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by Nick Baumgartner (Author), Jeff Seidel (With)
A daring and improbable story of Olympic gold from blue-collar origins
Every summer in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, Nick Baumgartner went to work pouring concrete, taking on the harsh physical conditions of the construction trade to support his professional snowboarding dreams come winter. To limit travel time while he trained for the Olympics an hour and a half away from home, he lived out of a crusty, old construction van, parked anywhere he could find a spot.And in 2022, after 17 years of failure--all the crashes, injuries, and personal setbacks--he won Olympic gold at 40 years old, becoming the oldest Olympic snowboard medalist in history.
In this candid and affable memoir, Baumgartner details his journey from a one-stoplight town to the podium in Beijing. Tales of crisscrossing the globe on the racing circuit and competing in four Olympic Games sit comfortably alongside Baumgartner's reflections as a single parent and his affectionate portrayal of Iron River, Michigan, the community that raised him.
More than just a sports story, Gold from Iron is a tale of massive dreams, constant sacrifice, and the lessons that can be learned racing down an ice-covered course on a carbon fiber board.
Author Biography
Nick Baumgartner has been called the pride of the Upper Peninsula and became the oldest Olympic snowboarder at 40 years old, representing Team USA at the 2022 Beijing games in snowboard cross (SBX). The age-defying athlete took gold in the snowboardcross mixed team event with Lindsey Jacobellis. He wore his heart on his sleeve, showing the world that age is but a number. A proud Yooper, Nick has been part of the U.S. Snowboard team for nearly 19 years as a four-time Olympian, with his first Olympic Games in 2010. Nick is also an X Games gold and silver medalist. Often called the Rad Dad, Nick's pride is his 19-year-old son Landon, who is his biggest supporter and is a sophomore at Michigan State. In the off-season, Nick works in construction and has been a concrete laborer to support his athletic dreams, earning him the moniker Blue-Collar Olympian. Gold from Iron is a story of how perseverance should always be at the forefront of accomplishing your dreams and that setting goals should never end.
Jeff Seidel has been a journalist for more than 30 years, specializing in narrative stories about ordinary people doing extraordinary things. His work has appeared in USA Today, The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times and the The Chicago Tribune. For the past 10 years, Seidel has been a sports columnist at the Detroit Free Press.
