ASPEN, Colo. - About a dozen Winter X Games stars — more than a few of them owners of Olympic gold medals — were milling about the tent before the action began.Only one drew a crowd.Shaun White.Now 28 and coming back after the most humbling year of his life, White will be a multimillionaire megastar regardless of whether he wins or loses Thursday night, when he drops into the halfpipe for his first competitive trip since the disappointments of 2014.But behind the clothing lines, the guitar, the new life as an event promoter and those 1.46 million Twitter followers is one, simple fact: White wouldnt have any of that if he wasnt great on that snowboard.He doesnt want that to change — one reason he finds no use dwelling on his less-than-successful year.I guess, going forward, yeah, why look back? White said. I definitely learned some lessons and definitely feel better off than before, in a way. I think that, for me, it was a learning experience and Im pumped to be riding still.The inevitability that White brought to almost every contest he entered was washed away last year, with a series of injuries, falls, withdrawals and, finally, that fourth-place finish on the halfpipe that pushed the snowboarding world off its axis at the Sochi Olympics.He wasnt happy about it, said his coach, Bud Keene. Such is the risk you take when you put on a bib and lay it on the line. His career is far from over, athletically. Hes still, hands down, the best halfpipe rider in the world, and not by a small margin.For the first time since he won his first Winter X gold in 2003, there are some people who would argue that.Whites chance to end — or at least stall — that discussion comes at the event where he brandished his reputation with eight gold medals on the halfpipe, five more in slopestyle. (He has another two golds in X Games skateboarding.)But for the first time in a while, it matters who else is in the field.—Theres the Olympic champion, Iouri Podladtchikov — the iPod — whose invention of the 1440-degree Yolo spin, along with his ability land it in Russia when White could not, rewrote the book on 2014.—There are high-flying and technically precise Ayumu Hirano and Taku Hiraoka of Japan, who took silver and bronze in Russia last year, proving, if nothing else, that they could outscore White on any given day.—And theres the defending champion here, Danny Davis, who conceded after his win last year that it took a little of the thrill away because White had chosen not to attend while he prepared for the Olympics.Davis also struggled on that mushy halfpipe in Russia last year, falling on both his runs in the finals and finishing 10th.Some guys landed and rode well. Others didnt. Thats just the way it goes, Davis said.But the stakes, especially away from the halfpipe, are nowhere near as high for Davis, or iPod, or anyone, as they are for White.Such is the nature of celebrity.Before Wednesdays news conference, White posed for the most pictures and signed the most autographs, frequently handing his cup of hot tea off to a friend so he could grab a pen. When the questions started, he drew the most interest, fielding queries on topics that ranged from Russia, to fashion, to music, to his hair, to his pre-competition rituals.Currently, I dont have too many, he said of the rituals. Yeah, when theres a lot of contests, thats when it happens.But between business, music and, yes, practice, there havent been a lot of contests lately — or any — which makes Thursdays runs down the halfpipe that much more intriguing.He may have wiped away the past. A win might help his millions of fans do it, too.I guess in my mind, in some way or another, Ive kind of scratched it off, he said. It was a frustrating circumstance for me. In hindsight, you can always look back and question what you did. That was the beauty of being in the hunt of it.___Follow Eddie Pells on Twitter: http://twitter.com/epellsAir Max 90 Pas Cher Femme Acheter . The start of the seasons fifth and final major was delayed two hours due to heavy rain in the area. The tournament eventually began, but with water on the greens and the rain persisting, players were called back to the clubhouse less than an hour after the first group teed off. Air Max 270 React Pas Cher Homme . Radulov scored the lone goal in the shootout, and the Predators edged the Minnesota Wild 2-1 on Tuesday night to reach 100 points for the second time in three seasons and fourth in seven. http://www.outletairmaxpascher.fr/fausse...ax-97-plus.html. The punch happened in the fourth quarter of Milwaukees 116-102 loss to the Kings on Wednesday when the two players became entangled while battling for rebounding position. Vapormax Noir Pas Cher Destockage . The 24-year-old Raley was 0-2 with a 9.00 ERA for Chicago in his first two career starts after being called up from Iowa on Aug. 7. He was optioned to Iowa on Monday after losing 3-0 to Cincinnati in Chicago on Sunday. Air Max 97 Off White Blanche Pas Cher . FLIP SAUNDERS (Timberwolves): Im not the least bit surprised that he appointed himself as head coach after his search concluded.The Montreal Canadiens and restricted free agent defenceman P.K. Subban ventured into uncharted territory in contract negotiations on Friday morning, as both sides met in Toronto for their scheduled salary arbitration hearing. In a four-hour closed door meeting, appointed arbitrator Elizabeth Neumeier heard both sides on their respective cases for the salary numbers and will announce the award within 48 hours. "Its been an educational process for me," Subban told reporters after the meeting without revealing its details. "I will move on from today and get ready for the season. We have to live with those decisions." Canadiens general manager Marc Bergevin declined to talk to reporters as he walked out of the meeting. According to reports, the Canadiens submitted their arbitration brief this week with a salary of $5.25 million on a one-year contract, while Subban - represented by agent Don Meehan of Newport Sports - is asking for $8.5 million. The arbitrator can choose either of the bids or set the one-year salaary somewhere in between.dddddddddddd A negotiated settlement between Subban and the Canadiens can still occur at any time before the arbitration ruling is handed down. Otherwise, the arbitration award is binding once its announced. Subban is eligible to become a restricted free agent with arbitration rights again next summer and is two years away from becoming an unrestricted free agent. However, both sides will be allowed to negotiate a new deal after January 1. Subban, who signed a two-year deal worth an average annual value of $2.875 million prior to the 2012-2013 season, scored 10 goals and added 43 assists in 82 games with the Canadiens in 2013-14. He also added five goals and 14 points in 17 playoff games and was part of the Canadian mens Olympic team that won gold in Sochi in February. Subban was awarded the 2013 Norris Trophy as the NHLs top defenceman after notching 11 goals and 27 assists in 42 games. Drafted in the second round (43rd overall) in 2007, Subban has scored 42 goals and 167 assists in 284 career games. ' ' '