Boarder X is the only X Games snowboarding event that ends with a finish line instead of scores from judges. We race six at a time down a narrow 1,000-yard path, and it gets crowded. The race is over in about a minute. First across the line wins.

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The race starts with the skiers in the gate. The judge calls "Racers ready … five-second warning …" and the gate drops. You pull as hard as you can on the poles on each side of your chute. If you get out first, you have a great shot at winning.

The course is full of rollers, banked corners and a gap jump. You pre-ollie the jumps, meaning you do a small jump before the main jump, because you want to stay on the snow and pump your board to gain speed. In the middle of the course, you hit a flat section, and last year I moved from third to first by keeping my board flat and straight-lining.

The corners can get rough, especially when six of you hit them together. If you make contact intentionally, you can be disqualified, though this rarely happens. On some corners, you want to carve close to the gate. On others, you want to set your line high and drop down to gain speed. In the final last year, I started high on the final turn but didn't come out low enough. Ine Poetzl, who was in second, passed me and won. I'm still bitter-mad at myself. But that's what experience is all about.
-as told to Darryl Howerton

This article appears in the February 3 issue of ESPN The Magazine.