44 Days Until The Winter Olympics: The Perfect Christmas Gift – The Inspiring Olympic Memoir Book by Nick Baumgartner
The clock is ticking. Do you have all of your Christmas shopping done? If your list has someone who is interested in sports, works hard, plays hard, and loves the improbable, Nick Baumgartner has a story to tell you.
The Iron River, Michigan native wrote a raw, unfiltered story of his Olympic journey in his memoir, “Gold From Iron: A Humble Beginning, Olympic Dreams, and the Power in Getting Back Up.”
Non-Fiction: The Improbable Baumgartner Story
For over 20 years, Baumgartner has lived a double life that few professional athletes could comprehend. In the winters, he was chasing World Cup and Olympic podiums across the globe. But come summer in Michigan, the Olympian wasn’t resting on endorsement deals. He was pouring concrete, sweating through the humidity of the construction trade to fund his dreams.
He spent nearly two decades battling crashes, injuries, and the heartbreak of coming up short on the world’s biggest stage. He even lived out of a crusty, old construction van to limit travel time for training. But in 2022, the script flipped. At 40 years old, an age when most snowboarders have long since retired, Baumgartner captured Olympic gold.
That is his story.
How Baumgartner put his life on paper
Writing a book wasn’t exactly in the plan for a guy who prefers a snowboard to a desk. After his historic win in Beijing, Triumph Books expressed interest in his story. When they told him he needed a ghostwriter, Baumgartner hesitated.
“I’m like, ‘No, I’m a snowboarder,'” Baumgartner said. “I don’t know any ghostwriters.”
Then he remembered a writer who had covered his heartbreaking fourth-place finish at the 2018 PyeongChang Games. He reached out to Jeff Seidel, a Detroit Free Press sports columnist and Bay City John Glenn alumnus. The connection was instant.
“Not only was he interested, but you could feel and you could see the passion, how bad he wanted to do this project,” Baumgartner said.
The process was a mix of bonding and discipline. Seidel visited Iron River for the high school graduation of Nick’s son, Landon. Later, the Baumgartners spent Thanksgiving with Seidel’s family in Detroit. However, pinning down the energetic Olympian to focus on the manuscript was a challenge.
“And then he’d have to get back on me, saying, ‘Hey, we’re doing something here.’ It was like herding a cat, trying to keep me focused and going forward,” Baumgartner admitted.
Even the editing process required a uniquely “Nick” solution. Finding it difficult to sit still and read the manuscript, he used speech-to-text software to listen to the book while driving, finishing the review in six hours on the road.
The Race that Defined a Career
The centerpiece of the book, and Baumgartner’s career, is the mixed team snowboard cross event at the 2022 Beijing Olympics. Partnered with Lindsey Jacobellis, Baumgartner found himself in a high-stakes duel with Canada’s Eliot Grondin.
Baumgartner recalls the strategy with vivid clarity. He knew Grondin would win the start, so he settled into third, eventually moving to second but trailing by 50 or 60 feet. He tucked down, using the draft to reel the Canadian in.
He explained that Grondin had to jump high to clear the wind, while Baumgartner came out of the draft “like a slingshot.” It was a move born from experience, and it allowed him to hand the lead off to Jacobellis, securing the gold and making him the oldest medalist in Olympic snowboarding history.
On To The Next Improbable: The 2026 Winter Olympics
The road to that gold medal was paved with losses. Baumgartner made his debut at the 2010 Vancouver Games, then finished 25th in Sochi in 2014. The hardest blow came in 2018 in PyeongChang, where he finished fourth, just missing the podium with his son in the stands.
Yet, those losses fueled the work ethic that defines him.
“I’ve learned to outwork everyone, if I worked out as hard as I do now when I was in my prime, heck, I could have been unstoppable,” Baumgartner said.
His story has resonated with sporting legends. Michael Phelps, the most decorated Olympian of all time, offered high praise for the book.
“Nick is incredible. His journey to Olympic gold at 40 is nothing short of amazing. Like him, his story is funny, heartwarming and inspiring,” Phelps said.
Even at 44, Baumgartner isn’t done. He is eyeing the Milan Cortina 2026 Olympics, proving that age is just a number when you have the work ethic of a concrete laborer and the heart of a champion.
Baumgartner Career Highlights and Details
- The 2022 Redemption: Won Gold in the inaugural Mixed Team Snowboard Cross event on February 12, 2022. Partnered with Lindsey Jacobellis, he became the oldest snowboarder to ever win an Olympic medal at age 40.
- Olympic Resume: A four-time Olympian (2010, 2014, 2018, 2022). He finished 4th in the Men’s Snowboardcross in 2018 and has three World Championship medals (1 gold, 2 bronze).
- The “Blue-Collar” Reality: Worked as a union concrete laborer in the summers to fund his training without major corporate sponsors, providing the “skins” to afford his career.
- Fatherhood: A devoted single father to his son, Landon. Baumgartner cites his son as his primary motivation, wanting to show him that you never stop chasing a dream.
- The DIY Spirit: During the pandemic, when training facilities were closed, Baumgartner spent 30 hours building a pump track around his house to keep his legs strong for the 2022 Games.
