Lance Rees
ACTION UNDER LIGHTS AT THE RIP CURL THROWDOWN
The Rip Curl FreeRide Pro continued Wednesday night in Thredbo with the invitational “ThrowDown”, a two-hour jam session involving two gap jumps, a jam pole and down box. If it sounds technical it’s because it is, with Australia’s leading skiers and snowboarders throwing down some huge technical tricks and airs.
Despite the inclement weather – rain, fog and strong winds – the 40 competitors raised the bar, thrilling the spectators with switch airs (taking off and landing backwards), corked 900s (three off axis spins) and double back and front flips.
The Rip Curl ThrowDown uses a unique judging system where the riders choose the winner, each competitor voting for who they thought threw down the most spectacular airs.
The skiers chose Russ Henshaw, a Thredbo local and rated number two in the world in slopestyle and big air events. Henshaw landed a couple of big “450 rodeos off the canon” to finish ahead of another Jindabyne local Jordan Houghton with Mount Buller’s Watkin McLennan third.
Mens Podium - Lance Rees, Charles Beckinsale, Kieran McLaughlin & Pete Long
Falls Creek’s Kieran McLaughlin won the Men’s Open Snowboard with Jindabyne’s Charles Beckinsale and Thredbo’s Lance Rees equal second and another Jindabyne local Pete Long in third position. Beckinsale is the head of the Terrain Park Crew in Thredbo and is renowned as one of the best park designers in Australia.
The women’s snowboard was hotly contested, the girls ignoring the consequences and pushing the limit. Saphronne Farrell (East Jindabyne, NSW) took it out with some big front side 360s with Jess Rich (Mt Buller, VIC) and Courtney Phillipson (Mt Buller, VIC) equal second.
Women's Podium - Jess Rich, Saph Farrell & CP
Anna Segal (Melbourne, VIC), 2009 World Winter X Games champ, won the women’s ski, but her night ended in misery when she suffered a possible broken leg during an awkward fall on the down rail.
The finals of the Rip Curl FreeRide Pro are scheduled for Thursday morning in the expert natural terrain of Thredbo’s Bluff. More snow is forecast tonight and a decision on the finals going ahead will be made at 8am Thursday morning.
The Rip Curl FreeRide Pro and ThrowDown is proudly presented by Power Balance and is a part of the Thredbo FreeRide Series.
RIP CURL FREERIDE PRO WINNERS ANNOUNCED
The final day of the three-day waiting period for the Rip Curl FreeRide Pro has been called off this morning due to poor weather conditions affecting course conditions on Thredbo’s “Bluff” terrain.
The 2010 Rip Curl FreeRide Pro winners have been based off Day 1's results, with the highest scoring riders awarded the trophies.
New Zealand’s Olympian Snowboarder Mitch Brown takes the crown for the Open Men’s ahead of local Thredbo rider Peter Long in second place and Australia’s Olympic half-pipe finalist Ben Mates (Jindabyne, NSW) in third.
In the Open Men’s Ski division, Mt Buller’s Watkin McLennan is this year’s champion, ahead of Thredbo skier Jono Lipzker in second place and Jindabyne’s Scott Kneller in third place, also a member of the Australian Olympic team.
On the women’s side of competition, Jindabyne local Saphronne Farrell is the Open Snowboard winner followed by Thredbo's Laura Williams in second place and Wiki Jones (Swansea Heads, NSW) in third. Mt Buller’s Zoe Jaboor was the Women’s Open Ski champion, with Melbourne’s Anna Segal and Natalie Segal in second and third place, respectively.
The 2010 Rip Curl FreeRide Pro has gone down as another huge success this year, reinforcing its place as the premier ski and snowboard event on the Australian winter calendar.
The Rip Curl FreeRide Pro and ThrowDown is proudly presented by Power Balance and is a part of the Thredbo FreeRide Series.
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