Revelstoke Freeskiing Competition – Day 1

Day 1 Venue - Revelstoke

I am currently in Revelstoke competing in the 2nd stop of the Freeskiing World Tour. If you have never been to Revelstoke, it is a must. Revelstoke is a small town with big mountains along side the columbia River. The people of Revelstoke are extremely friendly and the skiing is even better.

Columbia River from the Chairlift of Revelstoke

I am really psyched after Day 1. I chose a different strategy for this competition. I usually ski to win; playing the point game and erroring on the side of caution not to fall. This year it is my goal to challenge myself every day skiing. Believe it or not I am a relatively conservative skier. I rarely fall. This year I would like to challenge myself and see what happens. My line consisted of three large airs (some of the biggest for the women). I was really nervous because I have not had a lot practice in the air this season. My only practice was a ten foot air the day before. I figured I had a 50/50 chance of sticking my line. Not the best odds, but I also knew I would be stoked if I did stick it. So I went for it and stuck it, finishing second for the day.

Mac Face, Revelstoke - Day 2 Venue

The finals of the competition will be held on Mac Face (above). I am so stoked. The venue is untouched and will be a privilege to ski. Check it out live on www.freeskiingworldtour.com.

La Parva Day 1 – Freeskiing World Tour

[Vimeo]http://www.vimeo.com/6436780[/Vimeo]

The first day of the La Parva Freeskiing Competition went off! The competition was held on McConkey’s face. The venue was technical with lots of features to play around with. It was amazing to watch the athletes compete. Most people had one or two days of skiing under their belts since last year, but skied like it was mid-season.

Day 1 Venue - McConkey's Face

There were 43 athletes from around the world who came to compete in the first stop of the Freeskiing World Tour. It has been over a year since I have competed in a Freeskiing World Tour event. It felt like coming home. It was so nice to see all of the good people from MSI and of course Jim Jack and Shcmitty, along with all of the IFSA athletes.

Jim Jack and Schmitty Enjoying the Local Cuisine

The venue for day 1 was a challenge for me. I had a difficult time finding a line that would showcase my best skiing. I chose a line that was very tight and technical. It happened to be the same line that all of the women skied. It is not very often that all the women ski the same line. It was very difficult for the judges to make a decision, but Jacqui Edgerly came out on top with a score of 35.94. I skied into second with a 35.38 and Soledad Diaz from Chile finished third with a 35.25.

The women are stacked and we were all looking forward to charging the second run. The day 2 venue is perfect for my style of skiing. I could barely sleep with the anticipation of ripping my line. Mother nature seemed to have other plans. When I opened my eyes at 6:00 this morning snow was gently falling. All of the athletes loaded the t-bar at 7:00 to find out that the wind was nuking at the top. With 100 mph winds and no visibility, MSI regretfully had to call the competition. I am super bummed I will not have another run to prove myself, but tomorrow should be an epic powder day.

La Parva, Chile – 1st Stop of the Freeskiing World Tour

McConkey

The Freeskiing World Tour is starting early this year and in Chile. The competition will be held on McConkey’s run. I can’t tell you how cool it was to hike to the top of the venue and see the face of an icon stoked that you came to enjoy one of his play grounds.

McConkey

The competition will be held on Friday and Saturday. The first run will be held on the skier’s right side of the main chute. Saturday will be held on the skier’s left side of the venue.

Looking Down Day 1 Venue

Both venues appear to be really fun. Day one is very playful. There are a ton of super fun features and nothing with heavy consequences. Day two is the day to put your “Grandpa Boots” on. It is the day to do some stomping. The venue is wide open. I would expect to see ripping fast skiing and huge airs. I am super stoked to be competing in Chile!