STEAMBOAT SPRINGS- Rosie Mancari grew up in Anchorage, AK, but graduated high school early to move to Steamboat Springs, to train with the Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club. She was soon hitting podiums; her first Nor-Am win came at Sun Valley, ID in 2013. In 2016 she took home three wins, earning her a spot on the U.S. snowboardcross development team. 

Mancari took a break to answer a few questions with Steamboat Magazine.

S.M. What was it like coming from Alaska to train in Steamboat? Similarities? Differences?

R.M. Going to Steamboat from Alaska was a huge opportunity for me. I grew up riding with a team called Big Alaska at home, which was fundamental in introducing me to the competition side of snowboarding, but when I was 17 I decided I wanted to train more full-time and that Steamboat was the place to offer me what I was looking for. I graduated high school early, so luckily, I didn't have to worry about school while moving out to Steamboat, but the transition was very easy. I lived with a lovely host family, took the city bus everywhere, and the club offered everything else I could need especially being so young and away from family.

S.M. Where do you see yourself in the next 5-10 years?

R.M. Where I see myself in 5-10 years is a tough one. It can go many ways. Ideally, I would still like to be competing for at least another Olympic cycle, but there are so many uncertainties with boardercross and injuries and such so I don't like to put all my eggs in one basket! When I do transition out of the sport I plan on finishing school (I'm working slowly through a health science bachelor’s degree), and in the long run I would like to go to grad school to become a physician’s assistant. I definitely don't ever plan on stopping snowboarding though, and I’d really like to help coach or mentor young riders back in Alaska when I am done competing.

S.M. What's on your training/warmup music playlist?

R.M. My music playlist varies depending on how I am feeling. However some pop country is honestly usually my go-to. My teammate Faye and I love it, and end up blasting it in our hotel room in the morning, on the bus to the mountain, and all the way up ‘til race time. It drives just about everyone crazy, but it works for us!

S.M. What's the most difficult aspect of competing in boardercross?

R.M. The most difficult part for myself is usually overcoming fears mentally. It has gotten a lot better over the years as I have gotten more comfortable on courses, but it has definitely been a growing process. The courses that we race on vary so much, you have to be such a versatile rider and you never really know what you will get and have to be ready for anything. That was hard to adjust to from the Nor-Am circuit, but I like to think I am finally adjusting nicely.

S.M. What do you like to do in your time off?

R.M. During the off season, my time consists of a lot of dry-land or cross training and work. I get gym programming from our team trainer and that usually puts us in the gym for 2-3 hours a day and then we do some sort of cross training like mountain biking or wake surfing. I also still fund my own season for the most part, so I work as much as I can in the summer in order to snowboard all winter. The past two summers I have waitressed at home in Alaska because it offers the most flexible schedule for my training and traveling.

S.M. What's your favorite moment of your career so far?

R.M. It's hard to choose a favorite moment when I travel around the world doing what I love. However, last season my teammate Lindsey and I won the boardercross World Cup team event in Solitude, Utah, and that was a really big moment for me. The day before I had got a new personal best World Cup finish of 7th place, and then capped the weekend off with a team win. It was a really big breakthrough moment for myself and definitely one I will never forget!

S.M. What does your typical training day look like?

R.M. Typically, early in the season we try to focus on some basics to knock the rust off from the summer and training gets more focused as we work through the season. At training camps (usually before races) we go in with a plan of a couple warm-up runs on the track, one or two timed runs (similar to time trials), and then some practice heats with teammates. Once we are done on the mountain we do maintenance workouts and recovery; try to heal up and rest up for the next day!

S.M. What do you love most about snowboardcross?

R.M. I love that boardercross is always challenging me and pushing me to limits I didn't even know I was capable of. It's so easy to get stuck in a rut and become bored with what you're doing, and that’s almost impossible with boardercross. There’s always unknown components, and it is so exhilarating.

S.M. If you had three wishes, what would they be?

R.M. I don't know if I could choose three wishes... that is a lot of pressure. But if I had to choose anything I would just wish to have a healthy, successful career that allows me to have a positive impact on others. 

For more information on Olympic qualifiers visit https://usskiandsnowboard.org