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Summit County locals podium at Helly Hansen Big Mountain event at Breckenridge Ski Resort

On Saturday, the region’s best big mountain skiers and snowboarders dropped off of the top of the Tenmile Range in front of a backdrop of bluebird skies as part of the Helly Hansen Big Mountain Challenge at Breckenridge Ski Resort.

The Rocky Mountain Freeride Series event, also a junior regional sanctioned by the International Freeskiers & Snowboarders Association, took place at the “Six Senses” double-black diamond terrain on Breckenridge’s Peak 6. The competition’s one-run format saw skier after skier and snowboarder after snowboarder drop into the terrain’s steep lines, tight chutes and big cliff drops. Each skier and rider was then awarded a point total by the judges based on variables such as line choice, control, fluidity, technique, style and energy.

The freeski male 15-18 age group division saw a turnout of more than 35 skiers. In the end, Kyle Matlock of the Crested Butte Mountain Sports team won the day with a score of 33.67, followed by Jakob Rundell of the Winter Park Big Mountain team (33.2) and Jennings Heflin of Team Breckenridge Sports Club (32.93). Team Summit Colorado’s top finisher on the day in the division was William Wagner (32.1), while another top local finisher included Cooper Orr of Team Summit (sixth place, 31.56).



There was a huge turnout in the ski male 12-14 division as well, with 30 skiers dropping into the Six Senses course. The division was won by Ben Leifer of the Winter Park Big Mountain team with his score of 34.0, as he was joined on the podium by Hastings Traficanti of Team Summit (30.9) and Elijah Blakney of Telluride Ski & Snowboard Club (29.93). The top Team Breckenridge skier in the division that day was Charlie Reish (fifth, 29.3).

The ski female 15-18 division featured 18 total competitors led by a top two from Telluride Ski & Snowboard Club, including first-place finisher Nelly Busch (29.9) and second place Lily Young (29.36). The Telluride pair was joined on the podium by Hailey Hoffman of Aspen Valley Ski & Snowboard Club (29.1). The top local skier was Violet Heisler of Team Summit (28.86). The ski female 12-14 division featured 13 competitors, as Aspen Valley Ski & Snowboard Club athlete Selby Hall won the competition with a score of 26.93.



In the snowboard male 12-14 division, Blake Hayen of Eldora Mountain Ski & Snowboard Club won with a score of 28.2, joined on the podium by Jace Guadagnoli (27.43) and Lucas Lemire (24.3), both of Team Summit. In the snowboard female 15-18 division, Samantha Lansky of Winter Park Snowboarding (25.5) took the top spot followed by Catherine Darrow of Eldora Mountain Ski & Snowboard Club (21.6). In the snowboard male 15-18 division, Warren Doyle of the Method Freeride Team won with a score of 29.7 followed by Tommy Brown of Team Summit (26.4) and Kyle desGarennes of Winter Park Snowboarding (14.17).

Breckenridge Ski Resort will host the U-12 division of this competition this coming Sunday at the same Six Senses terrain.


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