\u201cIt\u2019s in my blood,\u201d said snow sculptor Alex Amys. Growing up in Breckenridge, Amys has been embedded in the world of the International Snow Sculpture Championship since the beginning. His father, Randy, co-founded the event 29 years ago with Rob Neyland, Ron Shelton and Bill Hazel.<\/p>\n
A young Alex would sit on the sidelines watching the group work year after year as he built his own snow forts. A few times he\u2019d try to lend a hand but his father would push back out of fear of disqualification for having too large a team. Then when Alex was 16 Randy thought about the two of them competing in Italy, but their submission wasn\u2019t accepted. The following year, after fudging Alex\u2019s age, the group made it. The international stage also happened to be Alex\u2019s first time ever competing.<\/p>\n
He returned to Italy in 2004 and also competed in China in 2005. Amys has dabbled in sculpting ice and clay, but, thanks to having a dad showing him the ropes with their tools in the backyard, snow is the medium of choice.<\/p>\n
\u201cSometimes in the middle of the night I go \u2018Why do I do this to myself? It\u2019s freezing cold out here.\u2019 But \u2026 to walk around (the block of snow) a thousand times and visualize what it\u2019s going to be. As crazy as it sounds you talk to it and ask it what it wants to be. It\u2019s my passion and purely in my blood.\u201d<\/p>\n
Though Amys, 32, now lives in Milliken in Weld County as a maintenance technician, he is thrilled to be returning to Breckenridge.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a little weird coming back to the hometown and seeing how much everything has changed, but it\u2019s a dream come true,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s a little surreal for me at the moment, being on the other side of it after idolizing these guys for so many years.\u201d<\/p>\n
One of those idols is Steve Mercia joining Alex as team captain. Mercia also entered the world of snow sculpting because of Randy and competed with Alex in Italy. He was on a camping trip in Wyoming with Randy and the group started making sand turtles to pass the time on an overcast day. The two began to discuss sculpting and then the following year in 2001, Mercia entered his first competition and has been carving ever since.<\/p>\n
Mercia, 50, works as a drywall finisher yet was inspired by his artist father to be creative.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s nothing I can\u2019t make with my own two hands, whether it\u2019s out of wood or metal or snow,\u201d Mercia said. \u201cThey all have their positives and negatives. Snow is a very forgiving medium. If you make a mistake and take away too much snow you can always put the snow back.\u201d<\/p>\n
He enjoys snow sculpture so much that he recently set up a state championship in Berthoud that funnels into the national competition at Lake Geneva, Wisconsin.<\/p>\n
Also on Team Colorado is Nolan Rathbun and Carey Hosterman. Like Amys, this will be their first year in Breckenridge. Yet, Mercia says Mother Nature is a secret fifth member. Obviously warm temperatures aren\u2019t conducive to sculpting snow, but Mercia says extreme cold isn\u2019t a problem as long as one can still work their fingers.<\/p>\n
\u201cI like it wicked cold,\u201d Mercia said. \u201cThe colder the better. Cold is when you get your details in. If it\u2019s slushy, you start putting your details in and they just melt away.\u201d<\/p>\n
Details are key to the team\u2019s entry this year. Amys pitched to the group back in the summer that they should make \u201cLa Fleur De Vie,\u201d or The Flower of Life. The geometric design is a grid of overlapping circles seen in many cultures throughout history that\u2019s similar to the inside of a kaleidoscope. But rather than just do the pattern once, they\u2019ll make a second disc and have the two intersect perpendicularly to give it a more animated appearance.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve always liked sacred geometry and I wanted to play with negative space,\u201d Amys said. \u201cThis is going to be a new challenge, getting straight lines. It\u2019s not always easiest with snow because you have so many different shadows that can be cast or the sun is at a different spot. So getting everything you want to pop the way you want can be a challenge.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is a pretty hard and intricate design with hanging weight,\u201d Mercia said, \u201cand so we figured Breckenridge would be the perfect place to pull this off.\u201d<\/p>\n
After a week of sculpting and a total average of 160 labor hours, their creation is now ready to view. It will stay up until Jan. 30, along with 15 sculptures made by invited teams from China, Ecuador, France, Japan, Germany and others.<\/p>\n
As is the norm in snow sculpting competitions, power tools aren\u2019t allowed. Instead, in the same vein as ceramists, they use regular tools such as saws, improvised implements like vegetable peelers and tile floor scrapers, or something completely handmade that carves the snow in just the right way.<\/p>\n
Though this is Amys first time at the International Snow Sculpture Championship, it likely won\u2019t be the last. And in a few years, the third generation might make an appearance in the competition.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy oldest son is 4. He\u2019s been around it the last couple years and loves playing in the snow. I would imagine he would have the same desire I had. \u2026 I can\u2019t wait until he\u2019s older and maybe do a high school competition that we\u2019re trying start in Berthoud.\u201d<\/p>\n