Snowboard

Canada's elite snowboard and ski athletes are known for their mastery of snowy pitches, but to better hone their skills on the hill, they are gaining command of a second domain - the ocean.

Surfing has increasingly become part of the training regimen for snowboard cross athlete Tom Velisek and freestyle skier Jennifer Heil as they each vie for a start bib at the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Games.

"This surfing thing fell in my lap. Every year since, I've made it a priority to have a trip in May," Velisek said in a recent interview. "I just fell in love with it."

Like snowboard cross teammates Maëlle Ricker, Robert Fagan as well as American competitor and Olympic gold medallist Seth Wescott, Velisek has long been drawn to train off the serene beaches of the southern hemisphere.

"It's almost like a reset button for your mind to go out and be in the water instead of the snow," he said. "It's very, very good mental training. It's pretty scary. It's a sport that's got so much area to progress in.

"When you're lying on your stomach and there's a 10-foot face of a wave and you're paddling for it, aiming right for where it's about to start breaking, it's scary for sure," he said.

While the terrain Velisek has conquered - both on snow and in water - may astound others, he says participating in extreme sport has refined his ability to make good decisions quickly - a skill that is likely to serve him well in other careers.

"It's all a calculated risk, it's never just going out there unprepared or with a blind mind. Every time you do something that's pushing your limits first you'll be scared to do it, then you'll realize that it's possible, it's just your mind that's probably holding you back."

The path of the snowboard team has often crossed that of the freestyle team as both groups travel to various World Cup competitions. They have also encountered one another on the beach.

Mogulist Heil has been surfing for years and says she and teammates Steve Omischl, Warren Shouldice and Warren Tanner often discuss their upcoming surfing trips.

Heil was first exposed to surfing while skiing with the national development team when they stopped in Hawaii between competitions.

"It was the first time I had ever touched warm water or seen waves. I had no idea what I was doing, I got totally pummeled, salt water and sand everywhere and then I caught my first wave and I understood what it was all about," Heil said in a recent interview.

Heil, a mogulist who won a gold medal at the Turin 2006 Winter Olympic Games, has been hooked ever since, despite once accidentally slicing her forehead with surf board.

"It is terrifying. That's why it's so fun," she said.

"Warren Tanner, Steve Omischl, Warren Shouldice, that's all we talk about. It's the only thing we talk about all year. We're planning our next surf trip. I just got an email from Warren Tanner telling us how good the waves are in Tofino.

"It's a total passion."