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The venue for the Swatch Freeride World Tour by The North Face in Chamonix, France.
The third stop of the Swatch Freeride World Tour by The North Face took place in Chamonix, France last weekend. The field of men made the short trip to the French side of the Mont Blanc after the second stop in Courmayeur, Italy, and the female competitors met for the second time this season after competing on “Mac Daddy” in Revelstoke, Canada.
Drew Tabke airs into his line. Photo by D. Daher.
The North Face of the Aiguille Pourrie served as the venue for the comp. From the start gate at 2,400-meters, athletes had a handful of options to lace together a line that fit their style of skiing. A lot of the ski men opted for the ridge run skier’s right out of the start gate. With a big natural air on the ridge and playful hips or techy chutes lower down, the skier’s right side of the venue saw a lot of traffic. Directly falline of the start gate was an exposed and high-consequence zone of pepper, tight skiing, and the biggest air on the venue—that Canadian Laurent Gauthier dropped, found a perfect tranny, put the 50-plus footer to the bolts, and earned a top-ten spot for his efforts. And, if competitor’s ventured a little skier’s left and then fallline from the start gate they got to boost a large entry-air cornice and then have their choice of hips, chutes, and side-airs to play with.
Men's ski podium: 1. Drew Tabke (USA) 91.67 2. Fabio Studer (AUT) 87.00 3. Willie Lindberg (SWE) 84.33. Photo by Jeremy Bernard.
In the end, the winning line was hidden in left side over the venue, and it took Drew Tabke to find it and stomp it. Tabke, now the overall tour leader halfway through the season, linked a creative line from the top entry air via the cornice, finding a lofty natural hip that sent him about 60 feet into a chute, and then capping the run off with a sleepy three on the bottom portion of the venue. Tabke’s creativity and blend of big-mountain charging and trickery was rewarded by the judges with a score of 91.67, the highest score dolled out to any competitor on the day.
In second place, Austrian Fabio Studer opted for the ridge on the skier’s right ridge. Studer put on a clinic stomping a hand-drag 360 off of the large natural air on the ridge then unleashing a cork 720 into an exposed section, and drawing aggressive fallline turns through the gnar. And, in third place, Sweden’s Willie Lindberg took the right-hand approach. Lindberg’s high-speed, full-throttle line included a large air into the lower chute, and then finding a keyhole exit into the Cham chunder fields.
Men’s Snowboard podium: (Top 10) 1. Jonathan Charlet (FRA) 90.33 2. Ralph Backstrom (USA) 88.00 3. Sammy Luebke (USA) 76.33. Photo by Jeremy Bernard.
Jonathan Charlet. Photo by Phillip Field.
Ralph Backstrom in Chamonix. Photo by D. Daher.
On the men’s snowboard side, French rider and 2012 FWT Overall Snowboard Champ Jonathan Charlet took the win in front of his home country’s fans. Charlet blasted two features up top, found pow on a ramp rider’s right, and exited off the ramp with a big air on the bottom. TGR’s own Ralph Backstrom came in second place, landing on the podium again after winning the Revy comp, and earning the overall leader position going into the fourth stop of the season. And, Sammy Luebke snagged the third spot on the podium for men’s snowboard.
Women’s Ski podium: 1. Christine Hargin (SWE) 80.00 2. Nadine Wallner (AUT) 72.33 3. Pia Nic Gunderson (NOR) 70.67. Photo by Jeremy Bernard.
Overall 2012 Champion Christine Hargin, of Ramundberget, Sweden, is putting together a serious bid for a repeat as World Champ after winning in the ski women’s comp in Cham. Hargin’s score of an even 80 was almost eight points higher than runner-up Nadine Wallner, of Austria, who scored a 72.33 to take second. Hargin’s back-to-back wins in Revy and Chamonix were done in similar fashion: strong, fast, athletic, and aggressive. Norway’s Pia Nic Gunderson came in third.
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Women’s Snowboard podium: 1. Laura Dewey (USA) 70.00 2. Margot Rozies (FRA) 69.00 3. Aline Bock (GER) 57.33. Photo by Jeremy Bernard.
And, Snowbird’s Laura Dewey battled through a string of bad luck traveling—Dewey arrived in Chamonix less than 24 hours before dropping in to compete on borrowed gear because of lost luggage—to earn the victory in women’s snowboard. French rider Margot Rozies took second, the same result she had in Revy. Rozies’s consistent presence on the podium so far means she’s the current tour leader after two stops. And, in third place was German rider Aline Bock.
After two big-mountain comps on the Italian and French sides of the Month Blanc that were as good as it gets, the FWT says “au revoir” to the Alps. The next stop will be stateside at Kirkwood Mountain Resort and is scheduled to go down February 27 in Kirkwood’s famed Cirque. Drew Tabke and Christine Hargin, Ralph Backstrom and Margot Rozies will be bedecked in the yellow bibs that denote the current overall tour leaders when the action gets going again in Kirkwood.
Stay tuned for more FWT coverage.
Men’s Ski Results (Top 10)
1. Drew Tabke (USA) 91.67
2. Fabio Studer (AUT) 87.00
3. Willie Lindberg (SWE) 84.33
4. Reine Barkered (SWE) 83.33
5. Julien Lopez (FRA) 82.67
6. Oakley White-Allen (USA) 81.00
7. Jérémie Heitz (SUI) 73.00
8. Charlie Lyons (NZL) 72.67
9. Laurent Gauthier (CAN) 71.33
10. Samuel Anthamatten (SUI) 69.67
Men’s Snowboard Results (Top 10)
1. Jonathan Charlet (FRA) 90.33
2. Ralph Backstrom (USA) 88.00
3. Sammy Luebke (USA) 76.33
4. Irian Van Helfteren (NED) 71.67
5. Flo Orley (AUT) 69.67
6. Emilien Badoux (SUI) 67.33
7. Ludovic Guillot-Diat (FRA) 66.33)
8. Tim Carlson (USA) 61.33
9. Jamie Rizzuto (CAN) 60.33
10. Xavier de Le Rue (FRA) 42.67
Women’s Ski Results (Top 10)
1. Christine Hargin (SWE) 80.00
2. Nadine Wallner (AUT) 72.33
3. Pia Nic Gunderson (NOR) 70.67
4. Lorraine Huber (AUT) 69.33
5. Crystal Wright (USA) 64.00
6. Anne May Slinning (NOR) 61.33
7. Ashley Maxfield (USA) 55.00
8. Jess McMillan (USA) 40.00
9. Natalie Segal (AUS) 23.67
10. Jacklyn Paason (USA) 16.67
Women’s Snowboard Results (Top 7)
1. Laura Dewey (USA) 70.00
2. Margot Rozies (FRA) 69.00
3. Aline Bock (GER) 57.33
4. Casey Lucas (USA) 55.67
5. Elodie Mouthon (FRA) 53.67
6. Anouck Mouthon (FRA) 52.00
7. Iris Lazzareschi (SAU) 38.00
