Ross Powers launching out of the pipe at Killington, '99. Photo: Jeff Curtes

Vermont is as serious about its snow sports as it is about Maple syrup. That’s why for decades, the Green Mountain State has been crafting Grade A (fancy) snowboarders who have gone on to kick ass and take names on the national and international stage.

Ross Powers wasn’t the first Vermont snowboarder to ride a halfpipe, he was just the first to do so for a Gold Medal. However, Kelly Clark was right there with him in 2002, when both Vermonters made the state, and the country, proud. Before the world got a look, anyone hiking the pipe at Killington on this day got a good look alongside photographer Jeff Curtes. Once a Vermonter, always a Vermonter Powers now heads the Stratton Mountain School’s snowboard program.

Each Thursday we present a photo from the annals of snowboarding history in Vermont.