Two Ski and Snowboard Team members ride the chair lift to the top of June Mountain.
Courtesy of UCLA Ski and snowboard team
Nicole Gormley and Sarah Van Cleave pose at the top of Mammoth Mountain this December.
Courtesy of UCLA Ski and snowboard team
Imagine it’s spring, the end of the skiing and snowboarding season.
You came up to Mammoth Mountain to get in one more weekend of skiing and snowboarding.
You have time for two more runs down the mountain.
Decked out in your best gear, your first run goes well.
You cut through the snow like a hot knife through cold butter.
You’re ready for your final run.
You shed all your winter gear and put on a bathing suit.
Next, you head on up the lift and proceed with your final run of the season.
This might sound crazy, but it’s just a part of being on the UCLA Ski and Snowboard Team.
Though the club team competes in the Southern California Collegiate Snowsport Conference, competition is not the only thing that brings the 89 members together.
“We’re basically a family of individuals who love nothing more than going to Mammoth and getting away to the snow,” said Jon Diamond, a fourth-year economics student who snowboards on the team.
The skill levels of team members also vary significantly, according to Diamond.
The team has several traditions that it observes, some more unusual than others. One of the goofier events is the Bikini Run. For one run during the last trip up to Mammoth Mountain, everyone on the team skis or snowboards down the mountain in nothing but a bathing suit.
This tradition has caught on.
“It started out as just a UCLA Snow Team thing, but in recent years we’ve gotten a bunch of other teams involved,” said Sarah Van Cleve, a fourth-year economics student who skis and snowboards, as well as serving as president of the team.
Van Cleve said that, depending on the weather, between 100 to 150 skiiers and snowboarders take part in the Bikini Run.
The team also takes part in a tradition that operates on a much larger scale: a fundraising effort for Boarding for Breast Cancer, a nonprofit organization focused on breast cancer awareness among young women. The organization also emphasizes the importance of catching cancer early and living an active and healthy lifestyle.
According to Nicole Gormley, a fourth-year marine biology student who snowboards and serves as vice president of the team, the team sells raffle tickets, with all proceeds going to the organization. The team also receives a lot of donated gear from companies, encouraging them to fundraise. Gormley said the event is a great experience for both parties involved.
Among these different traditions, a love of skiing or snowboarding and of being in the mountains binds all these young men and women together.
About six times every winter, the team takes a trip to Mammoth to ski and snowboard.
“I just love the feel (of being) in a mountain town,” Van Cleve said of going to Mammoth.
Mammoth also represents an escape from the chaos of city life.
“It turns into a way to get out of L.A. and go see the mountains … You see every single star … which is something you definitely don’t get in (an) apartment,” Gormley said.
To be sure, being on the team is a commitment. However, somewhere between the clear mountain air, the greens and whites that contrast in the landscape and the simple joy of flying down the mountain, the team becomes a defining part the members’ experience at UCLA.
“Whenever I get up there, I always thank myself for going,” Diamond said.