SPRINGHILL – There’s a long history of team champions at Springhill High School, but now the school can boast a standalone fresh from the ski hill.
Grade 12 student Luke Jackson claimed the Nova Scotia Schools Athletic Federation’s top title in boardercross snowboarding at Ski Martock after claiming a regional title at Ski Wentworth.
Some associate snowboarding with big jumps and aerodynamics, but boardercross is a different animal all together, Jackson says.
“It’s like a motocross track, downhill, on a snowboard. No joke. That’s what it’s like,” Jackson said.
Running through tight turns, jumps, drops and steep-to-flat sections, the emphasis is to maintain maximum speed through the course, Jackson said. This year, his winning time was 29.3 seconds and the distance between second and third place wins was just fractions of a second.
Introduced to the sport in Grade 9, Jackson has elevated his profile each year, claiming a regional title last year but not making the podium at provincials. This year he joined the ranks of Snowboard Nova Scotia, giving him more exposure in the sport and more opportunities to learn and take clinics going into the high school provincials.
It’s all part of a long-term goal he’s set for himself.
“I’m on the Canada Games core team,” he said. “I’m working towards the 2015 Canada Winter Games.”
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