Freeride Program Update: March 2024
*There’s a lot of important info in this one! Please take a minute to look through everything!*
February! Winter finally decided to come for a visit! This month was a busy one for Freeride with lots of events and competitions throughout the region. Freeride went to competitions and events in Sun Valley, Grand Targhee, Park City and Snowbird. We also hosted Big Sky’s IFSA junior regional and the first two stops of our Wednesday Night Lights rail jam series. Additionally we’ve got information for all of our summer camps and programming finalized. The March newsletter will feature a re-cap of what happened in February, followed by updates on what is coming up!
Grand Targhee IFSA National Feb 1-4
Our first IFSA national of the season went down during the first weekend of February at Grand Targhee Resort. A common theme this season, the event was plagued with tough weather throughout. Both days of competition were held on Reliable, a crowd favorite venue. Big lines were thrown both in qualifiers and during the finals. Special shout out to Liam Thompson for qualifying 1st with a creative and smooth run. Unfortunately he kicked a shoe during tough conditions on finals day. Also shout out to Jack Kilmain who wowed the crowd with a huge air on finals day which bumped him from qualifying 11th to 2nd overall. Congratulations to all JHSC athletes who participated and put down incredible runs.
Podium results:
U19 Ski Boys:
2nd Jack Kilmain
3rd Alex Paul
U19 Ski Girls:
3rd Grace Deslauriers
U15 Ski Girls:
5th Tia Deslauriers
U15 SB Boys:
Mylo Iguchi
Sun Valley USASA Feb 1-4
"The JHSC Freeride & Alpine Programs brought 34 athletes to Sun Valley for four days of USASA competitions. Despite low snow depth and terrible weather conditions, the USASA Big Mountain West series and Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation (SVSEF) were able to make the event happen. With two days of skicross/snowboardcross racing and two days of slopestyle, JHSC athletes were able to achieve an astonishing 77 podium finishes, as well as eight athletes being awarded series champion. JHSC snowboard athlete Ace Emery won the prestigious Beverly Hay Snowboard Cup for the best overall snowboarder of the weekend. This is the second year in a row a JHSC athlete has won the award."
Big Sky IFSA Regional (Hosted by JHMR) Feb 8-11
This season has been tough all around (not just here in Jackson). With a historically dry season in Big Sky, the Event Organizers canceled their event. In the 11th hour, I got a call from JHMR admin asking if JHSSC would be willing to step in and assist in hosting the event. With just days before the first drop, Big Sky Ski Education Foundation, JHSC Freeride and JHMR got everything put together to move the event to our home court on Toilet bowl. Huge thanks to Patrick McCarthy and Jason Moore at JHMR, and Wallace Casper at BSSEF for pivoting and making these important competition starts happen for the kids in our region. Freeride athletes took full advantage of the excellent conditions on Toilet Bowl, and put down some incredible runs! Congratulations to all athletes who pushed themselves, the coaching staff is very impressed and proud of each and every one of you!
On the Podium:
U19 Ski Boys:
2nd: Owen Strand
4th: Keane Hultman
U19 Ski Girls:
4th: Piper Norwine
U15 Ski Boys:
3rd: Ashe Bessette
4th: Porter Farren
5th: Renny Roberts
U12 Ski Boys
2nd: Fin Rorhbaugh
3rd: McClay Rorhbaugh
U12 Ski Girls
2nd: Maeve Kavanagh
3rd: Sally Decker
U15 SB Boys
3rd: Ryder Musselman
U15 SB Girls - 1st: Ivy S.
U12 SB Boys - 1st: Noah H.
Futures Slopestyle Park City Feb. 12-16th
“For the first time, the Freeride Program headed to Park City for the Futures Tour Slopestyle event. Futures Tour is a National FIS level event and brings in the top kids from all over the country. We had great weather at the beginning of the week, but unfortunately weather conditions turned sour on comp day. The event was canceled, but the kids were still stoked to ski Woodward Park City.” - Matt Newton
Woodward Park City Training Trip Feb. 16-18
“Following the event, we had 20 athletes meet the Futures crew in Park City for three days of training on world class facilities. The athletes spent time in the terrain parks, trampoline and foam pits honing in their skills and learning new tricks.” - Matt Newton
Wednesday Night Light:s Feb 21, 28 and March 6th
Back again for the 2024 season is our home rail jam series, Wednesday Night Lights! Wednesday night lights is our unsanctioned entry level competition event. For young athletes just starting their competition journey, Wednesday Night Lights is the perfect place to give competition a try. For older athletes it’s a great place to try new tricks and learn new skills.
WNL #1 was a great success with lots of impressive competition runs. Congrats to all the JHSC Freeride athletes who showed up and pushed themselves!
WNL # 1 On the podium:
U10 Ski Boys: 1st: Fin R.
U10 Ski Girls: 1st Sally D.
U12 Ski Boys: 1st: McClay R., 2nd: James K., 3rd: Sam L.
U12 Ski Girls: 1st: Violet K.
U12 SB Boys: 1st: Noah H.
U15 Ski Boys: 1st: Zach L., 2nd: Dean H., 3rd: Bryer S.
U15 Ski Girls: 1st: Hazel S., 2nd: Maeve K.
U15 SB Boys: 1st: Ace Emery, 2nd: Noah Robertson , 3rd: Bennett Hultman
U15 SB Girls: 1st: Ivy Swain
Open Ski Men: 2nd: Nate Pruzan, 3rd: Liam Thompson
WNL # 2 On the podium:
U10 Ski Boys: 1st: Fin R.
U10 Ski Girls: 1st Sally D.
U12 Ski Boys: 1st: McClay R., 2nd: James K. ,3rd: Sam L.
U12 Ski Girls: 3rd: Violet K.
U12 SB Boys: 2nd: Noah H.
U15 Ski Boys: 1st: Zach L., 3rd: Bryer Strand
U15 Ski Girls: 1st: Maeve Kavanaugh
U15 SB Boys: 1st: Noah Robertson, 2nd: Ace Emery, 3rd: Bennett Hultman
U15 SB Girls: 1st: Ivy S.
Open Ski Men: 1st: Taz McBride, 2nd: Nate Pruzan
Grand Targhee USASA Regional Feb 23-25
“Our last USASA event of the season was at Grand Targhee. Targhee parks did a great job putting together a Slopestyle and Rail Jam course. JHSC athletes rode well and many secured their spot for USASA Nationals.” - Matt Newton
On the Podium:
15-16 Ski Boys Slopestyle: Liam Thompson- 2nd
13-14 Snowboard Boys Slopestyle: Bennett Hultman- 1st, Noah Robertson- 2nd
13-14 Snowboard Girls Slopestyle: Ivy Swain- 2nd
11-14 Ski Boys Rail Jam: Taz McBride-2nd
11-14 Snowboard Girls Rail Jam: - Ivy Swain- 1st
Snowbird IFSA National 2/29 - 3/3
Continuing the theme of tough competition conditions, the Snowbird IFSA national was a WINDY one. Throughout the weekend, winds were routinely 50+ mph with 100+ mph gusts. The mountain was unable to keep the tram and upper lifts running with the extreme weather. The competition was reduced to a one run competition with all runs being canceled on Saturday. Congratulations to all of the athletes who qualified for one of the most popular IFSA nationals in North America, and put down incredible runs in tough conditions and on a new venue.
Results:
U15 Ski Boys: 24th: Porter Farren, 30th: Brooks Egan, 34th: Renny Roberts
U15 Ski Girls: 9th: Tia Deslauriers
Grand Targhee IFSA Regional 3/1-3/3:
“This past weekend was a wild ride! Athletes, parents, and coaches alike battled our way over to Targhee for the IFSA Regional. Against road closures, difficult driving conditions, and event delays we were able to have a very successful event. The dedication of our athletes to this sport was paramount this weekend and every athlete brought their A Game! The U19 field battled through deep and difficult snow conditions. This snow took out a lot of athletes in this field. Even though there were some crashes the energy remained high and the stoke was shared with all athletes and teammates. A huge thanks to the parents for their patience and persistence.” - Max Wilbrecht
Results:
U19 Ski Boys: 3rd: Reece Hultman
U15 SB Boys: 3rd: Ryder Musselman
U15 Ski Boys: 7th: Payne Confer
U12 Ski Girls: 2nd: Maeve K., 4th: Violet K.
U12 Ski Boys: 1st: Fin R., 7th: McClay R.
Moving Forward:
We’ve got some exciting things for Freeride in the works!
Upcoming Events:
Big Sky IFSA National 3/6 - 3/10: Freeride is headed up to Big Sky to compete at the Big Sky IFSA National this upcoming weekend! This is our final regular season event of the season before its nationals time!
Carving the Future Wild West Rail Jam March 16th
USASA Nationals: USASA Nationals will be held at Copper Mountain, Colorado. We are excited to have over two dozen athletes in position to qualify. Invites for Nationals are coming on 3/15.
SB: March 31- April 4
Ski: April 4-11
Head Coaches Matt Newton (mnewton@jhskiclub.org) and Stefan Merriam (smerriam@jhskiclub.org) will be taking point on respective Ski/SB weeks.
IFSA Junior Championships April 7-14 : IFSA Junior Champs are being held in Breckenridge, Colorado this season. We’re excited for the excellent venue on Peak 6, where athletes will be competing well above the treeline on some of the best high alpine terrain in North America. Invites have yet to be released, but if your points are looking good, it’s time to start planning!
Here is the *tentative* event schedule
Sunday, April 7th: U12 Arrival and Check-in Snowboard U15 & U19 Arrival and Check-in
Monday, April 8th: U12 Preliminaries | Snowboard U15 & U19 Preliminaries
Tuesday, April 9th: U12 Finals | Snowboard U15 & U19 Finals
Wednesday, April 10th: Weather Day U12 | Weather Day Snowboard 12-18 | Ski Check-in | NO TIE GALA in Breckenridge
Thursday, April 11th: Preliminaries 12-14 Ski
Friday, April 12th: Preliminaries 15-18 Ski
Saturday, April 13th: FINALS 12-18 Ski
Sunday, April 14th: Weather Day 12-14 | 15-18 Ski Unofficial After Party - all welcome!
Snow King 24/25 Season Passes on Sale Now:
Considering it’s March, I can’t believe I’m already writing about next season! If your athlete will be in the Progression, Progression + or Competition program next season this will be the best deal you’ll get! “Early season pass deals are available from March 1st to April 30th with $525 Adult passes, $475 High School and Senior passes, $375 Junior Passes, and $1,300 Family passes for 2 adults and up to 4 kids under 18. - SK” Purchase Passes HERE.
USASA Nationals Snowboard
Summer Offerings
Mountain Bike Teams!
We’re excited to announce that we’ve gotten approval to start a competitive Downhill/Enduro Mountain Bike team for summer 2024.
Training will run from the first week school gets out, until school starts back up in the fall. We will be offering a Progression Team for rider’s interested in improving their skills and compete in home events at JHMR/Targhee. Additionally we will be offering a Comp Team for riders interested in traveling to regional events (Montana Enduro Series and Utah Gravity Series). Practice will be held twice weekly in the JHMR Bike Park with JHSC coaching staff. More information available on our website. Registration page currently being built!
Skateboard Camps
Skate Camps are back for Summer 2024. Stefan Merriam will be taking the lead on these camps. They will follow a similar format to years past, with beginner and advanced levels. Skate camps include transportation to area parks and skate instruction.
Dates:
Beginner: 6/26-6/27, 7/10-7/11, 7/17-7/18, 7/31-8/1
Advanced: 7/24-7/25 8/7-8/8
Open Enrollment: 8/14-8/15, 8/21-8/22, 8/28-8/29
Registration is now open! Link HERE.
Please feel free to reach out with any questions (smerriam@jhskiclub.org).
On Snow
Woodward Copper: 6/16-6/22
We’re excited to be returning to Woodward Copper for Summer 2024. Woodward is a great place for beginner to intermediate riders to work on skills on friendly sized features. It’s also great for advanced riders looking to work on perfecting some of their more difficult skills. Woodward is open to all athletes who will be enrolled on the Progression, Progression + or Competition Teams next season. Registration for WW Copper is open now! Register HERE, (make sure to select week 3). At checkout, use code “TEAM2024” for a $400 discount. (This discount code can only be used by Freeride team athletes). Upon completing registration send the registration confirmation to myself and Matt so we know who to account for. Additional coaches expense+transportation is estimated to be $400.
Contact Matt (mnewton@jhskiclub.org) with any questions.
Mt. Hood, Oregon: 7/7-7/13
We’re headed to Mt. Hood for some more fun on snow! Mt. Hood is the training ground for national teams from all over the world in June and July. They have all of the features you’ll find at Woodward, plus a halfpipe and pro-sized jump. This trip is aimed for more advanced riders looking to take their skills to L and XL sized features. Registration signup is currently being built in our system. We have availability for 12 athletes with a priority for returning Competition and Progression + team members.
Contact Matt Newton (mnewton@jhskiclub.org) with any questions.
Chile: El Colorado/La Parva/Valle Nevado
July 28th - August 7th
Powder skiing in July? Yes, it’s a thing! We’re excited to offer a Sudamerican experience for Freeride athletes this summer. This trip will not only have excellent skiing, but will be a cultural experience for our athletes. Santiago, Chile provides easy access to world class skiing high in the Andes. The terrain is steep and the freeride scene in South America is quickly growing. FRP team members will have stories to tell from this epic experience.
*only open for athletes 14+ or with a coaches recommendation*
Contact Collin (collin@jhskiclub.org) with any questions.
Thanks all for tuning in! As always, please reach out with any questions or concerns - Collin
