Simon Dumont and Keltie Hansen Win NAO Superpipe

Today marked the last day of competition for the North American Open, hosted at Breckenridge and presented by Paul Mitchell. Again, mother nature did not cooperate, bombarding us with snow and wind… and again, the competitors braved the elements, threw down and put on a show for the crowd. And just as with the slopestyle event, the halfpipe utilized a jam session format for qualifying, pulling 22 men and 5 women from the field to join the invited athletes.

It was in the finals, when the event saw big air and even bigger crashes, with most competitors falling at least one of their three runs, if not more. And despite a few course holds for wind, the competitors still gave it their all, boosting, hucking and sometimes wrecking, all in hopes of grabbing that first place spot.

On the women’s side of things, the girls threw down, 5s, alley oop, and big straight airs were the name of the game. Gina Gmeiner took her alley oop spinning and last hit 360 into 3rd place, while Angeli VanLaanen took some big crashes, but her huge airs and solid 540 in the middle secured her 2nd. But it was Keltie Hansen, and all three of her runs, that dominate the women’s pipe today.

The mens competition saw diverse runs, some being technical, some being based more on amplitude. Highlights included JP Solberg’s huge 1080s in the middle, Peter Olenick’s giant flatspins, Scott Hibbert avoiding serious injury, and Marshall Lacroix’s technical tricks. But it was newcomer Matt Duhamel snatching up the 3rd place spot, with Dan ‘the man’ Marion grabbing 2nd place, and the host himself, Simon Dumont taking home the win — and a new flatscreen TV, courtesy of Target.

Other highlights of the day included, Luke Van Valin giving out Target gift cards to fans who would do ridiculous stunts, Nike 6.0 was on hand, giving out vouchers for free shoes to lucky competitors. Once again, free (and delicious) lunch, beverages and snacks were provided throughout the day, keeping chilly spectators warm.

And as the event draws to a close, there was an omnipresent good feeling to the whole event. Sure the weather might not have cooperated, and not everyone can qualify for finals, but the sentiment being echoed around the event, all weekend, was that the competitors had fun. A world class halfpipe, built by the Nick Symon and his crew at Breckenridge, and Jon’s signature slopestyle course, a product of his unsurpassed jump building skills (Mr. Olsson was on the course late each night with Eric and the Breckenridge crew – all with spoons and protractors- making each jump perfect) along with the new unique compeition format (another Jon contribution), made this event what it was. Combine that with rider togetherness, free lunch, a good vibes, good beats, and a top level skiing from a strong field, there isn’t much more the riders could have asked for from an open event. Setting precedent as the first event in the Paul Mitchell Opens Freeski Tour, there are high hopes for the remaining two stops on the tour.

Big thanks to Jon Olsson and Simon Dumont, our gracious hosts this entire weekend, the event really went off, so thanks!

Men’s Top 10
1) Simon Dumont
2) Dan Marion
3) Matt Duhamel
4) Marshall Lacroix
5) Colby West
6) Peter Olenick
7) Christian Allen
8) Duncan Adams
9_ Taylor Felton
10) Evan Schwartz

Women’s Top 5
1) Keltie Hansen
2) Angeli VanLaanen
3) Gina Gmeiner
4) Jillian Kazley
5) MC Waryas

Thanks to Paul Mitchell, Breckenridge, Target, Oakley, Salomon, Skullcandy, Head, POC, Spyder and the rest of the sponsors and everyone who came out and supported an event in its infancy and helping create a one of kind event that will be around for years to come. Special Thanks to Nick Symon and Eric and the whole Breckenridge Park Crew for all their support, park skills and understanding during the event.