Three HEAD athletes in Freeride World Tour overall top three.

The Bec giveth and the Bec taketh away. Never has an overall 2nd place in the Freeride World Tour been so bittersweet as for the Norwegian Olympic mogul skier gone freeride queen, Hedvig Wessel. And few bronze medals so unanticipated and celebrated as Carl Regnér’s third spot in the overall ski men rankings. Snowboarder Cody Bramwell was also seemingly pleased with his trophy for the 3rd place in the overall snowboard category. But let’s take it back for a moment and set the scene.

 

Imagining you spent almost all your waking hours for the last days looking at one of the most intimidating mountain faces of the earth, Bec de Rosses. You stood across it in the howling wind with your binoculars. You looked at pictures of it on your computer in a dark hotel room. You see it in your dreams, if you’re able to catch any sleep. Wherever you go people talk about it. You create scenarios, draw lines, evaluate snow conditions based on visual inspection and second-hand information. You wake up early, try to shake the fear, set yourself in the best possible mental state. Try to have breakfast but the appetite is just not there. Get in a helicopter, land on a razor-sharp ledge, get your equipment and wait.

 

Freeriding is the essence of skiing. No man-made features, no gates, no stop watches. Just the mountain and the skier. And, in the case of the Freeride World Tour, a bunch of judges evaluating your every move. Hedvig Wessel was on the verge of claiming the overall title when the world closed down last spring. She was sitting in second overall and the decision was made to let the current ranking stand when the final was cancelled. That was tough for her, but acceptable. This year her faith was not in the hands of a global pandemic. She was in the yellow leader bib, she had been killing it all season, she was the last woman out of the start gate in the final, she was on her feet all the way down to the finish – and she lost by 20 points. 27 600 against 27 620. Yes, you’re allowed to cry when you come second.

And you’re allowed to smile when you get a third place. The Swede Carl Regnér made a promise early in the season to do a flat 3. Today was the last chance to put the money where his mouth is. A few turns into his run, on a right turn wind lip, he did. Maybe this inverted spin trick tipped the scale, maybe not, but as surprised as Hedvig looked over her second spot, the math seemed to also baffle the young swede as the numbers in the overall ranking was presented.

Cody Bramwell’s third place in the total wasn’t delivered with the same shock value. Nevertheless, he went from a rookie with the focus to just stay on the tour last year, to a contender for the big awards this season. Way to go!

 

Honorable mentions to Blake Marshall for firing away a bio 7 in the lower part of the venue. Blake finished 8th in comp today and 9th in the overall standings.