By Chris Mansbridge & Doglotion.com

I got a phone call from my Dad on Sunday, January 9th. "I just got back from skiing at Red Mountain and it was the best day of skiing I've ever had in my life, and I'm seventy!" I threw my gear together and drove off Monday morning to ski the 61cm's they had received and check out the Molson Canadian Red Resort Freeskiing Championships.

Author Chris Mansbridge

Jeff Holden's artistic rendition of Mt Roberts.

We arrived at Red early on the 11th to find that the rumors were true: two feet of the driest snow I've ever experienced in the Kootenays. We shredded the next two days on Granite Mountain, seeing no other tracks but our own from the previous run. The town had quieted down since I had lived there four years ago, and it showed on the hill. It was four days since the snow fell and the inbounds looked as though it was some remote backcountry stash. As the day came to an end, we started to see the usual freeskiing competitors start to show up for the evening's meeting.

If you ever get a chance to hear Jeff Holden on a microphone, make sure you're there. Holden did not disappoint. He welcomed his brothers and sisters to the annual reunion and began with describing the difference between a fall and a hipcheck. "A fall is when you bobble, take a tumble, loose your shit and have to hike back uphill to pick up your gear. A hipcheck is a hipcheck, so be on your game when you're landing back down on Mother Nature."

Author Chris Mansbridge

Links Line start gate.

The first day of competition was held on Bernie's Links Line, recently renamed after the passing of a local who only skied this run. Dispite the epic conditions around the mountain, Links Line was pretty beat from all of the precious day's inspection runs. Stephanie Gauvin was in front for the first day, and the mens field had Chris Rubens and Peter Velisek tied for first. There was something wierd about Jay Johnson's run, and it wasn't his one-piece suit. When I looked at his left hand it was covered in a giant ball of duct tape. As it turned out, he crashed in a rock garden the day before leaving for Red and ended up breaking his hand. He couldn't hold a pole so he opted to tape it on for the week.

Jay Johnson

The notorious Gary Kamoze

Those who made it through the first days cut (half the field) got to ski the 1600 foot Center Chute on Mount Roberts. Mount Roberts is a half hour hike off of the Paradise ski lift and consists of steep North facing chutes and spines. The Center Chute was originally skied in 1974 by long-time local Gary Kamoze, who now lives in his own ski-in ski-out accomodation; his own hut hidden deep in the trees on Red Mountain. The boys and girls got fired up for some steep backcountry pow. South Slocan's Pete Then started tossing himself of of the mountains biggest features, stomping a huge fifty footer as his last air.

Chris Rubens skied a styled line with a lot of new school flair, but couldn't keep it on his feet and the lead fell into the hands of Rossland born James Heim. Stephanie Gauvin was more concerned with skiing some fresh pow than scoring a high line score. She slipped to second behind Laura Ogden but redeemed herself by getting more faceshots than the rest of the girl's field combined. In true Holden form, Jeff ended the day with prizes and shoutouts to whoever wrecked themselves throwing down for the judges an spectators alike. Pete Then getting ready to drop in on Roberts. It was the final day of competition and things got downright arctic. Minus twenty celcius in the morning for a high pressure sunny day. There was high pressure in the start gate also, with only a few points separating the top five.

In the end it would be Laura Ogden claiming the women's title ($2000 prize purse), followed Stephanie Gauvin, and Flin Flon's finest female, Susan Bateman. Pete Velisek came back again to first place ($3000 prize purse), followed by Chad Sayers and Gary Hicks tied for second. Gary Hicks also got the ILL-EAGLE award for being the sickest bird aound, stomping a gnarly fifty footer two turns into his run.

Peter Velisek 1st place

Female Podium (Sue, Laura, Stephanie)

Laura Ogden

Crystal Cave entrance

All the competitors were given a free ticket for the next day to shred around and say goodbye to the mountains. Although most of the crew was too hungover from the previous night's party, the ones who got out spent the days relaxing on some groomers, finding some pow stashes in the trees, and exploring the Crystal Cave. The Crystal Cave is an old mine shaft hidden on Red Mountain that is damn near impossible to find. The inside consisits of a dark tunnel with rail tracks for extracting gold. I think it's also a hibernating area for skunks, as it definetly stunk after the Whistler crew left it. There were a lot of sad faces as everyone packed up to return to their jobs and resorts that were being rained on as Red was chalked full of pow.

I stayed a couple of days later to get some leftover powder, until the pineapple express finally came. Its sad to think that it was all over, but it will only be one year 'till it hapens again.

DETAILS

The Molson Canadian Red Resort Freeskiing Championship has been held at Red Mountain, Rossland, BC, Canada since 2002. Red Mountain pretty much rules, and if you haven't been there yet, it's time to check it out.

Visit their website at www.redresort.com for more information on what you've been missing.