Family man Wise gets gold

ByALYSSA ROENIGK
February 18, 2014, 8:42 PM

— -- KRASNAYA POLYANA, Russia -- David Wise has an image problem.

That has been the knock on him from inside the action sports industry, a rationalization for his lack of magazine covers, big-sponsor support and name recognition. When reporters from major media outlets have flown to his home in Reno, Nev., looking to bring his story to the mainstream, it is his lack of cool, not his contest results, that they come to cover.

Wise emerged seemingly out of nowhere to dominate ski halfpipe contests three years ago and is the first athlete since Tanner Hall to win the X Games in Ski SuperPipe three years in a row (2012-14), yet he is not a huge draw on social media or even close to the most popular skier at events. He is called too vanilla, too square, too much of a homebody. He's 23. He's a husband. He's a father to 2-year-old daughter Nayeli. And in the lead-up to the Olympics, he did a Pampers commercial. His Twitter handle has "Mr." in it, for goodness sake.

"I think a lot of people look at me and say I'm counter culture to freeskiing," Wise said. "But my friends in skiing wouldn't say that. I hope they'd say I'm representing the sport well."

For many of the same reasons he has been a tough sell inside the sport, America is about to fall in love with Mr. David Wise. And after becoming the first ski halfpipe gold medalist in Olympic history Tuesday night, he's about to bring his sport to the masses.