When Chandler “CC” Peddle ’17 (far right) earned a bronze medal at the USA Snowboard Association Nationals at Copper Mountain, Colorado earlier this month, the announcer was surprised to see she was from Chesapeake, Va. “Do they have snow there?” he asked.
CC told him there is snow in Chesapeake, but she does her training at Wintergreen, just up the road from University of Lynchburg. During the winter and winter break, CC spends seven hours a day on the slopes, practicing her “slopestyle” skills, which include rails and jumps.
“It’s my little escape from schoolwork and stuff like that,” she said. “It’s like walking to me.”
CC said her father was a “boarder” so she has been skateboarding, surfing, and snowboarding since she was eight years old.
To reach the national competition, CC had to win the Appalachian region and then face 50 competitors in Colorado. It was her third trip to nationals, and the third time proved to be the charm. “Exciting” is the only word CC had for her medal finish. She said it’s nice for an East Coast competitor to do well against the West Coasters.
As an instructor at Wintergreen, CC found University of Lynchburg to be a great location and a great choice. “I love it,” she said. “All the professors are super helpful. Dean Eccles’ wife (AJ) is the bomb.”
An environmental studies major, CC says the Olympics may be in her future, but mostly, she loves snowboarding. “It’s such an adrenalin rush; it’s like addicting,” she said.
