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Tabke & Ducroz Tie in Snowbird!

J Dogg — Mon, 12 Mar 2007 02:06:20 -0400

Rating

After an extraordinarily exciting day of skiing, Drew Tabke of the U.S. and Aurelien Ducroz of France beat the stacked international men’s division and tie for first while Jess McMillan of Jackson Hole, WY, takes the women’s title as the 10th Annual Subaru U.S. Freeskiing Nationals concluded today on North Baldy at Snowbird Ski Resort, UT.

Due to poor weather yesterday, Mountain Sports International (MSI) was unable to run the final two athletes of the day. They were run this morning (a scheduled weather day) and in addition to finishing the finals, the extra day also allowed time for a super-final run for the top three women and top 22 men.

Sitting in first position going into this morning’s run Jess McMillan solidified her lead over the women’s field with a smooth and aggressive run which included a 10-foot cliff-drop. The remaining top women who advanced to the finals were Jane Somerville of Aspen, who recently won the Subaru Telluride Freeskiing Open, in second and Tanya Christensen of Crested Butte in third. They remained in that finish order after the super-finals.

“I went into the final run four points ahead of the field,” said overall women’s winner Jess McMillan. “I knew all I really had to do was stay on my feet to win. So I dialed it back a little bit which is not my style. I’m usually one who goes for it no matter what but I really wanted it today. I feel like I skied smart and it paid off. It feels so amazing to finally win one.”

After Friday’s first run only 7.9 points separated all 33 men who advanced, so it was almost anyone’s game to win or lose going into yesterday’s finals.

Second run stand-outs included: reigning World Tour champion Guerlain Chicherit’s fast, roller-coaster-like line which launched him from 11th to third; Nick DeVore, the only athlete competing on telemark skis, who skied so fast and furious and landed such huge airs you would think he was on alpine gear; Aurelien Ducroz’s high-speed run with gigantic, hesitation-free airs; Josh Daiek, whose fast aggressive airs and impressive back flip won him a Sickbird nomination; and Drew Tabke, last year’s North Face Young Gun winner, whose athletic, perfectly executed original line catapulted him into first place going into the super-finals.

The men’s super-finals today will go down as being one of the best in Freeskiing history. 18 of the 22 men who advanced to the super-finals were nominated for the Sickbird award for their antics. Olivier Meynet of France, in 21st place going into today, had an incredible second run, nailing each and every aspect he hit, launching him to 10th position overall. Jesse Bryan was sitting in seventh place going into the super-final, but was knocked back to 22nd when he did a somersault upon landing a double-drop.

Drew Tabke who was just .6 points ahead of Aurelien Ducroz going into the finals, skied another original line impossibly fast and nailed a huge 360 followed by a backflip. Ducroz, who was one of the unlucky athletes unable to finish yesterday, ran his first finals run first thing this morning. In second place going into the super-finals, Ducroz made a statement by skiing extremely fast into each and every aspect he attempted. His run included several 20-feet and beyond cliff-drops which he skied into with no hesitation.

“The snow was really hard first thing this morning,” said co-winner Aurelien Ducroz. “I had to do two runs today which was hard but it such an enormous pleasure to win. It feels just incredible.”

After deliberating and reviewing footage of the super-finals the judges decided that it was an absolute tie between Tabke and Ducroz. Each will receive the Subaru U.S. Freeskiing Nationals championship cup and $2,750.

“I always try to do something a little different to keep people entertained and of course to find the best snow,” said co-winner Drew Tabke. “Now I want to win again, and win it all by myself. Tying isn’t good enough for me.”

As always, spectators enjoyed watching freeskiing’s elite battle it out for the Tobias Lee Memorial Sickbird buckle award. The Sickbird award is presented to the competitor with the most spirited competition run, often involving super-human talent and agility. This week’s Sickbird buckle was awarded to Josh Daiek, whose perfect 360s and gigantic back-flips will go down as the cleanest in competition history.

“I had a pretty good feeling that I wouldn’t make the podium today,” said Sickbird buckle winner Josh Daiek. “So I just went for it and tried to entertain the crowd with 360s and back-flips. I was definitely gunning for the Sickbird award. I’ve wanted it for a long time now and I’m stoked to finally have a buckle.”

The North Face Young Gun Award returns in 2007, honoring outstanding new talent in competitive freeskiing. Points accumulated throughout the season will crown one lucky under-21-year-old a full sponsorship from The North Face and the honor of becoming the next Young Gun winner. This stop’s winner was 18-year-old Neal Valiton of Verbier, Switzerland who finished 14th overall.

New in 2007, MSI will be posting same-day video broadcasts on the newly redesigned usfreeskiing.com featuring state of the art video and photo player technology. The daily uploads of video, photos, news and results of each day’s competition action will be available mere hours after each day concludes.

The Subaru U.S. Freeskiing Series continues next weekend, March 15-18, with the Subaru Jackson Hole Freeskiing Open at Jackson Hole, WY. The series wraps up at The Subaru North American Freeskiing Championships at Kirkwood, CA, March 27-April 1. Past tour stops include the Subaru Telluride Freeskiing Open at Telluride, CO, and the Subaru Squaw Valley U.S.A Freeskiing Open, at Squaw Valley U.S.A, CA.

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More at www.usfreeskiing.com

Day 1 of Snowbird - And The Leaders are...

J Dogg — Sat, 10 Mar 2007 11:48:01 -0500

Rating

The 10th Annual Subaru U.S. Freeskiing Nationals, the largest freeskiing competition on North American soil, kicked off yesterday under gorgeous, sunny skies on the Silver Fox area of Snowbird Ski Resort. After receiving over four feet of snow prior to the contest, conditions were ripe for competitors to put on an amazing show for the huge crowd which gathered at the base of the venue.

The international field of athletes wowed spectators but it was Jane Somerville of Crested Butte, CO, who took the women’s lead today and Aurelien Ducroz of Chamonix, France, who leads the men’s competition.

As always freeskiing’s elite battled it out for the Tobias Lee Sickbird buckle award. The Sickbird award is presented to the competitor with the most spirited competition run, often involving super-human talent and agility.

The stacked men’s division, which featured freeskiing legends from around the globe, was incredible to watch today and scores reflect just how tight this field of competitors really is. Only 7.8 points separates all 34 men who will advance to tomorrow’s finals. The second competitor of the day, John Witherspoon of Jay Peak, came out of the gate charging this morning, kicking off his run with a huge 40-foot cliff-drop off “tower rock” and continued to ski fast and aggressive launching him into sixth place on the day. Tyson Bolduc of Vail skied a smooth, fluid line with rock exposure landing him in fifth overall. Drew Tabke, the flyin' Hawaiian, pioneered a completely original line which he skied with conviction and included a 60-foot air and a huge 360 over a wind-lip at the bottom of the venue. He was also awarded a Sickbird nomination for his efforts and tied for third with reigning Subaru U.S. Freeskiing Nationals champion Nick Greener. Defending World Tour champion Guerlin Chicherit skied with a broken bone in his neck today and still managed to advance to tomorrow’s finals in 11th place.

“My run went pretty well,” said today’s third place finisher Drew Tabke. “I tried to take the weirdest, most interesting line possible and find the freshest snow on the far side of the venue. It worked out really well.”

The top two spots of the day went to Frenchmen Jean Michel Gouadain sand Aurelien Ducroz. Goudain’s run included a 40-foot air off “tower rock” at the top of the venue and another clean 30-foot air near the bottom. Ducroz, who started late in the field skied an incredible line, free of hesitation, which landed him both a Sickbird nomination and the top spot on the day. Current Subaru U.S. Freeskiing Series point’s leader and winner of the first two events on the 2007 roster, Adrien Coirier also of France, had a disappointing crash today, knocking him out of the competition.

“I’m really happy with my run,” said today’s first place finisher Aurelien Ducroz. “I had a really late start number so I was nervous that the landings would all have big holes. I decided to go for it anyway and I landed the two biggest cliffs on the face perfectly. I’ve already found a line for tomorrow that has seven jumps. I just want to play with the cliffs and continue to ski with a big smile on my face like I did today. Not all competition days are fun, but today I had a great time.”

The defending Subaru U.S. Freeskiing Series champion Carrie Jo Chernoff of Crested Butte skied a tough line through rock exposure which impressed the judges enough to land her in fifth place on the day. Jess McMillan of Jackson Hole skied a solid line which was popular with the men earning her both the first Sickbird nomination for the women’s field and fourth place going into tomorrow’s finals. Alaina Huestis and Amber Gale both of Snowbird skied fast, aggressive and fluid runs which landed them in third and second respectively. The second last competitor of the day Jane Somerville, who recently won the Subaru Telluride Freeskiing Open, took command of the women’s field skiing fast through rock exposure and sticking her cliff drops which earned her top spot on the day. A total of 11 women will advance to the next round.

Skier Tyson Bolduc. MSI photo

“I was the bottom of the run list today, the 127th skier to go, so I definitely spent a lot of time thinking about, and trying not to over-process, my run,” said today’s first place finisher Jane Somerville. “So when it was finally time for me to jump out of the start gate, I went insane, left all that nervous energy at the top and just charged. Tomorrow I want to ski smooth and fluid, stay compact and ski fast.”

North Baldy will be the proving ground for contenders tomorrow. The women will run in reverse order from today’s results followed by the men in the same format. Two runs are planned for the finals if time allows.

The North Face Young Gun Award returns in 2007, honoring outstanding new talent in competitive freeskiing. Points accumulated throughout the season will crown one lucky under-21-year-old a full sponsorship from The North Face and the honor of becoming only the second Young Gun winner. This year’s front runner is Brady Smedsrud of Red Lodge, MT.

Additional Subaru U.S. Freeskiing Series tour stops include the Subaru Jackson Hole Freeskiing Open at Jackson Hole, WY, the Subaru North American Freeskiing Championships at Kirkwood, CA, and past tour stops the Subaru Telluride Freeskiing Open at Telluride, CO, and the Subaru Squaw Valley U.S.A Freeskiing Open, at Squaw Valley U.S.A, CA.

More at www.usfreeskiing.com

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