PHOTOS – 2013 Winter Mountain Games in Vail
Telemark Big Air adds a new layer of technicality to regular park tricks Image:: Mandy Lamont
Mountainwatch | Mandy Lamont
What do you get when you combine ice climbing, snow-shoe racing, cross country skiing, telemark big air, fireballs and best bike trick, with on-snow cross country mountain biking and dual slalom mountain biking, just to name a few? Throw in a few slack line performers around the place, winter films, photography comp and three nights of live music and you’ve got the 2nd Winter Mountain Games held at Vail, Colorado, even dogs are welcome!
With some of North America’s best Nordic skiers, climbers, cyclists and snowshoers competing for a total prize purse of $60,000, it was a fast paced, action packed weekend.
Fat tyre snow biking seems to be gaining traction Image:: Mandy Lamont
New to the Mountain Games this year was the on-snow cross country mountain bike race, part of the inaugural Winter Mountain Bike Championships. This years inclusion makes four biking events, which is growing along with the popularity of snow biking and ‘fatbikes’. The other biking events were the on-snow bike crit; 35 minutes plus 1 lap of a 1km circuit, mountain bike dual slalom and best bike trick; a night jam session on snow with riders being judged for style and difficulty.
The bikers weren’t going to let the free heelers have all the fun Image:: Mandy Lamont
The Saturday evening hour long jam session combined best bike trick and telemark big air with a few pyrotechnics. Telemarkers were taking it in turns with bikers hitting the jump. Chris Ewert, winner of last years big air telemark started the evening with the trick that he won the event with last year, a double front flip. “I wanted to set the mood, set up people to go bigger than just the one (rotation),” he said. “I hadn’t tried it since last years competition since this is really the only competition to bust out in”. He didn’t make the podium this year though, “I kept trying the dub misty 12 but just couldn’t land it”, he said.
Winner of the Telemark Big Air was Andreas Sjobeck, of Sweden, with a double cork 1080. Local Kjell Ellefson took second place with a switch 720 mute grab and Ty Dayberry third with a cork 9 mute grab. Best bike trick went to Garrett Robertson who landed a massive ‘lawn dart’ front flip. It was an amazing event to watch.
The Vail Winter Mountain Games, it’s like nothing you’ve seen before and has something for everyone, even a bit of powder.
Vail forecasts,
snow reports and
live snow cams.
