Matt Evans Wins Overall Free Mountain Award, Brittany Barefield Takes 3rd Place
Brittany Barefield earned 3rd Place for the 12-15 Girls. Photo: Billy Swan/JFT
This weekend the Crested Butte Mountain Sports team travelled to Snowbird, Utah to compete in the final stop of the Junior Freeskiing Tour. Coming off multiple podiums only four days earlier in Taos, expectations were high. The Junior Freeskiing Championships at Snowbird draws the highest level of competition in junior freeskiing, with athletes making their way from Canada and Europe to give their all against the best. Crested Butte’s team consisted of Nolan Blunck, Matt Evans, Oz Scott, James Beltz, Josie Byron, and Brittany Barefield.
Ian Borgeson’s Winning Run
For the ladies, Josie Byron and Brittany Barefield worked together to find a line that would help them overcome slow day one starts. Competing in her last girls 12-14 division (and also celebrating her 15th birthday), Brittany Barefield put together the highest scoring run in the finals, jumping from 7th to 3rd. Barefield skied both smooth and aggressive, finishing her run with a straightline to air, wowing the crowd and securing the podium. Skiing a similar line with the same finishing straight-line, Josie Byron upped her sored 3 1/3 points to secure an eighth place finish.
Nolan Blunck airing at Snowbird. Photo: Billy Swan/JFT
In the 15-18 boys division, three out of the four CBMST boys skied their way into the finals, with Matt Evans, Nolan Blunck, and Oz Scott sitting in 5th, 15th, and 20th respectively. In his only competition of the year, Scott put together a playful yet hard charging run, capping his run with a 25 ft air and earning himself 17th place. In his last competition as a junior, Nolan Blunck skied two solid runs, impressing the judges with his consistency and flow to take 13th place. Sitting in 5th going into the finals, Matt Evans attempted to storm the podium by back-flipping a 15 foot rock early in his run. Evans back-slapped his flip, however, losing five spots to finish in 10th.
Despite finishing lower than he would have hoped, Evan’s skiing and overall attitude earned him the overall Tecnica/Blizzard Free Mountain Award. The award “goes to the athlete who best exhibits on-hill/off-hill positive leadership and a sportsman-like attitude.” Next year, Evan’s will ski for Blizzard Skis and Technica Boots, a huge achievement for the 16 year-old.
Brittany Barefield puts the finish on a straightline at Snowbird. Photo: Billy Swan/JFT
Congratulations to Jess Sterrett of Alta/Bird (12-14 girls), Chase Whitney of Squaw Valley(12-14 boys), Sally Steves of Red Mountain, BC (15-18), and Ian Borgeson of Arapahoe Basin(15-18) for winning their respective divisions. Scroll up to see footage of Ian’s winning run.
