Nick Baumgartner

Nick Baumgartner (born December 17, 1981) is a United States snowboarder from Iron River, Michigan.[1] He competes in snowboard cross (SBX) and qualified for the 2010 Winter Olympics. He won the gold and silver medals in the 2011 and 2012 Winter X Games. Baumgartner competed in the 2014 Winter Olympics.

Nick Baumgartner

Baumgartner after winning a Stock Truck division off-road race in 2011
Personal information
Nationality	American
Born	(1981-12-17) December 17, 1981 Iron River, Michigan, U.S.
Sport
Sport	Snowboard cross, off-road racing
Medal record Men's snowboarding Representing  United States World Championships 2009 Gangwon Snowboard cross 2015 Kreischberg Snowboard cross Winter X Games 2011 Aspen Snowboard cross 2012 Aspen Snowboard cross

Baumgartner began off-road racing in 2011 winning the Rookie of the Year "Stock Truck" award before advancing to Pro Light trucks in 2012.

Background

He attended West Iron County High School where he was an Upper Peninsula of Michigan champion hurdler and All Upper Peninsula Class ABC football player.[2][3]

Snowboarding

Kevin Hill, Nick Baumgartner (center, in red), Pierre Vaultier at Telluride on December 19, 2009

Baumgartner placed first in multiple competitions in 2004; he had competed at the SNX at the USASA Nationals and first at the US Extreme Boardfest.[2] While at the US SBX Championships in 2007, he had placed first at the event in Tamarack Resort, Idaho.[2] Then he went to the World Cup finals where Baumgartner had been moved down to take the second place title. Then he had been moved down again while competing at the Copper Mountain Revolution Tour where he placed third.

He won a bronze medal in the snowboard cross event at the FIS Snowboarding World Championships 2009 in Gangwon. Baumgartner's first World Cup victory was in Lake Placid, New York in the snowboard cross event in 2008. In 2009 he had earned a bronze medal for the World Champion competition season with five Top 10 finishes and two podium finishes.[2] He also won the World Cup in March 2011.

He was announced on January 26, 2010 as a member of the United States team for the 2010 Winter Olympics. He competed and did not medal finishing 20th.[1][2]

On January 17, 2011 after not being chosen to attend the World Championship competition, Baumgartner went to train at Copper Mountain where he was in an accident that broke his collar bone.[3] He needed surgery the next day.[4] In 2011 Baumgartner broke Nate Holland's winning streak and his seven-try losing streak.[3] He had done so with fifteen screws and a plate in his neck.[3] After he had won he grabbed his son Landon and said, "To see the look on his face, to have your boy proud of you, there’s nothing better."[3] On January 30, 2011, Baumgartner won the gold medal at the Winter X Games XV in Aspen, Colorado.[5]

On December 5, 2013 Baumgartner's selection to the 2014 Winter Olympics team was announced. He was placed on the snowboard cross A team for the Olympics in a coach's discretionary spot over Seth Wescott because of his consistency at World Cup events.[6] Baumgartner had a poor start in the first heat race and he finished fourth, just outside the top three who advanced to the quarterfinals.[6]

Off-road racing

Baumgartner off-road racing in his Stock Truck in 2011

In 2011, he began racing in the entry-level "Stock Truck" class in the Traxxas TORC Series.[5] He finished in the Top 3 in each of his first three races and he held the points lead at mid season.[5] During the summer of 2011 Baumgartner earned himself the Rookie of the Year while competing in the Traxxas TORC Series Off Road Short Course Racing.[4] He moved up into Pro Light in 2012 and finished sixth in the points standings.[7]

In 2013, Baumgartner joined the Stadium Super Trucks, finishing sixth in the inaugural race at University of Phoenix Stadium.[8] He ran six races that year and finished ninth in points.[9] The following season, he returned to the trucks for X Games Austin 2014;[10] after a fourth-place run in his heat race, he finished eighth in the final.[11]

Images

• 
  2012 Pro Light
• 
  2010 World Cup event

Motorsports career results

Stadium Super Trucks

(key) (Bold – Pole position. Italics – Fastest qualifier. * – Most laps led.)

Stadium Super Trucks results
Year	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	SSTC	Pts	Ref
2013	PHO 6	LBH 10	LAN 4	SDG 12	SDG 11	STL 3	TOR	TOR	CRA	CRA	OCF	OCF	OCF	CPL			9th	120	[9]
2014	STP	STP	LBH	IMS	IMS	DET	DET	DET	AUS 8	TOR	TOR	OCF	OCF	CSS	LVV	LVV	23rd	20	[12]

References

1. Martin, Aaron. "Baumgartner's welcome home". WLUC-TV. Retrieved September 11, 2011.
2. "Nick Baumgartner: USA Olympic Athletes". Team USA. Archived from the original on May 15, 2011. Retrieved December 14, 2011.
3. O'Neil, Devon. "Nick Baumgartner spoils six-peat bid". ESPN. Retrieved December 14, 2011.
4. "Welcome". Nick Baumgartner.com. Retrieved October 27, 2012.
5. "Nick Baumgartner finds struggle for the first time in Off-Roading". WLUC-TV. Retrieved September 11, 2011.
6. Axon, Rachel. "Top U.S. snowboardcross riders out early". USA Today. Retrieved March 8, 2014.
7. "Official Points Standings". Traxxas TORC Series. Retrieved October 27, 2012.
8. "MacCachren Claims Inaugural Stadium SUPER Trucks Race at University of Phoenix Stadium". Stadium Super Trucks. April 7, 2013. Archived from the original on July 28, 2013. Retrieved December 12, 2013.
9. "2013 SST Point Standings". Stadium Super Trucks. Retrieved January 28, 2019.
10. Pettit, Vince (April 30, 2014). "Baumgartner joins X Games Formula Off-Road roster". The Checkered Flag. Retrieved December 15, 2019.
11. "X Games Austin 2014 - Stadium Super Trucks". X Games. Retrieved December 15, 2019.
12. "2014 Standings". Stadium Super Trucks. Retrieved January 28, 2019.

External links

• Nick Baumgartner at the International Ski Federation
• Nick Baumgartner at Olympics at Sports-Reference.com (archived)