Our Big Sky regional event was a great way to kick off the comp season for everyone in late January. Being on “home turf” is a plus for both nerves and confidence. We could not have asked for better weather with light winds, 30 degrees and sun! Jeremy, Jack, and myself worked all week with athletes and their competition runs as we progressed toward comp day. The physical preparation is the easy part. Helping athletes prepare mentally is the hardest, but arguably the most important part of comp prep.
During our slopestyle event we had many athletes throw down some great runs! In our 11-12 age group, Hudson Dail and Zeke Copely both put down 720’s on a whim in their run. The judges loved what they saw and awarded them with 1st and 2nd place! Our 13-14 division was very competitive. Wyatt Mcquire and Harry Amphlett were able to battle really tough speed conditions and put down a couple of great runs. They rounded out the podium in 2nd and 3rd place.
After the Slopestyle event, we had our Rail Jam. A set of rail and box features that athletes sessioned for 30 minutes. Judges are looking for creativity, style, and technicality during this time. We witnessed a lot of athletes throw down new rail tricks for the first time during this comp. Seeing athletes push themselves in competition is so cool! New to the team this year, Kaiser Pellmann, took home the gold in Boys Snowboard 11-14 age group. In the Freeski 15-22 Men age group, Kaiser’s older brother Drake Pellmann, took 2nd place while Wylie Mugaas rounded out the podium in 3rd.
Overall BSF had a great showing at this event. From both a results standpoint and overall representation. I was very impressed with how respectful all of our athletes were to event organizers, volunteers, and other athletes.
