{"id":803381,"date":"2020-01-23T12:43:47","date_gmt":"2020-01-23T19:43:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.summitdaily.com\/?p=377728"},"modified":"2020-01-24T08:48:42","modified_gmt":"2020-01-24T15:48:42","slug":"summit-high-school-student-competes-at-30th-international-snow-sculpture-championships-in-breckenridge","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/local-news\/summit-high-school-student-competes-at-30th-international-snow-sculpture-championships-in-breckenridge\/","title":{"rendered":"Summit high school student competes at 30th International Snow Sculpture Championships in Breckenridge"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Eli Krawczuk-Cochrane works on a sculpture with Team Vermont during the International Snow Sculpture Championships on Tuesday, Jan. 21, in front of the Riverwalk Center in Breckenridge. <\/strong>
Liz Copan \/ ecopan@summitdaily.com<\/em><\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

BRECKENRIDGE \u2014 For the past 30 years, Breckenridge has welcomed teams of talented sculptors to make intricate pieces of art out of 12-foot-tall, 20-ton blocks of snow. These competitors have spent about 65 hours this week to craft their designs without using power tools.<\/p>\n

Alongside 11 other countries, the United States teams invited include Alaska, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Vermont and Breckenridge, which will have local event co-founder Rob Neyland on the team. This year, organizers didn\u2019t need to look far to find young blood eager to participate.<\/p>\n

Eli Krawczuk-Cochrane, 15, has been sculpting for three years at the International Snow Sculpture Championships, usually on noncompetition sponsor blocks. His first was a collection of interactive toy blocks with a slide, and last year he helped on Bulleit Bourbon Frontier Whiskey\u2019s teardrop trailer. Then when members of Team India got sick, Krawczuk-Cochrane had the fateful opportunity to actually compete at age 14 by assisting them in finishing their sculpture.<\/p>\n

Coaching and mentoring Krawczuk-Cochrane is family friend Rick Seeley. A graphic designer, artist and professional snow sculptor, Seeley has been participating in the international event for 17 years. His team placed third at Berthoud\u2019s state competition this winter, while last year they finished first and won best in show. In Breckenridge, he can frequently be seen working on the sponsored designs and judging the international competition.<\/p>\n

But lately, more of his time has been spent fostering other young teams and mentoring students around Summit and Park counties. Seeley gets the kids familiar with the tools but also coaches them on how to stay positive and keep a proper mindset as they work on \u201ctaking away what isn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cLike Bob Ross used to say, \u2018There\u2019s no mistakes, just happy accidents,\u2019\u201d Seeley said. I just encourage them and let them know they can do this. Just giving them the opportunity to dive in when they say they don\u2019t know how.\u201d<\/p>\n

Seeley said Krawczuk-Cochrane is the youngest kid he\u2019s seen who has continued to pursue the art.<\/p>\n

\u201cI definitely want to stick with snow sculpting,\u201d Krawczuk-Cochrane said. \u201cIt\u2019s a really cool form of art, and it\u2019s just a really awesome field to be a part of already and to continue to grow. It could be something a lot bigger than it is now, and it\u2019s just an amazing thing that would be great to continue in the future.\u201d<\/p>\n

Part of the appeal of the medium is that there are no cash prizes at this competition. All competitors do it out of their love for sculpting and forming bonds with the visiting teams.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s very rewarding when you put a piece together and have it come to fruition,\u201d Seeley said. \u201cWhat\u2019s so interesting about the snow sculpting community, we\u2019re different than any other community that does any kind of sculpture and competition. We want everyone to succeed.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Rick Seeley works on The Yeti during the International Snow Sculpture Championships on Tuesday, Jan. 21, in front of the Riverwalk Center in Breckenridge. Teams have through Friday, Jan. 24, to work on their sculptures, and they will be on display to the public through Wednesday, Jan. 29.<\/strong>
Liz Copan \/ ecopan@summitdaily.com<\/a><\/em><\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

Best of Berthoud<\/strong><\/p>\n

After being the youngest sculptor to compete last year at the international level, Krawczuk-Cochrane and his friend Giancarlo Martinez had the chance to show off their skills at the Berthoud SnowFest<\/a> in December. The Summit High School freshmen got first place and people\u2019s choice out of the five other Berthoud teams.<\/p>\n

Their design, Santa Claus going down a chimney headfirst, took about 32 hours to complete. Things mainly went smoothly, except when it reached about 50 degrees and teams resorted to putting up tarps to shade the sculptures.<\/p>\n

As a first-time sculptor, Martinez got a sense right away of that familial feeling Seeley described.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was pretty welcoming for someone who was first trying it out,\u201d he said. \u201cThe community is super cool.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Summit High School freshmen Giancarlo Martinez, left, and Eli Krawczuk-Cochrane stand next to their sculpture of Santa Claus descending a chimney at Berthoud SnowFest in December 2019. Martinez and Krawczuk-Cochrane won first place in the high school division at the state competition.<\/strong>
Courtesy AdSortium Media<\/em><\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

Yet because there is no national level for the high school division, there was no method for Martinez or Krawczuk-Cochrane to advance to the next round in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin. According to Seeley, Colorado is the only state to have a high school event.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf we can spread that out for a more expansive competition, we could get a lot more creativity,\u201d Krawczuk-Cochrane said. \u201cIt\u2019s an amazing art form. Hopefully some day it\u2019ll go to the national level. That would be awesome.\u201d<\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t finalized until Monday that Krawczuk-Cochrane would be able to compete on Team Vermont after one of its members got injured and a substitute couldn\u2019t make it. They\u2019ll be making a piece called Square Dance, a series of thin, interlocking squares that will require them to remove roughly 85% of the snow block.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Team India will have Krawczuk-Cochrane\u2019s mom, Emily Krawczuk, join the group to lend a hand for the second year in a row.<\/p>\n

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Emily Krawczuk works with Team India on a large snow sculpture Tuesday, Jan. 21, in front of the Riverwalk Center in Breckenridge. The sculptures will be on display Jan. 24-29.<\/strong>
Liz Copan \/ ecopan@summitdaily.com<\/a><\/em><\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

Three decades of history<\/strong><\/p>\n

Vermont and India\u2019s sculptures aren\u2019t the only ones worth a gander. For the first time in the event\u2019s 30-year history, two all-female teams from Alaska and Germany are competing. <\/p>\n

Not in the competition, there is a 60-ton snow block on display with a million pixels of light projected directly on the snow to celebrate the event\u2019s 30th anniversary. Additionally, Seeley created an 8-foot-tall version of the Breckenridge Tourism Office\u2019s yeti mascot with hugging arms ready for a photo opportunity.<\/p>\n

\u201cEven though the format stays the same, it\u2019s a new, exciting event every year because of the different teams and the different sculptures that are created,\u201d said Austyn Dineen with the Breckenridge Tourism Office. For new attendees or longtime guests, she recommends seeing the sculptures at night as well as in the day. \u201cWhen the sculptures are illuminated Friday night, it adds a whole new dimension to how the sculptures come to life.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cataloging the International Snow Sculpture Championships\u2019 evolution is a museum exhibit with elements that tell the history of how it came to be. And though next year\u2019s event will only consist of one piece<\/a> \u2014 but likely made out of multiple 20-ton blocks of snow \u2014 2022 is set to be back to normal. Seeley hopes that Krawczuk-Cochrane won\u2019t be the only high schooler competing by then.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re a dying breed,\u201d Seeley said. \u201cMost of us are in our 50s. Then there\u2019s a couple in their 20s. Other than that, we have a 25-30 year age gap between us. We\u2019re trying to keep the art form alive.\u201d<\/p>\n

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