Bell and Rozies Win FWT at Kirkwood Mountain!
The fourth stop of the FWT concluded today on The Cirque at Kirkwood Mountain Resort under warm and sunny skies with variable snow conditions.
Ryland Bell (USA) won the male snowboarders’ competition. Jacklyn Paaso (USA) and Margot Rozies (FRA) came first in the female snowboarders event.
The male snowboarders were faced the most difficult conditions of the day as the afternoon brought low light conditions and firmer, settled snow to the venue. Wild card recipient Ryland Bell out of Squaw Valley, California (USA), earned first place. His run scored very well in the air and style category as he maneuvered several spins including a backside 360, a frontside 360 and another backside 360 with a grab toward the bottom of the venue.
”This was my first win ever,” beamed Bell. “My stoke level is really high. I wanted to do tricks, try to flow and have fun.”
Also out of Squaw Valley, California (USA), Sammy Luebke finished in 2nd place launching a Method Air at the beginning of his run. He continued with high speeds into the middle rocks of the venue hitting a number of airs along the way. The final podium spot in the men’s snowboard category went toEmilien Badoux of Valais Alpes (SUI). Badoux’s run was consistent and well executed with high-style aspects, such as his rodeo 540 near the bottom.
In the overall ranking, Emilien Badoux (SUI) is ranked 3rd now, behind tour leader Ralph Backstrom (USA) who got 6th today, and Sammy Luebke(USA) on 2nd.
In the Women's snowboarding, Margot Rozies from Pyrénées (FRA) finally managed her first top podium finish of the season. She had an incredibly fast and fluid run linking smooth and technical turns together the entire length of the venue.
“I felt a bit sick today actually, but think that removed some of the pressure,”said Rozies. “I woke up this morning and considered not competing actually. However, I managed to get myself pumped for competition. It couldn’t have gone any better.”
Continuing on the women's snowboard podium in 2nd place was Elodie Mouthon from Annecy (FRA). Mouthon linked two airs at the top of her run and chose a creative line at the bottom of The Cirque. Shannan Yates out of Snowbird, Utah (USA), chose a unique line compared to the rest of the competitors, which landed her the third place podium.
Margot Rozies (FRA) is first in the female snowboarders’ overall ranking, while Elodie Mouthon (FRA) is on 2nd andLaura Dewey (USA) on 3rd.
The SWATCH FREERIDE WORLD TOUR BY THE NORTH FACE® continues its competition schedule in Fieberbrunn Pillerseetal (AUT) on March 9, and concludes in Verbier (SUI) on March 23.
Archive video of the event action is located on FreerideWorldTour.com. Fans may select to view the entire event or just watch their favorite riders' runs via the Mobile Rider video player.