Steamboat's Cooper Puckett Wins U.S. Alpine Slalom Title in Vail

The crisp bite of Vail’s March air still hangs in the lungs of those who stood on the start gate at Golden Peak, a cold, sharp reminder that speed on ice is a negotiation between gravity and grit. It’s easy to assume that when the U.S. Alpine National Championships roll into a major resort like Vail, the story is about the host town’s economic windfall or the sheer spectacle of the World Cup circuit’s infrastructure. But if you look closely at the podium on Tuesday, the real story isn’t about money or fame — it’s about the quiet, brutal resilience of a 23-year-old from Steamboat Springs who didn’t just win a title, he survived a season of near-misses.

Cooper Puckett didn’t just take the slalom title; he closed out the fourth and final day of nationals with a performance that felt less like a coronation and more like a release of tension. Puckett, who hails from the Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club, finished ahead of Jett Seymour, an alumnus of the rival Ski and Snowboard Club Vail. It’s a rivalry that used to be as bitter as the Yankees-Red Sox dynamic, but Puckett noted that now, it’s “all love.” That shift in tone matters. It suggests that while the rivalry fuels the competition, the camaraderie sustains the sport. Puckett and Seymour went 1-2 on enemy soil, showcasing the depth of Colorado’s ski talent, but it was Puckett who stood atop the podium, his hands raised in celebration as the green light flashed across the finish line.

Why does this matter to folks around here, beyond the usual sports recap? Because Puckett’s victory is a narrative of exclusion turned to inclusion. He came into the season ready, scoring World Cup points in his slalom debut in Levi, Finland, in November. He was in the running for the Olympics. But then the team had tough results, losing two spots, and Puckett didn’t get to go. He didn’t make it. He didn’t ski well enough, he said, but the challenge was real. To end that journey with a national title, on a day when he was just 13th after the first split, feels like a vindication that goes deeper than a medal.

“I’ve had plenty of times where I was in that position in NorAms or World Juniors where it didn’t work out and that’s the sport,” Puckett said. “So, when it does work out and you put together two good runs — it’s such a brutal sport, that when you do that, it’s really special.”

Jett Seymour, the 27-year-old World Cup regular who finished a tenth behind Puckett after the first run and 0.62 seconds back in the end, added his own layer of context. “I think it was like that when we were younger,” Puckett recalled of the rivalry. Seymour, who won the slalom title in 2022 and 2023, smiled and said, “Coming from Steamboat, I’ve never liked Vail, but I do enjoy being in Colorado.” It’s a playful jab, but it underscores the local pride that defines these competitions. The podium was rounded out by Jevin Palmquist from Team Summit, another Colorado skier, while Alex Krupka of Ski and Snowboard Club Vail posted the second-best second run, moving up 10 spots to finish 17th. Krupka, who turned 20 on Monday, said he “sent it as hard as he could, smile on my face; just happy to be here.”

The sun dipped lower over Main Arena, casting long shadows across the ice, but the warmth of the moment lingered. You can feel it in the way Puckett described the finish: not just a time on the clock, but a release of the season’s weight. It’s a reminder that in the high-stakes world of alpine skiing, victory isn’t always about being the fastest from the start; sometimes, it’s about finding your groove on the lower part of the course when it matters most. The snow was still cold, but the air felt lighter.