It’s that time of year again! With the arrival of a new year comes the next edition of ESPN’s Winter X Games. I have four children, three of them boys who are constantly making ramps for their bikes and don’t know why anyone would ski on groomed trails when there are perfectly good forest trails to navigate. We’ve watched the X Games as a family since they first got the training wheels off of their bikes.
In a stroke of luck, three years ago we moved to a town just a few hours away from where the Winter X Games are held. This will be our third year to attend them and I’m confident we will have as much fun this weekend as we have every other time we’ve visited Aspen for this event.
If you have a chance, by all means, show up in person. Admission is free, parking is free, and there are always great company samples to fill your backpack. Standing on the edge of the SuperPipe, watching the athletes flip in the air as they fly over your head, is something you (and your kids) won’t quickly forget. There are some amazing family memories to be made there.
But if you don’t live within driving distance, you can still catch a lot of the events on the television set in your family room. Curl up with your favorite hubby or kiddos and munch on a bowl of popcorn as you take in the action in the warmth of your own home. As the interest in X Games has increased every year, so has the television coverage. If you can’t watch the television coverage live, be sure to set your DVR and make a date the with family to meet up later. Here’s where you can find them:
Friday, January 24 on ESPN (all times Eastern)
10:30 p.m.-12:30 a.m. Snowboard Big Air Final and Men’s Ski SuperPipe Final
Friday, January 24 on ESPN 3
12:30-4:00 Men and Women’s Boarder X and Men’s Ski Slopestyle
7:30-8:30 Women’s Ski SuperPipe
9:00 pm-12 a.m. Snowboard Big Air and Men’s Ski SuperPipe
Saturday January 25 on ESPN
2:00-4:00 p.m. Mens’ Snowboard Slopestyle Final
Boarder X Final
Women’s Snowboard Slopestyle Final
9:00-11:00 p.m. Women’s Snowboard SuperPipe Final
GoPro Ski Big Air
Saturday January 25 on ABC
4:00-6:00 p.m. Women’s Snowboard Slopestyle Final
Boarder X Final
Snowmobile Long Jump Final
Sunday January 26 on ESPN
2:00-6:00 p.m. Men’s Ski SlopeStyle Final
Snowmobile Adaptive Snocross Final (Adaptive, meaning my great friend Mike Schultz will be there. He’s the X Games gold medalist who lost his leg in a training accident then came back to win golds in the adaptive version, making his own competition leg with parts from his garage. He’s definitely ‘one to watch’)
Women’s Ski Slopestyle Final
Snowmobile Snocross Final
9:00-11:00 p.m. Men’s Snowboard SuperPipe Final
And then there is the Best of the X Games that will air the day before the Super Bowl, on Saturday, February 1st, from 2:00-6:00 p.m. on ABC. If you are a beginner to Winter X Games this might be a good show to start with.
Click here to find a description of the invited athletes and here to see videos of the action from last year.
My family and I are headed to Aspen first thing Saturday morning and we’ll be driving home late on Sunday night. By the end of next week I’ll be sharing with you what it was like, and which athletes you should keep an eye on, as the Winter Olympics head our way. I’m especially excited to tell you about a certain 13 year old snowboarder I met, whose talent is astounding and humble temperament refreshing. Now go set your DVR.
You can thank me later, after your family has made some pretty great new memories together.
