By Liam Downey

Today’s Men’s Ski Pipe Preliminary was a testament to how far pipe skiing has come this season alone. Nearly every skier was spinning both ways and incorporating switch hits, setting a new precedent unmet by all but a few pipe jocks until now. At the end of the day, first-place finisher Simon Dumont edged out Canadian Justin Dorey by two points: a slim margin decided by the big spins and amplitude for which Dumont has become famous. Dumont’s run in the first heat secured him the win, featuring back-to-back 9’s and a switch 1080. Dorey’s run was no less technical, with mirrored alley-oop flatspin 3s that left fellow competitors shaking their heads in disbelief. “Great pipe, good weather” was J Bones’ only explanation for his success, and although he didn’t mention his plans for tomorrow’s final, I suspect he’s planning to incorporate one of the four 1080s he’s keeping on ice.

Despite the narrow gap between first and second, the Day’s Cinderella Story was provided by local sixteen-year-old phenom Duncan Adams. Competing in his first professional contest, Duncan edged out skiing legend Tanner Hall himself for the third-place spot. I myself have known little Dunc since his debut at the 2003 Vermont Open, where he won the best trick contest — when he was 10. Five years later, and 10 inches taller, he is a grown-ass-man, although his inner-grom is not too far off (dude’s rumored to be the proud owner of one very special bunny rabbit named "Byna"!). What separated Duncan’s runs from the competition was his floaty style and precise landings: “I’m just skiing within my own limits” said the greenhorn. The only skier in the contest (so far) to spin rightside into consecutive switch hits, Adam’s “limits” can scarcely be quantified so early in his career, even if he does count on his mom for rides to the mountain.

But what’s up with T? It’s a rarity to see Tanner Hall out of the top three, but his performance today only promised more to come in the Final. Never known to coast through a contest, T-Hall’s voracity, in this case, was perhaps his undoing; his first-hit 1260s left him with so much speed that he landed low on subsequent hits in both of his runs. As one freeskiing’s premier contest and film skiers, Tanner loves adversity almost as much as winning, and today’s 4th place finish will only double his intensity going into tomorrow night’s Final. The Prelim has set the stage, and the top spot is anyone’s for the wrangling.

Superpipe Prelims - Official Results
Top twelve advance to Saturday's finals at 6pm MST

1 Simon Dumont 90.50
2 Justin Dorey 88.25
3 Duncan Adams 85.50
4 Tanner Hall 85.25
5 Xavier Bertoni 82.25
6 Josiah Wells 81.00
7 Byron Wells 80.75
8 Kevin Rolland 75.75
9 Peter Olenick 72.25
10 Walter Wood 71.25
11 Taylor Seaton 71.00
12 Lyndon Sheehan 69.75
13 Tucker Perkins 67.75
14 Matt Margetts 67.50
15 Antti-Jussi Kemppainen 67.50
16 Mike Riddle 66.00
17 Tyler Peterson 65.00
18 Colby West 64.75
19 Marshall LaCroix 62.25
20 John Strenio 61.75
21 Kyle Smaine 59.25
22 Andre Simonpietri 58.75
23 David Wise 58.50
24 Jack Sullan 58.25
25 Evan Schwartz 52.75
26 Ratchel Jean-Laurent 52.50
27 Matti Räty 49.25
28 Colby Albino 40.50
29 Matthew Philippi 28.75
30 Rob Heule 27.00
31 Sammy Carlson 22.75
32 Thomas Krief 21.25
33 Matt Duhamel 18.75
34 Miles Honens 9.50
35 Kentaro Tsuda 9.50