The Red Bull Linecatcher event in La Plagne (03/03/2009), is one of the first of its kind, where freestyle meets the big mountain. Riders are presented with a face, on which there have been built freestyle obstacles, predominantly kickers. The object is to ski a fluid line, as in a big mountain contest, but at the same time show off a technical freestyle ability as well, this may be off the natural or man-made features. This was hopefully the first of many of the Red Bull Linecatcher events, and all the riders agreed that it was a great competition, that pushed both them and the sport in a new direction.

Anthony Boronowsky won this first edition of the Red Bull Linecatcher with an amazing run. JP Auclair took second place and Richard Permin completed the podium.

The competition was started and then postponed due to bad weather conditions, but eventually there was enough of a break for the riders to show off their skills. Despite a clear night before, on the final day the chances of clouds coming in were high, so everyone had to be on deck early in the morning. The riders left base camp at 7:30 and started the hike up the ridge to the top of the Becoin face by 8:15. This reactivity paid off since the first contestant dropped into the face at 9:00. Luckily the timing turned out to be perfect, since all the riders got to do one run and with good visibility they performed solid runs and put on an impressive show with smooth tricks, huge cliff drops and very fluid lines, the kind of backcountry skiing we all dream of. The riders unanimously agreed on the exceptional quality of the event, despite big falls for some of them.

After viewing the video footage, the judges really had a hard time deciding on the winner, as the top three contestants were neck and neck. In the end, the Canadian Anthony Boronowsky convinced the three judges with his performance. Just behind him, another Canadian- but a Quebecois !- the legendary JP Auclair, who performed the only backflip of the event, took second place. Followed closely by the cheerful Frenchman, Richard Permin, who took third place with a very powerful run.
As to the prize for the best trick, it went to Bene Mayer for his outstanding Misty 7. This young man from Germany reached the foot of the podium to finish fourth. He would have most likely finished on the podium if he hadn’t lost his balance on the landing of the step up at the end of his run.

When asked about his performance yesterday, Anthony was happy to have chosen a line according to the snow conditions. This turned out to be a good bet, since he landed all his tricks, including a smooth 360 unnatural (spinning 360 the opposite way a trick was learned) off the second jump. He spun 360’s on all three jumps, which is very difficult to combine with a fluid line. “The snow was good in the line I had chosen. In fact the snow is what determined my run, it’s a crucial factor in this type of competition. I’m really pleased with this competition. Everything was perfect, including the face, the kickers and the organization of the event.”

Event Video Highlights:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fzhC717sc2I

JP Auclair, his compatriot from the French-speaking Eastern part of Canada, had to settle for only one run to prove that he is still one of the best skiers on the planet. He jumped a large cliff at the top of his run and skied it out down a couloir with the commitment of a true freeride skier. He then did a 360 off of kicker number 5 at the bottom of the face before throwing a crowd-pleasing backflip off the last hip. Insatiable at the end and with his legs on fire, he still managed to take the step up and spin a nice 720. Unfortunately the packed landing on this last jump deprived him of the victory. “I really had fun, especially down the exit gully where the snow was really good. I didn’t go all out on the jumps, and I didn’t do any very technical tricks because my goal was to land everything and get to the bottom. It was a very demanding contest and I admit my legs were like jelly at the end. But what a great contest, it was like a dream come true.”

Unpredictable Richard Permin won the prize for fluidity, with a very fast and powerful run. He spun a 360 on the bottom of the face and a 540 on the step up, while losing a few points to slightly dodgy landings, but he took a well-earned third place in the end. “I was lucky to be able to ski yesterday, so I was able to change my run a little, especially at the top where I had spun a Switch 5 and didn’t land it very well. In the end I’d like to give a big shout out to Julien Regnier who showed us that it is possible to organize a real backcountry skiing contest .”

Top Three Runs:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LAuH8yRfShU

Finally, a note on another great performance by Mathieu Imbert, who skied a very solid line, but who finished 5th because of a fall on the step up, which resulted in a torn off binding.

Is this beginning of a new era?…Three freestylers finished on the podium of this first Red Bull Linecatcher, proving that they can pull off some solid skiing and good tricks on a high altitude mountain face. What sets this event apart from a freeride event is the confidence the riders have in the prepared kickers and the landings. This first edition will be marked as the beginning of a new era. This new concept will surely cause a stir as backcountry skiing, a fusion of freeride and freestyle skiing, finally finds a stage worthy of its show.

Words and Photos courtesy of Red Bull