If you were able to tag along this year, you already know the Vertical Challenge Finals was a great representation of the year. Unpredictable, yet enjoyable! If you couldn’t attend Finals this year, mark your calendars for next year, April 1st, and keep reading for a recap of Finals Weekend 2022!
As racers and guests rolled in to Jay Peak Friday, the whole VC crew was there to greet them in the International Room! Registration was held all night and it was a chance to see all our crew in one place. Per usual, the room was lit up with smiles, giggles, and excitement for what was to come.
Finally, the day that everyone had been waiting for arrived! Saturday was filled with free samples, games, prizes, and more! Although the continuous rain tested everyone, crew and competitors alike kept good spirits and were able to enjoy themselves. In addition to our final races, our sampling crew and DJ held interactive games every half hour, including tug of war, egg-on-a-spoon race, mummy wrap, and musical chairs. Meanwhile, our sample town consisted of our usual fantastic sponsors that have been with us all season long. They made it possible for us to operate the tour.
Those included Chevrolet, Stonyfield, bubly, Xfinity, Dermatone, Olivia’s Organic, Aloha, and our special guest, Pit Viper! Pit Viper was selling their striking sunglasses and goggles for a discounted rate. Proceeds went to the Make-A-Wish Foundation. As the day wrapped up, everyone gathered around our stage that showcased all our incredible Make-A-Wish Raffle prizes for the award ceremony. If the weather hadn’t been crazy enough all season, the endless rain switched to snow during our ceremony! What was more amazing was how unfazed all our participants were. They did not move a hair and supported all our winners! Even though the fireworks had to be canceled due to the weather, many of our participants were able to join our crew members for some music and dancing back in the International Room at the end of the night to celebrate another successful season!
The following morning, as our participants packed up their belongings, many stopped by the VC autograph session held in the lobby. Even after dancing the night away, the VC crew was able to put their uniforms on one last time for this season to send off our racers with memorabilia. This crew was like no other. We were family and we treat our racers as our own.
Looking back on the season as a whole, no one knew how it was going to go. No one expected it to go as well as it did. Due to COVID-19, we staged an abbreviated schedule last year. Fortunately, this year we were blessed with a full season, and were able to power through the fluctuation of the unpredictable weather patterns. On top of all those obstacles, we started with many newcomers on the crew this season. Everyone in the group quickly understood the ethos of the Vertical Challenge and was able to execute their roles. Countless valuable bonds were made this year, within the crew and with our racers, and this is all thanks to the Vertical Challenge. Special shoutout to Heather Clifford for making all this possible.
Be sure to stay tuned for what the Vertical Challenge has in store in the offseason!
VC crew member Julie Pacenka wrote this post.
