Switch 450 Onto The Disaster Box – Freeski Tricks

March 8th, 2010

Boen Ferguson, switch 720 during last year’s One Hit Wonder in Thredbo. (Photo: Ben Hansen)

When we ran the story on the Winter X-Games last month, a few people admitted that the terminology of the tricks and the linked runs was as foreign to them as Swahili. In an effort to enlighten the wider skiing public we asked Boen Ferguson, one of Australia’s best freeskiers, to explain some of the action we saw at last month’s X-Games.

Big Air tricks

Perfect switch double misty 1260: Approaching the jump backwards (switch) and spinning 1260° (three and a half revolutions) with two frontflips, landing forwards (regular).

Switch double misty 1440: Approaching the jump backwards (switch) and spinning 1440° (four full revolutions) with two frontflips. Landing backwards (switch).

Double cork 1620: Approaching the jump forwards (regular) and spinning 1620° (four and a half revolutions) with two backflips. Landing backwards (switch).

Bobby Brown’s Slopestyle run

Rail to uphill 450 off: 90° spin onto a rail then a 450° spin (one and a quarter revolutions) in the same direction off the end, leaving the skier landing backwards (switch).

Switch 450 onto the disaster box: (a disaster box is a downward sloped box with a ‘gap’ onto it) coming in backwards, doing a 450° (one and a quarter revolutions) and landing sideways on the box, sliding to the end then doing a 90° spin in the same direction to land forwards.

Handplant misty 720 (A frontflip + 720° = Misty 720) over the hitching post: (A hitching post is a horizontal round rail competitors must jump over. Extra points are awarded to competitors who can touch the rail without losing speed for the next feature) Approaching the feature forwards, Bobby Brown does half a forward flip with 90° spin to the left and places his right hand on the rail, using his hand to produce momentum to spin another 630° then he does half a front flip off his hand and lands forwards.

Canon box to 810 off: (A cannon box is a short upwards sloping box with a large ‘gap’ to the landing.) Approaching the feature forwards, Bobby does a 90° spin onto the cannon box then 810° (two and a quarter revolutions) landing Backwards. 900° in total.

Switch right (unnatural) misty 900: Bobby Brown naturallly spins anti-clockwise (left), here he spins 900° to his unnatural side (right or clockwise) including a front flip (misty). Taking off backwards (switch) and landing forwards (regular).

double cork 1260: Approaching the jump forwards (regular), Bobby spins 1260° (three and a half rotations) with two backflips. Landing backwards (switch).

switch double misty 1260 Approaching the jump Backwards (switch), Bobby spins 1260° (three and a half rotations) with two frontflips. Landing forwards(regular).

Kevin Rolland’s Halfpipe Run.

Whiskey flip mute grab: Approaching the right wall forwards (regular) doing two side flips to the left (anti-clockwise) and 180° spin while holding his left ski with his right hand (mute grab) and landing forwards (regular).

Alley-oop flatspin 360: Approaching the left hand wall forwards (regular) spinning one right (clockwise) side flip (360° flip) and landing backwards (switch).

Switch 720: Approaching the right hand wall backwards (switch) and spinning 720° (two full revolutions) landing forwards (regular).

Rightside whiskey flip: Approaching the left wall forwards (regular) and doing two side flips to the right (clockwise) and a 180° spin landing forwards (regular).

Double cork 1260: Approaching the right wall forwards (regular) and doing two side flips to the left (anti-clockwise) and 1260° spin landing forwards (regular).


Australia’s Russ Henshaw is as progressive as anyone – on his way to winning the Big Air in last year’s Jon Ollson Super Sessions. (Sequence: Tony Harrington/wheresharro.com)