Rocky River native Red Gerard nabbed the first gold medal of the Winter Olympics for the U.S. over the weekend.
The 17-year-old took gold in the men's slopestyle, transforming him into an American and Cleveland area star. His gold makes him the youngest Olympic snowboarding champ ever.
Gerard is a Rocky River native, though his family moved to Colorado for the winters when he turned 8 years old. That's when Gerard's older brothers taught him to snowboard. He never had a snowboarding coach until he turned 13.
The family's Colorado back yard was transformed into a small rail park, where Gerard was able to practice, paving his own path to gold.
See video of Gerard's back yard here.
