The guys battled it out today for the title of Dew Tour champion, and it was a fun one to watch. There were plenty of whirly-bird variations across the board from the boys today during Slopestyle Finals. As with most contests, it’s judged based on technicality, creativity, stability, and a general theme of spin to win. Variety in axes is always nice to see and can be filed under the creativity umbrella when it comes to how it is rewarded. Slopestyle finals are based on three runs total, with the top-scoring run counting toward the final ranking.
Style god Nick Goepper had both of his pant legs rolled today, but it didn’t affect his aerodynamics too heavily as he managed to put down a dub bio on jump two followed by another dub on jump three. He also did a super-fed, which will no doubt serve as inspiration to up-and-comers like Steve Stepp. He had a flat, bio and cork in his runs, covering a variety of axes that gave him a boost in the rankings.
In the rails section, there was a cool switch k-fed to backslide from Switzerland’s own Fabian Boesch and a three swap with a shifty to switch by Alex Hall.
Speed appeared to be a bit tough, which may be in part due to the general pitch of the course as well as the fresh snow from the last few days. The second jump was the hardest to clear, it seemed, but the athletes were all able to boost it on the last jump.
Colby Stevenson had a really sick nosebutter dub ten japan, and an insane switch left dub 14 stale that landed him in first after his second run. The smaller jumps seemed to suit Stevenson well, and he brought a level of progression that worked in his favor.
A-Hall put down a wild dub 16 lead japan octo on jump three, a crowd-pleaser with the judges. Stevenson and Hall battled each other for the top spots for all three runs, but Stevenson ended up on top with a 96.25, only a point above Hall.
“It’s insane to have all three Americans on top,” Stevenson said shortly after securing the win. It’s reminiscent of Sochi 2014’s American podium sweep and extra exciting to see with the upcoming Olympic games being on the line for those competing here at Copper. Stevenson already has a secured position on the Olympic team following his success from last year. “It took a lot of that pressure off my shoulders, which helped me ski better,” Stevenson said regarding the Olympics. “The win feels really good. It’s funny, my Snapchat memories pulled up stuff from Dew Tour four years ago, and it was when I tore my shoulder on the last jump of my podium run. I’ve always wanted to win a Dew Tour, and I was definitely hungry for it coming into this.”
The battle for first between A-Hall and Stevenson was fun to watch and fun for them as well. “We’re such good buddies that when we’re duking it out, it’s fun to feed off each other, even if you don’t end up on top, you’re still stoked for your friend,” he said. It made the podium all the more wholesome.
The final lineup was Colby Stevenson, Alex Hall, Nick Goepper, Mac Forehand, Evan McEachran, Fabian Boesch, Oliwer Magnusson, Etienne Geoffroy Gagnon, Finn Bilous, and Mark Hendrickson.
Full Men’s Ski Slopestyle Results
1.) Colby Stevenson, 96.25
2.) Alex Hall, 95.25
3.) Nick Goepper, 89.90
4.) Mac Forehand, 87.75
5.) Evan McEachran, 86.50
6.) Fabian Boesch, 85.50
7.) Oliwer Magnusson, 85.25
8.) Etienne Geoffroy Gagnon, 81.00
9.) Finn Bilous, 71.50
10.) Mark Hendrickson, 56.50
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