Friday’s slopestyle competition was a crucial result for both the men and women as the Swatch TTR Tour winds down for the 2009/2010 season.
The sun blazed, softening the course for the international field of riders. The setup consisted of two rail and box options to start things off that rolled into three kickers, and finished off with a canon rail or box option.
The men dropped first into the three-run final with some shakeups in the standings throughout the day. Bang was able to stick an outstanding second run that included a Cab 1080, switch backside 1260, frontside 1080 and finished off with a gap front board to fakie shifty on the canon rail. Bang’s first place finish bumped him up into World No. 7, giving him a shot to improve his ranking up into the Top 5 on Saturday. Ulrik Badertscher (NOR) and Sebastien Toutant (CAN) were able to secure second and third places, respectively, both with their third and final runs of the day.
In the women’s competition, Candrian had a great day on the hill, putting together a winning run that consisted of a Cab 540, frontside 720, backside 360 and a pole jam on the last feature. With a first place finish today, Candrian moves up to the World No. 1 position, putting her in an excellent position moving into the halfpipe competition Saturday and for the final female 6Star event, the Roxy Chicken Jam, next weekend.
“To win here is so good. It is a good position to be in now, but tomorrow is the pipe contest and I still have some difficulties and need to improve," Candrian said. "Luckily, there is another slopestyle in Mammoth and I hope it will go well there.”
Shelly Gotlieb (NZL) grabbed second place and American rider, Jamie Anderson, rounded out the podium with a third place finish.
Friday’s results set the stage for Saturday’s halfpipe finals where the men will be battling for a coveted TTR Top 5 finish, and the women will be looking to better their ranking positions before heading into the Roxy Chicken Jam at Mammoth Mountain, Calif.
Peetu Piiroinen (FIN), who finished in sixth place Friday, already has the Swatch TTR Snowboard World Champion title locked in but the remaining Top 5 spots are still up for grabs. Saturday’s 6Star halfpipe finals will be the last chance for all male riders currently ranked in the TTR Top 10 to make some moves and try to claim one of the Top 5 spots to secure a piece of the TTR prize purse and automatic invites to all major events for the 2010/2011 season.
