BAKERSFIELD, CA - The 2014 Winter Olympics wrapped up months ago, but Team USA is already scouting for new members of their teams.
While many 13-year-olds are enjoying summer vacation, Tara Moser of Bakersfield is training to make her Winter Olympics dream come true.
Moser has been an elite level gymnast for half her life.
"She's a really good gymnast. She works hard, focused all the time, she's dedicated," her coach Jamey Gossett said.
But now, Moser is taking her talents from the floor to the ski ramp.
"When I was going down the ramp, it's just really fun and exciting because I'm not afraid of heights or going fast. I love to fly and just do all that stuff," Moser said.
After seeing an ad online, Moser and her mom submitted a tryout video for the U.S. Aerial Ski Team.
"For every gymnast, we love to fly in the air, we love to flip, we love to twist. And you know, if we're landing in water or a foam pit or whatever it's just exciting. It's fun so I know she'll excel," Gossett said.
Moser impressed coaches at a recent camp at the Olympic Park in Utah. Her strength and skills earned her what amounts to a full-ride scholarship to train with the U.S. Aerial Ski Team in Park City for the better part of the next year.
"They said it's a lot easier to teach a gymnast how to ski than a skier how to be a gymnast," Moser explained.
In 2012, Moser dislocated and broke her elbow, ultimately ending her competitive gymnastics career. The next year, her father lost his battle with pancreatic cancer. But, having to overcome both injury and loss only fueled Moser's competitive and fearless spirit.
"If she loves doing the aerial ski team, I hope she makes her dream come true. She was talking to me about trying to be on the Olympic team for it and that would be absolutely amazing," Gossett said.
"It's an opportunity that I won't ever get so I'd love to try it. It's a lot of fun, and I love doing it," Moser said.
Moser has tried dance, pole vault, and cheer, but the rush she gets from flying through the air is unlike anything else. And although she'll be trading her leotard for a pair of skis, her Olympic dreams are still alive.
"I'm hoping that once I go out there for a year, I'll get into competing and then maybe make it on to a national team and they have a lot of people there that have gone into the Olympics, and I hope that can be somewhere that I can look to," Moser said.
Moser took off for Park City on Tuesday, and she will be there for the next three weeks. She will return to Bakersfield for a week before heading back out to continue training.
While many 13-year-olds are enjoying summer vacation, Tara Moser of Bakersfield is training to make her Winter Olympics dream come true.
Moser has been an elite level gymnast for half her life.
"She's a really good gymnast. She works hard, focused all the time, she's dedicated," her coach Jamey Gossett said.
But now, Moser is taking her talents from the floor to the ski ramp.
"When I was going down the ramp, it's just really fun and exciting because I'm not afraid of heights or going fast. I love to fly and just do all that stuff," Moser said.
After seeing an ad online, Moser and her mom submitted a tryout video for the U.S. Aerial Ski Team.
"For every gymnast, we love to fly in the air, we love to flip, we love to twist. And you know, if we're landing in water or a foam pit or whatever it's just exciting. It's fun so I know she'll excel," Gossett said.
Moser impressed coaches at a recent camp at the Olympic Park in Utah. Her strength and skills earned her what amounts to a full-ride scholarship to train with the U.S. Aerial Ski Team in Park City for the better part of the next year.
"They said it's a lot easier to teach a gymnast how to ski than a skier how to be a gymnast," Moser explained.
In 2012, Moser dislocated and broke her elbow, ultimately ending her competitive gymnastics career. The next year, her father lost his battle with pancreatic cancer. But, having to overcome both injury and loss only fueled Moser's competitive and fearless spirit.
"If she loves doing the aerial ski team, I hope she makes her dream come true. She was talking to me about trying to be on the Olympic team for it and that would be absolutely amazing," Gossett said.
"It's an opportunity that I won't ever get so I'd love to try it. It's a lot of fun, and I love doing it," Moser said.
Moser has tried dance, pole vault, and cheer, but the rush she gets from flying through the air is unlike anything else. And although she'll be trading her leotard for a pair of skis, her Olympic dreams are still alive.
"I'm hoping that once I go out there for a year, I'll get into competing and then maybe make it on to a national team and they have a lot of people there that have gone into the Olympics, and I hope that can be somewhere that I can look to," Moser said.
Moser took off for Park City on Tuesday, and she will be there for the next three weeks. She will return to Bakersfield for a week before heading back out to continue training.