Big Sky skiers offer strong showing on home turf

Skiers on the Big Sky Ski Education Foundation Freeride Team took four podium spots at the Big Sky IFSA Junior 3* competition this weekend

By Julia Barton DIGITAL PRODUCER

BIG SKY—Skiers and snowboarders ages 12 to 18 from across the U.S. traveled to Big Sky Resort March 9-12 to compete in an International Freeskiing & Snowboarding Association national freeride competition. Athletes from the Big Sky Ski Education Foundation snagged four spots on the podium, including three gold medals: Hayes Livernois took the highly-competitive boy’s 15-18 year old skier category, Mac Bertelson the 12-14 boy’s ski title and Kennedy Cochenour won the 12-14 year old girl’s group.

Qualifying runs from the 12-14 male and female ski categories, as well as the 12-14 and 15-18 male and female snowboard categories took place on Thursday, March 9. The boy’s and girl’s 15-18 ski categories were scheduled to have their qualifying runs on Friday, but dangerously high winds delayed the competition until Saturday. The athletes picked their way through Obsidian, a feature-rich run off of the Lone Tree chairlift, for the first two days of competition. 

On Sunday, athletes hiked the Headwaters Ridge all the way out to Three Forks—a steep and technical venue—for their finals runs. Spectators and athletes alike enjoyed blue sky and sunny spring conditions for much of the weekend. 

A full list of winners for each category can be found below.

Note: EBS was only able to be at the competition on Saturday, thus only has photos from the qualifying runs of athletes who competed on that day. 

12-14 Ski Female

• 1st: Kennedy Cochenour (BSSEF)
• 2nd: Sabine Hurlbut (BSSEF)
• 3rd: Hania Nowak (Team Palisades Tahoe)

12-14 Ski Male

• 1st: Mac Bertelson (BSSEF)
• 2nd: Jacob McGill (Wasatch Freestyle)
• 3rd: Rigdon Hammond (Jackson Hole Evolution Team)

12-14 Snowboard Female

• 1st: Maya SB Wetzel (Alpental Freeride)
• 2nd: Skylar Hare (Teton Valley Ski Education Foundation)
• 3rd: Sydney Radtke (Grand Targhee Ski and Snowboard Foundation)

12-14 Snowboard Male

• 1st: Kaito Devine (Team Utah Snowboarding)
• 2nd: Wyatt Hoffman (Alpental Freeride)

15-18 Ski Female

• 1st: Katie Hersom (Flathead Freeride Club)
• 2nd: Maya Parsons (SBSEF Altabird Freeride)
• 3rd: Grace DesLauriers (Jackson Hole Ski and Snowboard Club)

15-18 Ski Male

• 1st: Hayes Livernois (BSSEF)
• 2nd: Declan Brewer (Jackson Hole Evolution Team)
• 3rd: Dieter Creitz (Alpental Freeride)

15-18 Snowboard Female

• 1st: Willow Newton (Teton Valley Ski Education Foundation
• 2nd: Emma Hall (IFSA Independent)

15-18 Snowboard Male

• 1st: Bradley Lamoreaux (Continental Divide Freeride)
• 2nd: Harrison Hoffman (Bridger Ski Foundation)
• 3rd: Drew Danielson (Team Palisades Tahoe)