Going into Vancouver, Jasey wanted to have the best and most efficient equipment out there. In order for that to happen he needed to find someone to help capture his needs and make it come to fruition by building it. Voicing his concerns with the team, Mike Lambert from Toronto put together and sent out a mass e-mail request to various companies asking for assistance on this project. Gerry was one of the few who responded.
January 22, 2010: Toronto Star
‘Secret weapon’ of Canadian snowboarders created by Apex Composites
Anderson, who has a reputation for railing about equipment problems throughout his career, is a happy and contented man these days.
“The peace of mind I’m getting from that is, honestly, you could drop a million dollars on my lap and take my plate away, and I would be the most miserable person on Earth because I would know exactly what that means,” said Anderson. “I’d rather have this plate than a million-dollar cheque.”
January 18, 2010: MacLean's Magazine'
Olympic Secrets Revealed
Maclean's Exclusive: An inside look at our high-tech, mind-bending plans to dominate the podium at the 2010 Games
The plate is the 14th iteration of a concept by veteran rider Jasey-Jay Anderson. During a camp in Whistler last year, the design was tweaked daily. Kavanaugh would take athlete feedback to a condo with head coach Mark Fawcett to craft new prototypes in a makeshift workshop on the balcony. “We were baking the stuff on the barbecue,” says Kavanaugh. In the past, boarders’ feet were mounted directly to the board, bouncing and tilting with every turn and bump. “Now, largely the board flexes underneath their feet,” says Kavanaugh, “and their feet stay put.”
January 8, 2010: Toronto Star
Unsung Heroes Help Snowboarders Reach Apex
The guys at Apex Composites in Burlington, featured on the front page of today's Toronto Star, really have gone above and beyond to help the Canadian alpine snowboard team in the chase for Olympic gold. They're not publicity seekers – we found them; they didn't come to us.
Full article and video from Toronto Star's Randy Starkman.
December 17, 2009: CBC Sports
Anderson: Finally ready to go
Snowboarder says athlete funding for 2010 Games has made all the difference
Anderson credits his success to the increased support. Until recently, he said snowboarders were virtually left on their own to find proper resources.
"When you compare it to ski racing, where they have complete industry support…they have the materials, the minds, everything is set up," he said.
Not so in snowboarding.
"It's all about style and image and what your snowboard looks like. There's been absolutely no evolution in snowboard performance," he said.
But with Canada hosting the Games, programs like Own the Podium began pumping funds to athletes and sport federations— giving Anderson and his teammates a new world of possibilities.
"If you don't have the money, you have to think inside a certain box, and if funds are available, you can think outside that box and go beyond it," he said. "That's what happened this time around. We did all these extra little steps, and they've been working out."
Boots and bindings, which usually cost him a few thousand dollars a season, have been provided by YYZ Canucks, a Toronto-based distributor. The company modified the gear to suit Anderson's specifications.
His board was manufactured by a Swiss company, which Canadian athletes couldn't access until this year. And Toronto-area Apex Composites helped develop a unique plate system.
"It's proving to be the new piece of technology where you can gain percentages," Anderson said of the base plate, which connects the snowboard to the rider's bindings. "So that was priceless."
2011 Apex World Cup Podium Watch
Apex Riders 1st and 3rd at Telluride PGS
Rok Flander of Slovenia captured his first World Cup victory since 2007 and Austrian Manuel Veith scored his second straight podium with a 3rd place. Both racers rode Apex Race Plates at the Telluride World Cup.
2nd and 3rd for Apex Riders in Limone
At the first PGS race of the season in Limone Piemonte, Andreas Prommegger and Manuel Vieth, both from Austria, captured 2nd and 3rd while riding Apex Race Plates.
