share of the spotlight.

I definitely think there's a lot of hype and a lot of hoopla around his name that some people kind of fall into, Fisher said.

Through his accomplishments and business acumen, White has transcended his sport to become a pop culture icon. He also competes in professional skateboarding. This summer he won a gold medal in halfpipe in skateboarding at the Summer X Games, and established himself as a dominant athlete in two sports.

Last week, Pearce talked about competing against White.

In the past he's been on a different level than us, Pearce said. When he's on, it just seems like he's unstoppable and he can pretty much land everything he puts down.

[Illustration]PHOTO: Shaun White, of Carlsbad, Calif., won the halfpipe final at the Winter X Games with a high score of 96.66. (PHOTOGRAPH BY NATHAN BILOW/ASSOCIATED PRESS)