At a cabin in the woods, Cherry Valley made its connection to the Olympic dream Sunday, Oct. 5.
Team U.S.A. bobsledder Adrian Adams celebrated being named to the World Cup roster, the first step to making the Olympic team for the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics. The World Cup roster was named Sept. 22; the Olympic team will be named Jan. 19, from the 12-man roster set to compete on the International Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation (IBSF) World Cup circuit this season.
Adams, a seven-time national team member who has represented Team USA three times at the World Championships, has become a Cherry Valley sensation by marriage. His wife, Bethany Garretson Adams, a hiker known for setting fastest known times, is the daughter of longtime Cherry Valley Town Supervisor Tom Garretson and former Cherry Valley-Springfield Central School nurse and girls soccer coach Amy Garretson.
Sunday, Adams celebrated his accomplishment with family and friends at a Cherry Valley barbeque, explaining his sport to his new supporters.
“Making it (to the World Cup season) and getting to do the things we are going to get to do is a major accomplishment already,” he said, “even before you ever make the Olympics.”
A North Carolina native who lives in Lake Placid, Adams, 39, has been training for more than a decade for this accomplishment, a detour he took when his football career stalled after the Arena Football League. His father had been a bobsledder, he said, and encouraged the transition.
“He said, ‘you can do this, but I don’t want you to think you are going to be good right away. You are going to have to learn how to do this.’”
Adams sounds confident he did learn his sport. He qualified for the 12-man U.S. team based in part on his pushing strength, he said, but velocity is his secret weapon.
“It is kind of a veteran thing,” he said. “I did well pushing. I was in the top 12, but it is not just pushing. It is push speed plus velocity. It is knowing the little things about how to get in and tuck quickly and smoothly.”
After someone asked about the spikes the bobsledders wear and the danger of catching one in the back, Adams made his listeners wince as he discussed the risk of injury during a load-in gone bad.
“You have to trust the next guy,” he said.
Adams is usually the third man in the four-man sled. Once he tucks, he is riding blind, with only an intense amount of preparation and practice to guide his motions.
“You have to study the tracks,” he said. “You have to be a student of the game.
“I did not start out as that guy,” he continued. “Over time, it became me.”
For his best, and perhaps last shot at the Olympics, Adams has been fundraising. He has to pay for his own plane tickets, lodging, food and gear, including helmets, spikes, boots and other equipment. His goal is $10,000.
“Other countries, such as Germany, pay for everything,” he said.
The Germans love of the Alpine sports is legendary, but Adams shares that feeling for the bobsled.
“You have to love it,” he said. “You can’t be doing it for fame or money.”
Adams will leave for Italy on Nov. 4.
Go to Fundraiser by Adrian Adams : Adrian Adams Team USA to contribute.