Kevin Pearce (born November 1, 1987) is the co-founder of th
Love Your Brain
Foundation, a nonprofit organization that aims to improve the quality of life of people affected by traumatic brain injury. He also is an inspirational speaker, and an American former professional

snowboarder Snowboarding is a recreational and competitive activity that involves descending a snow-covered surface while standing on a snowboard that is almost always attached to a rider's feet. It features in the Winter Olympic Games and Winter Paralympic ...

. He was born in

Hanover, New Hampshire Hanover is a town located along the Connecticut River in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. As of the 2020 census, its population was 11,870. The town is home to the Ivy League university Dartmouth College, the U.S. Army Corps of En ...

, and raised in

Hartland, Vermont Hartland is a town in Windsor County, Vermont, United States. The population was 3,446 at the 2020 census. It includes the villages of Hartland, Hartland Four Corners, and North Hartland. History Hartland, originally named Hertford, was cha ...

, before moving with his parents to

Norwich, Vermont Norwich is a town in Windsor County, in the U.S. state of Vermont. The population was 3,612 at the 2020 census. Home to some of the state of Vermont's wealthiest residents, the municipality is a commuter town for nearby Hanover, New Hampshir ...

. He competed professionally from 2007 to 2009, when a crash during snowboard training left him with a

traumatic brain injury A traumatic brain injury (TBI), also known as an intracranial injury, is an injury to the brain caused by an external force. TBI can be classified based on severity (ranging from mild traumatic brain injury TBI/concussionto severe traumatic br ...

Career

Pearce won The Arctic Challenge in 2007 and completed back-to-back titles with victory in 2008. He was also the first man to earn two Air & Style rings in one season, winning the Nokia

Air & Style The Air & Style is a European snowboard contest first held in Innsbruck, Austria in 1994 and now held annually. History Charly Weger and his snowboard photographer friend Andrew Hourmont first started the Air & Style Contest in Innsbruck. They on ...

in Munich in 2007 and the Billabong

in Innsbruck in 2008. In the 2007–08 season he won the Swatch TTR World Snowboard Tour, garnering the TTR World Tour Champion title. He won three medals at the 2008 Winter X Games XII in

Aspen Aspen is a common name for certain tree species; some, but not all, are classified by botanists in the section ''Populus'', of the '' Populus'' genus. Species These species are called aspens: *'' Populus adenopoda'' – Chinese aspen (Chin ...

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the wes ...

. He was also the first athlete in X Games history to compete in three medal events in one day. Results: Snowboard Big Air Finals
– ''EXPN.com'' (January 26, 2008) (Retrieved on February 24, 2008) Pearce is a member of the Frends Crew (spelled without the "i" to emphasize the collective nature of the group) made up of snowboarders Mason Aguirre, Danny Davis,

Scotty Lago Scotty Lago (born November 12, 1987) is an American snowboarder. He is the 2004 world quarterpipe champion and winner of a bronze medal at the 2010 Winter Olympics. Career Lago has been riding since 1996. He is sponsored by Hudsen Collective, ...

Keir Dillon Keir Dillon (born June 1, 1977) is a professional snowboarder specializing in Halfpipe. Career Dillon has been a competitive snowboarder since 1997; his current home mountain is Ponto Beach, California but originally he grew up riding the east c ...

Mikkel Bang Mikkel is a Danish and Norwegian masculine given name. It may refer to: * Mikkel Ødelien (1893–1984), Norwegian soil researcher * Mikkel Aaland (born 1952), award-winning American photographer * Mikkel Andersen (disambiguation) *Mikkel Bødker ...

Jack Mitrani Jack may refer to: Places * Jack, Alabama, US, an unincorporated community * Jack, Missouri, US, an unincorporated community * Jack County, Texas, a county in Texas, USA People and fictional characters * Jack (given name), a male given name, ...

, and

Luke Mitrani Luke Mitrani (born July 20, 1990 in New York City) is a former professional snowboarder and an aspiring musician. Luke placed 1st in the halfpipe at the 2011 Winter Dew Tour with the highest score in Dew Tour history, 97.00. He has also placed 1s ...

. Frends is a group of riders who turned their initial friendship into a formal alliance in 2007 to move the sport away from its recent competitive and business focus and return the sport to its grassroots, collegial beginnings.

2009 injury

On December 31, 2009, Pearce was critically injured during training in

Park City, Utah Park City is a city in Utah, United States. The vast majority is in Summit County, and it extends into Wasatch County. It is considered to be part of the Wasatch Back. The city is southeast of downtown Salt Lake City and from Salt Lake Cit ...

. He struck his head above the left eye halfway down the pipe during a half-pipe training run trying a maneuver called a cab double cork. He was flown to the University of Utah Medical Center in

Salt Lake City Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the capital and most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in Utah. With a population of 200,133 in 2020, th ...

. On January 26, 2010, Pearce was transferred out of critical care and in early February was moved to Craig Hospital in

Denver, Colorado Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

, a rehabilitation center that specializes in traumatic brain injuries. By June, Pearce was back with his family in Vermont. In an August 23, 2010, interview, Pearce said he was lucky to recover and "...excited to get back onto a snowboard." However, in a December 2011 interview with NBC, he said he will not compete again but he did get back on a snowboard later that year.

Personal life and family

Pearce is a son of noted international glass artist Simon Pearce, who has a chain of upscale retail stores in the Northeast United States. Kevin's mother, Pia Pearce, is the sister-in-law of Cyrus Vance Jr., the District Attorney of New York County (Manhattan). Kevin Pearce is the youngest of Simon and Pia Pearce's four sons. His brothers David, who has

Down syndrome Down syndrome or Down's syndrome, also known as trisomy 21, is a genetic disorder caused by the presence of all or part of a third copy of chromosome 21. It is usually associated with physical growth delays, mild to moderate intellectual dis ...

, Andrew, and Adam are also snowboarders. Kevin Pearce and The Frends crew have hosted a Signature Session™ at High Cascade Snowboard Camp each summer since 2008. At camp, Pearce spends time with young snowboarders, helping to coach, mentor and inspire.

In popular culture

The 2013 documentary '' The Crash Reel'' by Lucy Walker documents Pearce's preparations for the

2010 Winter Olympics )'' , nations = 82 , athletes = 2,626 , events = 86 in 7 sports (15 disciplines) , opening = February 12, 2010 , closing = February 28, 2010 , opened_by = Governor General Michaëlle Jean , cauldron = Catriona Le May DoanNancy GreeneWayne Gret ...

games, the 2009 injury, and his subsequent rehabilitation.The Ride of a Lifetime
Crash Reel (2014-02-04). Retrieved on 2014-04-12.

References

External links

Kevin Pearce interview in frequency:The Snowboarder's Journal

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pearce, Kevin 1987 births Living people American male snowboarders People from Hanover, New Hampshire People from Hartland, Vermont People from Norwich, Vermont X Games athletes Sportspeople from New Hampshire Sportspeople from Vermont