Big names make bank at the DB Export Banked Slalom 2015
Big names make bank at the DB Export Banked Slalom 2015
With the mass of recent snow and great blue-bird conditions in the Saddle Basin, Treble Cone’s natural halfpipe “Shooter” was the height of excitement on New Zealand’s ski fields today and the mountain, Wanaka, and the Southern Alps generally were in spectacular shape to host the annual Banked Slalom with a line up of snowboarding locals and hard hitting industry legends.
The 2015 event hosted a sell out line-up featuring some of the biggest industry names to date. In ideal conditions international super-stars of snowboarding went face to face with fierce locals and Treble Cone staff. Burton team members; Terje Haakonsen, Danny Davis and Mikkel Bang were all on board. As well as Slopestyle champ Ben Ferguson, Olympian Scotty Lago and famed genre film-maker Rich Goodwin.
Mikkel Bang was positive about his two weeks in New Zealand so far and happy to catch the great weather at the DB Export Banked Slalom; “can’t complain when it’s sunny, no wind and soft snow” said the Norwegian.
Treble Cone snowboard coach Volker Blepp, a past Banked Slalom podium finisher himself said of the visiting snowboard legends competing “It’s a chance to measure yourself against these guys, it’s really exciting.”
This year’s event also boasts our oldest female competitor in the competition’s history as Wanaka legend Janey Johnston, mother of last year’s Gold Medalist Richie, took to the slopes at 62. Racing alongside Team TC member and Freeride World Tour force Amber Schuecker.
Following a sold out afternoon of thrills and spills, the $2000 cash prize pool was awarded as follows:
Open Men’s
1st Place: Mikkel
Bang, 50:44
2nd Place: Scotty Lago, 50:57
3rd Place:
Ben Ferguson, 51:08
Open Women’s
1st Place: Amber
Schuecker, 57:16
2nd Place: Adele Walker, 1:01
3rd
Place: Barbora Bobuklova, 1:02
Treble Cone marketing coordinator Michael Steven says “from the team behind the scenes, we’re all ecstatic with the 2015 event and look forward to another epic day in winter 2016.”
Treble Cone wishes to thank the riders who competed, the key sponsors DB Export and Never Summer Snowboards, and event crew, and the Wanaka snowboard community for getting behind this event this year and every year.
ENDS