As the final weekend of events went down, the stakes were at an all-time high for the competitors at the Gatorade Free Flow Tour events at Seven Springs, Brighton and Sierra at Tahoe. With only one last superpipe contest to be held at Snowbasin, Utah on Wednesday, these amateurs were looking for their last shot at earning a spot on the roster that will compete Saturday and Sunday on the Winter Dew Tour courses.
Out East, Seven Springs held a two-day competition, providing impeccable slopestyle and superpipe venues for the rising stars. The first-year host held a slopestyle competition Saturday, where Adam Giola and Shannon Branthoover owned the course in a field of almost forty snowboarders. After eight inches of snow fell throughout the day, it took the best riding for these two to earn their way to Utah for their chance to “Flow to Pro”.
Men's Snowboard Slopestyle Results
1. Adam Giola
2. Cody Hines
3. Hayden Dillon
4. Seth Harding
5. Christian Canfield
Women's Snowboard Slopestyle Results
1. Shannon Branthoover
2. Chelsea Krenick
3. Shelby Layman
4. Erin Storck
Adam Hohmeyer was the weekend's lone winner in men's snowboard superpipe
With blue bird skies, a freshly cut pipe, and a fresh blanket of snow on the mountain, Sunday was an excellent day to send two talented aspiring boarders to the Finals next weekend at the Winter Dew Tour in Snowbasin, Utah. Doubling up for the weekend, Branthoover earned the top spot in the women’s division, and will compete in both disciplines in the Finals. With a run that started with a big 900 tailgrab, into a 540, followed by stale and method grabs, finishing with a 720 on his last hit, Adam Hohmeyer will advance from the men’s snowboard field.
Men's Snowboard Superpipe Results
1. Adam Hohmeyer
2. Cutler Whitely
3. George Scott
4. Colin Lynch
5. John King
Women's Snowboard Superpipe Results
1. Shannon Branthoover
2. Shelby Layman
3. Erin Storck
Josh Glen
With great freestyle progression coming out of the Brighton park, the only thing more impressive than the ski area itself is the talent that drove up the canyon from SLC to slay the Brighton stop of the Winter Gatorade Free Flow Tour. Over 85 contestants made the trip, but the two sticking around for the Finals are Josh Glen and Kirra Kotsenburg, both hailing from Park City, Utah.
“This is the best competition I’ve ever done,” Glen had to say after his victory. He will make his first trip to the Finals, along with Kotsenburg, who will compete on the same course as her older brother Sage, the 2009-10 Winter Dew Cup Champion.
Men's Snowboard Slopestyle Results
1. Josh Glen
2. Grant Giller
3. Dan Waltermire
4. Everest Arnold
5. Cody Lee
Women's Snowboard Slopestyle Results
1. Kirra Kotsenburg
2. Hailee Mattingley
3. Elise Borelli
4. Taelor Mattingley
5. Nicole Shephard
Sage Kotsenburg's younger sister, Kirra, will be one to keep an eye on in finals
A warm winter pushed the superpipe contest over to Snowbasin, where challengers for the last two snowboard spots in the Finals will have their opportunity to compete for their place on the professional circuit next winter.
Sierra at Tahoe, a second year host resort, pulled nearly 100 young ams from as far as Russia to compete at the final west coast stop of the Gatorade Free Flow Tour. The course best showcased the skills of Armeen Pirooz, a snowboarder out of Virginia and Mammoth Lake’s Kelly Berger, who will make their way to Utah this week for the Finals, where they’ll compete on the same course as the professionals at the Toyota Championship.
Sierra-at-Tahoe Men's Snowboard Slopestyle Results
1. Armeen Pirooz
2. Felice Pozzi
3. Anton Ryzenkov
4. Jack Lyle
5. Mike Hight
Women's Snowboard Slopestyle Results
1. Kelly Berger
2. Jasmin Gallop
3. Gina Petrice
With the win, each of the the eight snowboarders earns a prequalified spot in the Gatorade Free Flow Tour Finals, taking place this weekend, Feb. 9-12. The event will be held in conjunction with the Winter Dew Tour’s final stop of the season, the Toyota Championships, where overall Champions will be crowed and earn a spot in the first stop of the 2012-13 Winter Dew Tour.
