Popular Stories
3 Americans and 1 Frenchie take the top spots at the fourth stop of the FWT, TGR's Ryland Bell posts the highest score of the day.
By Greg Fitzsimmons
“Variable” was the word of the day at the fourth stop of the Swatch Freeride World Tour by The North Face at 
“I wasn't really planning to win here,” said Chickering-Ayers. “I just came out to spend time with family and have fun. I have skied these types conditions in competition in the past and knew how to deal with them. The skiing was my favorite part of the day.”
Chickering-Ayers was awarded a score of 75.33 to take the top spot at Kirkwood. The “Flying Frenchman” Julien Lopez and Kiwi FWT rookie Charlie Lyons rounded out the podium in second and third place, respectively.
Tahoe local Jaclyn Paaso won on the women’s ski side with a score of 71.67. Paaso had a difficult first half of the season on the FWT, but skied a fluid line en route to winning the comp. The Squaw Valley female skier known for sending huge cliffs skied a smart comp line. Paaso stomped a cool air off the ridge over exposed rock, cleanly navigated a tight s-turn chute, and skied out of a bottom air on the venue to take the top spot in Kirkwood.
“I have had a number of crashes this season and really needed a win. It feels great to come out on top,” said Paaso. “I took my run down a notch this time because I needed to stay on my feet. Making it to the finish line was the best part for me.”
Paaso’s win made her the first female skier to dethrone Sweden’s Christine Hargin this year. Hargin was perfect so far on the FWT with wins in Revy and Cham (the women didn’t compete in Italy this year), but Hargin took a hard fall during her run in Kirkwood. Pia Nic Gunderson of Norway took second and the third place spot went to American Ashley Maxfield.
Squaw Valley’s 
After consecutive second-place finishes on the FWT, French rider Margot Rozies finally won in Kirkwood. Her consistent riding throughout the season meant that Rozies was the overall tour leader going into Kirkwood. After her fast and fluid winning line, Rozies has a firm grasp on the tour title with two stops left. Elodie Mouthon and Shannon Yates finished in second and third, respectively.
Now, the Swatch Freeride World Tour by The North Face heads back to Europe for the last two comps of the year. Fieberbrunn, Austria is on-deck before all attention will focus on Verbier’s famed Bec de Rosses venue for the FWT finale.
Overall Ski Men Standings
Join Our Newsletter
1 Tabke, Drew (USA) 6500.00
2 Heitz, Jérémie (SUI) 6200.00
3 Lopez, Julien (FRA) 5820.00
4 Lyons, Charlie (NZL) 4900.00
5 Barkered, Reine (SWE) 4595.00
6 Studer, Fabio (AUT) 4340.00
7 Gauthier, Laurent (CAN) 4180.00
8 Eder, Markus (ITA) 4048.00
9 Lindberg, Wille (SWE) 3900.00
10 White-Allen, Oakley (USA) 3885.00
11 Ducroz, Aurelien (FRA) 3685.00
12 Guri, Kevin (FRA) 3470.00
13 Post, Griffin (USA) 3445.00
14 Chickering-Ayers, Lars (USA) 3395.00
15 Collin, Sean (USA) 3070.00
Overall Ski Women Standings
1 Wallner, Nadine (AUT) 6025.00
2 Gundersen, Pia Nic (NOR) 5980.00
3 Hargin, Christine (SWE) 5975.00
4 Maxfield, Ashley (USA) 4895.00
5 Paaso, Jacklyn (USA) 4630.00
6 Wright, Crystal (USA) 4265.00
7 Slinning, Anne May (NOR) 4200.00
8 Huber, Lorraine (AUT) 3255.00
9 Segal, Natalie (AUS) 2955.00
10 McMillan, Jess (USA) 2260.00
Overall Snowboard Men Standings
1 Backstrom, Ralph (USA) 6325.00
2 Luebke, Sammy (USA) 5980.00
3 Badoux, Emilien (SUI) 5585.00
4 Guillot-Diat, Ludovic (FRA) 5290.00
5 Routens, Aurelien (FRA) 5200.00
6 Charlet, Jonathan (FRA) 4095.00
7 Carlson, Tim (USA) 4060.00
8 Rodosky, John (USA) 3870.00
9 Orley, Flo (AUT) 3730.00
10 Van Helfteren, Irian (NED) 3615.00
11 Rizzuto, Jamie (CAN) 3220.00
12 Rouge, Joel (SUI) 3215.00
13 Annetts, Matt (USA) 2715.00
14 Bell, Ryland (USA) 2500.00
15 De Le Rue, Xavier (FRA) 2130.00
Overall Snowboard Women Standings
1 Rozies, Margot (FRA) 6900.00
2 Mouthon, Elodie (FRA) 5805.00
3 Dewey, Laura (USA) 5415.00
4 Lucas, Casey (USA) 5400.00
5 Yates, Shannan (USA) 4480.00
6 Lazzareschi, Iris (USA) 4205.00
7 Mouthon, Anouck (FRA) 4040.00
8 Bock, Aline (GER) 3435.00
Staying at Kirkwood is the way to go, sure beats driving from South Lake Tahoe. Book your next Kirkwood vacation pacakge at: http://mountainreservations.com
