SEABROOK — Seabrook native Scotty Lago became an international sports star in February when, seemingly without a moment of panic, he delivered the top snowboarding run of his career in the Halfpipe Final at the Vancouver Olympics.
Olympic bronze followed for Lago, as did a celebratory parade in his hometown, a six-month tour of guest appearances on national talk shows, a string of photo shoots for his sponsors, the purchase of a second home in Hampton Falls, a vacation on the Greek Isles with his girlfriend, and yesterday, a speaking engagement before 75 children and parents at the Seabrook Library.
Guess which activity provided the most anxiety for the 22-year-old professional snowboarder who performs flips and twists 30 feet over a halfpipe.
"I was actually nervous coming here," Lago said yesterday following his speaking engagement. "They were saying I'd have to make a speech. I was thinking I can do the Olympics, but maybe I can't speak at my old library."
Lago did, in fact, give a speech yesterday, stressing a message of helmet safety to a pool of aspiring Seabrook snowboarders. He then opened the floor to questions, which he answered for the next 45 minutes. By the time he had autographed a complimentary poster for all in attendance, he had surpassed his hour commitment by 35 minutes.
"I'm extremely pleased," said Lisa Michaud, the children's librarian. "Kids can be a really difficult audience. The fact that he comes from Seabrook makes a huge difference to them. They're more eager to talk to him. He didn't look nervous at all."
In fact, Lago displayed a charisma that his father, Mike Lago, says he began refining at age 14 when he attended his first autograph session as a member of the Budweiser aerial team. Yesterday, he carried a snowboard around stage while answering questions, often acting out his answers as if he were giving clues in a game of charades.
"He's getting a lot better at it," Mike Lago said. "He's in high demand right now. Sponsors want him to do photo shoots so he can pose in all of their new brochures. That's the thing — once you get to a certain point, you're making money and getting such a great response, but you don't get a chance to train like you were before."
The questions directed at Lago yesterday ranged from his Olympics aspirations (he'd like to compete in the 2014 Games in Sochi, Russia), his injuries (he's suffered 20 broken bones), his snowboard collection (he has more than 50), his best friend on the U.S. Olympic team (Louie Vito) and his impressions of Shaun White (the Olympic gold-medalist rented his own house in Vancouver rather than staying with his U.S. teammates).
Sitting on his father's lap, 3-year-old Zane Lepere appeared to be the lead inquisitor with an audience-high of five questions asked. His final two: "How do you get snow jeans?" and "Do you like camping?"
Near the end of the question-and-answer session, Lago's father urged him to talk about his experience with Secret Service agents at the Olympics. Lago shared that the Secret Service tapped his cell phone so they could monitor his whereabouts for the length of his stay to protect his safety. The Secret Service agent assigned to Lago never made himself known, so Lago spent much of his Olympic experience guessing which of his followers was actually being paid to trail him.
Savannah Signan, 9, arrived at the library 45 minutes early in hopes of getting a Scotty Lago autograph. She was successful.
"He said he likes snowboarding," Signan said on her way out. "He likes the training. When he went to Vancouver, there was all kinds of Secret Service, and he was trying to find out who the Secret Service was."
It appears as if the Seabrook Olympian captured his audience's attention.
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