Day 1 of FWT in Revelstoke 2011

After a few epic days of powder shredding on Revelstoke Mountain Resort, something unthinkable happened - it actually stopped snowing for long enough to hold Day one of the Subaru Canadian Freeskiing Championships. The skies went blue, temps dropped to a crisp -18, and Day 1 of the competition went off without a hitch. Us Coastal Whistlerites were too damn under-dressed and frost-bitten to capture too much of the action on film, but luckily MSI's amazing crew has our back there so stay tuned for video updates.

The new IFSA judging criteria places more emphasis on 'style' and boy did it show. Freeskiing is an evolving sport and it was more obvious than ever in Day 1 of the competition. Bright colours, baggy pants, big reverse cambered skis, and almost everybody tried to throw a couple 360's or backflips into their lines.

Coming in first for the women with a score of 33.33 was Leah Evans of Red Mountain, BC.  “Leah skied a great, solid and very fluid line” remarked Judge Chris Rubens.  Coming in second with a score of 33.27 was Aspens’ Jacqui Edgerly.  Rounding out the top three was the winner of the qualifier day, Tatum Monod from Banff, Alberta with a score of 31.87.

The men stepped up to the challenge, throwing down some of the biggest tricks ever seen on the Subaru Freeskiing World Tour. Guys were trying HUGE 360's off cliffs, someone went for what looked like a misty 7 but ran out of air time, and Chris Collins landed a massive 720 - a first in tour history.  Coming out on top for the men was Drew Tabke who started first and placed first with a score of 38.53. “I’ve never gotten that many face shots and ended up in first place, it made for a really great day one,” said Tabke. Close behind Tabke was Mad River Glen’s own Lars Chickering Ayers, with a score of 37.30.  In third place was Mat Jackson of Squaw Valley with a score of 36.43.

The top 20 men and the top 7 women will head to Mac Face tomorrow.  All competitors will be loaded into a Selkirk Tangiers Heli Skiing helicopter and shuttled to the start.  The athletes will be perched above Mac Face, which has received over 60 cm’s of fresh snow in the last 2 days and is not open to the public and has yet to be skied this season.  Tune in to the live webcast tomorrow at 11 AM PST to see the Subaru Freeskiing World Tour athletes making fresh turns and throwing mind blowing tricks on what may be the greatest venue on the entire tour.

Last year's final day on Mac Face was legendary, and if you add the fresh snow, good visibility, and style category - Day 2 might showcase a whole new level of freeskiing.

(Press details from Chris Jennings & Article by Jamie Bond)

Video Clip From Biglines.com

Lucky for you, Tim Grey at Biglines.com is from the Rockies, so he actually knows how to dress when it's -19, and hence why he was still filming the event when Collin Collins went big for the final run of the day. Here's the clip.

Canadian Freeskiing Championships 2011 Day 1 Results

Ladies   
Result  Number    Name     Home Mountain    Country    Run 1
    1    34    Leah Evans    Red Mountain    CAN    33.33
    2    6    Jacqui Edgerly    Aspen    USA    33.27
    3    37    Tatum Monod    Banff    CAN    31.87
    4    29    Crystal Wright    Jackson Hole    USA    28.03
    5    46    Nicole Derksen    Revelstoke    CAN    27.50
    6    12    Sara Rose Mancuso    Squaw Valley    USA    25.67
    7    39    Louise Lintilhac    Crested Butte    USA    25.53
cut off                       
    8    23    Michelle Manning    Alta    USA    22.23
    9    25    Martha Burley    Fernie    CAN    21.93
    10    8    Clare Burns    Val d'isere    USA    19.90
    11    4    Angel Collinson    Snowbird    USA    19.20
    12    20    Sonja Lercher    Blackcomb    CAN    16.13
    13    40    Sasha Dingle    Bridger Bowl    USA    15.67
    14    5    Ashley Maxfield    Alta    USA    14.90
    15    44    Tracy Chubb    Sun Valley    USA    13.33
    16    38    Alex George    Jackson Hole    USA    12.73
    17    31    Mckenna Peterson    Alta / Snowbird    USA    DNF
    18    36    Alexis DuPont    Sun Valley    USA    DNS
                       
Gents   
Result  Number    Name     Home Mountain    Country    Run 1
    1    2    Drew Tabke    El Colorado, Chile    USA    38.53
    2    42    Lars Chickering Ayers    Mad River Glen    USA    37.30
    3    13    Mat Jackson    Squaw Valley    USA    36.43
    4    49    Spencer Brinson     Kirkwood    USA    36.17
    5    3    Griffin Post    Jackson Hole    USA    35.63
    6    7    Aaron Schmidt    Fernie Alpine Resort    CAN    35.53
    7    10    Carter McMillan    Lake Louise    CAN    34.83
    8    14    North Parker    Sun Valley    USA    34.67
    9    24    Caleb Brown    Fernie Alpine Resort    CAN    34.00
    9    57    Sam Cohen    Alta    USA    34.00
    11    52    Matt Luczkow    Vail    USA    33.90
    12    33    Dylan Crossman    Mad River Glen/Alta    USA    32.23
    13    11    Connery Lundin    Squaw Valley    USA    31.50
    14    65    Sean Cochrane    Revelstoke    CAN    31.33
    15    60    Collin Collins    Sun Valley    USA    31.27
    16    9    Drew Stoecklein    Alta / Snowbird    USA    30.70
    17    28    Matt Potter    Breckenridge    USA    30.67
    18    36    Gord Spurgeon    Revelstoke    CAN    30.00
    19    45    Ryan Hawks    Mad River Glen    USA    28.50
    20    30    Dominick Malaussena    Jay Peak    USA    28.17
cut off                       
    21    59    Michael Legare    Blackcomb    CAN    27.77
    22    22    Mark Welgos    Aspen    USA    27.53
    23    53    Phil Hudec    Lake Louise    CAN    26.93
    23    50    Kyle Taylor    Whitefish    USA    26.67
    24    35    Craig Garbiel    Kirkwood    USA    26.27
    25    69    Cliff Bennett    Snowbird    USA    25.87
    26    55    Colston VB    Rossland    CAN    25.77
    27    51    Christian Mandahl    Snowbird    USA    23.60
    28    27    Julien Lopez    La Plagne    FRA    23.33
    29    64    Ryan Kappler    Revelstoke    CAN    23.00
    30    67    Chuck Mumford    Snowbird    USA    22.67
    31    18    Ryan Sullivan    Whistler    CAN    20.20
    32    68    Lucas Gonnthier    Revelstoke    CAN    19.10
    33    54    Alex Wall    Revelstoke    CAN    17.30
    34    41    Ben Wheeler    Snowbird    USA    16.73
    35    61    Nick Leboe    Silver Star    CAN    16.53
    36    56    Ryan Walters    Bridger Bowl    USA    15.77
    37    16    Johnny Collinson    Snowbird    USA    15.33
    38    32    Whit Boucher    Vail    USA    14.80
    39    15    Scott McBrayer    Crested Butte    USA    14.70
    39    17    Axel Peterson    Sun Valley    USA    14.70
    41    26    Mathieu Imbert    VARS La Loral Blanche    FRA    14.53
    42    58    Michael Gardner    Telluride    USA    14.23
    43    63    Silas Chickering Ayers    Mad River Glen    USA    14.13
    44    21    Luke Nelson    Fernie    CAN    DNF
    45    48    Benjamin Ogilvie    Fernie    CAN    DNF
    46    47    Randy Evans    Crested Butte    USA    DNF