Eli had an awesome year. From traveling, to contests and even some unexpected injury's to deal with. The adversity couldn't keep him down and he killed his final snowboard competition of the season, the USASA Nationals. Stoked to have him on the team, and excited to see his progression continue at such a young age! Check out some words from Eli's coach below:
"The competitive snowboard season came to a close for Illumine Collect team rider Eli McDermott and it came with numerous successes. The competition Eli attended was the USASA Nationals, this event invites the best junior snowboarders in the world. He qualified for 3 disciplines, Halfpipe, Slopestyle, and Rail Jam. The week started with a busy training day where Eli got to work putting his runs together. These events require these junior athletes to perform pro level moves, on courses that can include jumps up to 60 ft. in size. Although he is still only 14 years old his trick repertoire matches some professional riders. His first competition of the week was Slopestyle. The format was best of two runs, one of them qualifying you into a 12 athlete final, he put down a spectacular first run and secured a spot. His finals run consisted of 540’s as well as a Double Cork 900 which garnered a 6th place finish in a competitive field of 81 riders. His second competition was the Rail Jam. This consists of 20 min jams in a course filled with rails. He was very competitive and ended up with a 7th place finish. Lastly he competed in Halfpipe and although only having a minimal amount of time riding a pipe this year he was able to capture a top 20 in a very tough field of 50 athletes. The week overall was a success for this young athlete and has provided a stepping stone for his future competitive endeavors. Eli’s competitive season may be over, but his snowboard season never ends. He is preparing to attend on-snow camps this spring as well as this summer. We will keep you posted on his progression throughout these camps and beyond."
- Will Rivera (Eli's Snowboard Coach)
