ContestHappening 5 2019 | FWT Kicking Horse

If you switched back and forth between the YouTube and Facebook streams, you could at least see most of it. Nevertheless, one wonders why the interruptions or missing pieces always occurred at the most spectacular parts of the runs and hardly at the finish or between the runs.

In the meantime, there is a replay of the event without the described problem and also the individual runs to click through separately:

After a successful start to the season in Japan, the FWT racers headed to Kicking Horse, BC (Canada) to compete for the coveted points. With generally less snow, especially compared to last year, but still a good layer of fresh snow, the participants had several opportunities to set themselves apart from the competition on the short (324m) south-east face.

www.freerideworldtour.com | D. Daher

Kicking Horse, BC

Tanner Hall

Women's snowboard

In the upper part of the slope, the snow was very blown up and partly peppered with sharks. From the middle, most of it was well filled and all the landings were very soft, almost too soft for some riders. The start in Kicking Horse belonged to the snowboarders. Defending champion Manuela Mandl (AUT) was the very first rider to start, who was unable to land a high jump in the aforementioned deep snow in the upper part of the slope and was deducted points for it. With 60 points, the Viennese ended up in third place. Victory went to 2017 FWT World Champion Marion Haerty (FRA), who started with two jumps and fast turns, then overcame a technical section and scored 71.33 points. Second place went to Wakana Hama (JPN), who also struggled with the deep, soft snow in the landings.

Women's skiing

The lines of the women's skiers focused mainly on the central area of the face. As the lines were often very similar, the distance of the jumps and the cleanliness of the landings decided the order on the podium for the female skiers. Jacqueline Pollard (USA) took victory in the second event of her first FWT season: the American impressed the judges with her smooth style and controlled descent in the fall line. "It was a wonderful day," enthused Jacqueline Pollard. "We are very happy to be here. There was a great atmosphere at the summit, I just had fun! My brother had told me to show confidence. I listened to him and it worked!" Defending champion Arianna Tricomi (ITA) skied in a straight line through one of the steepest and most technical sections of the slope to a high air, which she landed safely, earning her second place. Hazel Josie Birnbaum (USA) came in third with a flawless run and a cleanly landed double.

Snowboard men

Victor De Le Rue (FRA), who is on a wildcard at the FWT this season, took his first FWT win in his second appearance with a creative line and a casual backside 360. "I already had my line in my head, but the first jump was much higher than expected and after that I was so fast that I had to change my line at the last second," reported Victor De Le Rue. "My run was pretty smooth, although I almost crashed on the last rock. So I'm very happy!" Three-time FWT World Champion Sammy Luebke (USA) impressed the judges with a FS 360 off the cornice and a perfectly executed double, finishing second ahead of Blake Hamm (USA), who found an original line and landed a double and another air. Sixth place went to Thomas Feurstein (AUT), who landed a 180 and two 360s on the slope, finishing directly ahead of Gigi Rüf (AUT). "My run didn't go so well," Gigi Rüf regretted. "I had a hard landing after my double line at the start, so I found it difficult to concentrate on the rest of the run, I was kind of distracted."

www.freerideworldtour.com | D. Daher

Kicking Horse, BC

Men's skiing

The men's skiers used the contest face slightly differently to the previous categories. It was divided into two camps: On the one hand, a few skiers tried their luck on the looker's left side of the slope. Last season, this part was completely covered in snow. This year, the low general snow depth created some new opportunities: Tanner Hall (USA), for example, jumped a 360 over a double there, standing it perfectly. Unfortunately, his line didn't contain much else, which earned the "Ski Boss" a place in the middle of the field. Markus Eder and Craig Murray chose the same sector and also showed freestyle elements. Murray spiced up his run right at the beginning with a 360, and both Murray and Eder then headed for the "main feature" with fast turns without hesitation, performing a flatspin 360 (Murray) and a cork 360 (Eder) respectively. For Craig Murray it was victory, Eder came second. "I think a lot of people liked my flat 360, it felt super good and I'm really happy with it," said Craig Murray. "Everything went to plan and I was very happy. It was a fantastic day here in Golden, BC." If you look at the three riders mentioned and their scores, you can understand the judging very well this time.

The second camp of riders focused more on the middle part of the face, where Logan Pehota (CAN) was able to convince the most with two 360s and a big final jump and finished third on the podium. But probably the "wow" effect was often missing here, because even Kristoffer Turdell's actually perfect run, peppered with a backflip as well as a 360 and a massive air at the end, was not enough for the podium.

The third tour stop in Fieberbrunn is just over two weeks away! Someone from PowderGuide will probably be there to report back.