Dreaming of a gold medal while sleeping in a truck


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PARK CITY — For many people, mountain biking in the hills near Park City Mountain Resort is what you do after work.

For Justin Reiter, it is work.

"The more fit you are, the stronger you are," said Reiter, breathing hard after another mountain run on his bike.

Reiter's work ethic is what makes him one of the best in the world.

Not as a mountain biker ... as a snowboarder.

"Our training has to be very intense in the off-season, so we're prepared to handle the stresses of the in-season," said Reiter.

Reiter, 32, is from Steamboat Springs, Colo.

However, even with all the mountains and terrain in his home state, he came to Park City in June to train for Team USA at the Center for Excellence.

"Weightlifting, plus cardio, plus plyometrics, plus agility, plus endurance, plus core, plus overall strength," said Reiter, rattling off a laundry list of training methods he employs.


I wouldn't be living in my truck if I didn't have a massive passion for what I do.

–Justin Reiter, Olympic hopeful


He does every single workout his coach asks because he wants to make his dreams come true: make the 2014 Winter Olympics team, and take home the gold medal.

"I do this because I love it," said Reiter, "I wouldn't be here if I didn't. I wouldn't be living in my truck if I didn't have a massive passion for what I do."

You heard him.

Living in his truck.

"Home sweet home. Yeah, this is my crib," said Reiter as he gave a tour of his Toyota Tundra.

In the back of the truck in the tailgate area, he keeps two sleeping bags, a sleep pad, kitchen supplies, food, water, and his mountain bike.

In the backseat area is his closet, dirty clothes, shoes, and a small container he uses for a bathroom.

The front passenger seat is his office, where he catches up on emails and the latest news on his computer.

"Towel, headlamp, book," said Reiter, pointing to the back of the truck where his bed is, "that's pretty much all I need."

Yes, one of America's best snowboarders lives, cooks, and sleeps in a space about as big as a quad chairlift.

"A lot of people would probably go nuts over this, but I think the longer you live with less, you realize the less that you actually need," said Reiter.

It's also a way for him to save money, and more importantly, concentrate on just one thing: being the best in the world.

He was close to realizing his Olympic dream just before the Vancouver Games in 2010.

"Everything was going well and then, unfortunately, they discovered I had a degenerating patella," said Reiter, "and so I had to have reconstructive surgery."


A lot of people would probably go nuts over this, but I think the longer you live with less, you realize the less that you actually need.

–Justin Reiter


Just like that, all his hard work and training was for naught, and Reiter was forced to watch the Olympics on TV.

"You see the hero stories of the Olympics," said Reiter. "You don't hear about the people who didn't get to go who worked just as hard, if not harder, for four years, and then nothing came of it. And I was one of those stories."

However, Reiter's story isn't over just yet.

"I guess the old cliché is 'What doesn't kill you makes you stronger,' " smiled Reiter.

That's why he's doing it all again.

"For the first two weeks, I stayed in a Wal-Mart parking lot, which was dark," Reiter said. "It was free; it was very close, but it was not quiet."

Neither are his dreams.

They are loud, constantly in his head, telling him to just keep going.

"Is it a big deal? Yeah. It is a big deal. Sochi is, any Olympics, is a big deal," said Reiter.

To him, it's such a big deal, sleeping in a truck seems like nothing.

Reiter said he'll know in late December, maybe even mid-January, if he made the team.

The Sochi Olympics are in February.

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