Thirteen participants braved the jump in Sunday’s Olen Nash Memorial Big Air Contest at Three Guardsmen Mountain in British Columbia.
“Every year, the skies part and we get blue sky,” said coordinator Luck Dunbar. “It was really calm, and I think there’s some kind of energy up there that feeds off of positivity.”
Skiers and snowboarders entered beginner, intermediate and advanced divisions, competing for prizes such as ski packages, an avalanche shovel and cash.
The rank-order of top finishers included Garrett Kroschel, Riley Nye and Tyler Thomas in advanced; Keegan Sundberg, Dawson Evenden and Charlie Bower in intermediate; and Ketch Jacobson, Kadin Doddridge, Cameron Bauer and rookie Marty Fowler in beginner.
Dunbar said the Big Air flips and spins drew a crowd of more than 60 people.
“I really appreciated that everybody with snowmachines was sticking to one track,” he said. “The whole base of Three Guardsmen was open for skiers.”
The contest had a $10 entry fee. Participants were judged on their air, style and landing. The event is named for founder Olen Nash, a local athlete who died in a 1999 commercial fishing accident.