Maybe you'll spy a deer on your way to work in the morning.

Maybe a giant owl will land on your roof just after sunset. Or maybe something as simple as fresh snow in the mountains on a crisp autumn day will beckon you to grab a camera or at least pause for a moment.

Reminders of how fortunate we are living in Montana are never at a shortage, especially this time of year. Yet every once in while a transplant can be caught off guard the way I was last week in talking with Landon Gardner.

The 24-year-old Missoula native is a member of the U.S. Freestyle Ski Team and an Olympic hopeful in freestyle moguls. For five years he's dedicated himself to training in his adopted home of Park City, Utah.

Not anymore.

With the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver just over three months away, Gardner has tweaked his approach. He still travels the globe working with the U.S. Ski Team, but he's decided to make Missoula his home base. He wants to enjoy mom's cooking, help dad with his auction business and work himself ragged in the city where he was first inspired.

"I want to enjoy the training process and I have a lot more fun here," said Gardner, who recently returned from training in Switzerland. "This is a unique place to be. There's not too many places better in the world.

"I don't need to have five other U.S. Olympic athletes to push me to do my best. It comes more naturally for me here, and it's nice knowing the support is always here."

Whether it's working out at a local gym, mountain biking with former coach and U.S. Ski teamer Donovan Power or simply hanging out with members of the Missoula Freestyle team, Montana holds Donovan's heart. His old skiing hangout north of town is a place he also holds dear.

"Over the past two years I've had some of the best skiing ever at Snowbowl," he said. "When the snow is good, Snowbowl is as good as any place in the world.

"They'll have a jump set up or a small course, or I'm ripping around bowls, skiing with friends. I think it's real beneficial."

In December Gardner will officially begin his quest for a spot on the Olympic team. There are six events where he can build up enough points to qualify, or he can do it all in one day at the Olympic Trials on Dec. 23 in Steamboat Springs. Colo.

"It's something I've been working toward the greater part of my career," said Gardner, who showed his potential in 2008 by taking second in a World Cup moguls event. "I feel I'm in a pretty good position physically and with my skiing skills."

Gardner learned from his disappointment in the World Championships last March in Japan. He's pushed himself harder than ever with "dry land training" in Montana after spending time in June on snow fields at Red Lodge and Beartooth Pass.

Landon is determined to reach Vancouver.

"The Olympics are a culmination of everything," he said. "The No. 1 thing that really intrigues me is being able to participate. Then there's that feeling, 'Hey I can accomplish something or win a gold.'

"Obviously knowing you're in a situation to compete for an Olympic medal, you need to train hard and smart to put yourself in the best position."

Like so many of us, being home has a way of filling Gardner's heart. Call it his version of smart training - body and mind.

It'll be fun to see how things turn out for the Big Sky grad this winter. Whether he reaches Vancouver or not, he's succeeded already in reminding us what a rare gem we share in Montana.

Sports columnist Bill Speltz can be reached at 523-5255 or bill.speltz@lee.net.