Freeride World Tour in USA
Thursday February 25, 2010 - Email this article to a friend

All eyes may be on The Olympics but there's a pretty important event taking place at Squaw Valley USA as the Freedride World Tour hits town. The riders are tackling The Tram Face, a slope normaly illegal to ride down.

It will probablly never be an Olympic event as it requires a big mountain slope and the correct snow conditions to ensure the safety of the riders.

If the weather is wrong then it has to be called off - they can't helicopter in snow for this event like at Cypress Mountain.

There is also a level of danger that perhaps the Olympic organisers would not like.

Hale-Woods"We're not aiming to be an Olympic event as it probably wouldn't fit in with the tight timetable of The Winter Olympics as we are far too dependent on the snow conditions and of course not everywhere has a suitable big mountain face for this level of freeriding," says the orgainser of the Freeride World Tour, Nicolas Hale-Woods.

He made the remarks to PlanetSKI at the event in Tignes last year where we covered the event and were involved in the judging.

The riders hike to the top of a big mountain slope and then chose any line they want to down it. They are marked by a panel of judges for the degree of difficulty and their riding style.

The tour was due to have started on the Russian slopes of Sochi, the 2014 Winter Olympics venue, in January but this was cancelled due to bad weather.

Instead the first two stages were held at Chamonix-Mont-Blanc, France.

We reported on the first leg here and the postponed Russian leg of the Tour here.

At Squaw Valley USA, the only North American stop on the tour, competitors will attempt to "ride" the Tram Face that has never before successfully opened for competition, as weather deterred the event from taking place last year.

It would have been the first legal descent of the face.

Its steep and seemingly un-skiable pitch and permanent closure have made it a coveted line among top freeriders.

"The level among the riders has increased constantly since the first edition of the Tour. It is no longer enough to be a great skier to take part of the Tour. Physical and mental preparation, thorough inspection of the competition face, and top gear, are all important elements that has helped develop freeriding to a professional sport, becoming more and more known by the broad public," says Freeride World Champion 2009, Aurélien Ducroz, of France.

Hopefully the weather will hold for this weekend and we will bring you news of the results and the atmposhere here on PlanetSKI.

Here is how the riders stand at the moment.

Men Ski

Women Ski

Men Snowboard

Women Snowboard

1- Candide Thovex FRA

2 - Julien Lopez FRA

3- Kaj Zackrisson SWE

1- Eva Walkner AUT tie with:

Janette Hargin SWE

3- Jess Mc Millan USA