Featured Image: Will Wissman | Skier: Tanner Hall
The Ski Boss has submitted his unofficial (and maybe official?) application to become the head coach of the 2030 United States Olympic Freeride Ski Team. Days after leading a digital campaign against the choice to add freeride to the Olympic roster, Hall wants to run the show, and he promises he "won't look like a nerd."
When news broke that freeride would be included in the 2030 Winter Games, reactions were mixed. Overall, many prominent athletes from the Freeride World Tour were thrilled, with others offering cautionary advice, and others still calling the move terrible for the sport and culture.
The divide in opinions was anything but surprising, as we skiers will debate nearly anything our culture spits out, from using poles to the right music choice in a film segment. But Tanner Hall throwing his hat in the ring to become the new team's head coach? Nobody could have seen that coming.
Tanner's head coach proposition video, recorded and worded in classic T Hall original style
While he's far from the most professional candidate in the mix, perhaps that's exactly why he'd be the best person for the job. There's no denying that the Olympics, and any large, standardized competition, can subdue or flatten the culture of sports like skateboarding, freeskiing and snowboarding. But that stunt in culture often seems short-lived, as nobody would deny that all three of those sports are still growing today.
And the Olympics are a malleable experience, as we've seen plenty of athletes return from The Games with more notoriety, maintaining their individualism while bringing their respective sports into the limelight and signing a few deals along the way. Just look at Shaun White after the 2006 Games or the sensational rise of U.S. figure skater Alysa Liu this winter.
The point is that the personality T Hall packs could be a great recipe for both Team USA and freeride at large. He certainly seems excited about the opportunity, saying, "You want me to stop swearing, I'll stop swearing. You want me to start wearing suits... show up like David Beckham? Indimidate the sh*t out of the other teams? I gotchu on all of it!" If that doesn't get you fired up and ready to run through a wall, I'm not sure what will.
"You put a real G in there... and you see what happens," Hall continued, shouting out skiers like Toby Rafford, Quinn Wolferman, Karl Fostvedt and Colby Stevenson. Many were quick to criticize his change of heart, but his logic makes sense, as he closed out the video by proclaiming, "If it's going to happen, you put me with the best skiers from the United States... the world is in trouble."
Tanner went on to compare the potential freeride roster to the '96 Dream Team, making himself Phil Jackson from Montana... even though the '96 Dream Team was coached by Lenny Wilkens but who cares, everyone knows Phil is more legendary. At the end of the day, it's hard to argue that T Hall wouldn't be the quintesential ambassador for American freeride.
Your move, U.S. Ski Team. We'll be waiting patiently.
Check out this FREESKIER interview with Tanner from 2016 for more perspective on the man himself
