Six Ring Circus

Huge gaps and tight landings were on the menu today as the third and final stop of the Vans Triple Crown of Snowboarding kicked off with the six-rider circus we call snowboard cross. Throughout the morning, volunteers made last-minute modifications to the course while the riders dashed into the trees for a taste of the twenty-some inches of fresh that Sierra-at-Tahoe has received in the past few days. When everyone returned for their mid-afternoon heats, Line Oestvold and Christoph Maierhofe had the freshest legs and the deepest need for speed.

"After a day like this, I am always so stoked by the great riders we have. They go for it. It's such a cool feeling to know that you are there with them...."— Christoph Maierhofe, Team Blue Window

Christoph Maierhofe of Team Blue Window took the top spot on the men's podium today, but he had to put up his dukes to do so. The heats were being won and lost in the first few gates and the riders weren't touching the brakes.

"Every heat was like the finals." said Maierhofe. When asked what it took to win on today's course, he replied, "A little bit of everything. Big balls, but the thing is, they all have big balls. After a day like this, I am always so stoked by the great riders we have. They go for it. It's such a cool feeling to know that you are there with them."

Screaming into 2nd place was Seth Wescott, with Bertrand Denervaud (Team Blue Window) following right behind.

Line Oestvold of Team Palmer lead out of the start gate in each heat, which was exactly what it took to win the women's division. The start of the course was steep and the first kicker wasn't exactly welcoming. Everyone launched the lip hoping to stomp the left side of the landing in an attempt to set up for the next gate. Charging six wide, all aiming for the same landing zone, the riders were fair but far from forgiving.

"The start was dangerous. It was easy to fall in the berms since there was so much snow there, but other than that it was nice." said Oestvold.

Karlee Baker stayed smooth and avoided the pile-ups to take the 2nd place prize, while Ine Poetzl of Team Blue Window took 3rd. Today's top three women are no strangers to the Triple Crown podium — they've been ruling the snowboard cross all season long.

Today's event was all for the spectators and nobody gave up easily. The riders were charging so hard that one accidentally took out one of the ESPN cameramen, though no one was seriously injured. Some of the competitors refused to run the race, claiming that the course was too dangerous, while others helped dig a new start gate to prevent the first roller from becoming a launch pad. Those who raced really wanted to be there.

	Oestvold

In early February, a whiteout — scratch that, a blizzard — forced Vans to postpone the snowboard cross and big air events of the Mount Seymour venue until early this week. The make-up events from the Mount Seymour comp were run during the last few days here at Sierra. On Tuesday, Philippe Conte won the men's snowboard cross and Ine Poetzl took the women's division with Oestvold in 2nd and Baker in 5th. I think these girls are taking turns letting each other win — nobody can touch them.

On Thursday, local ripper Jimmy Halopoff spun far above Lake Tahoe, landing a Cab 900 with a melon grab to take the men's division of the Mount Seymour big air. Tara Dakides spun her way to a women's big air 1st place finish. I've got all my money on her in tomorrow's slopestyle event...the odds have to be better than the blackjack tables.

Just to keep things interesting, Steve Van Doren and posse invaded the local bowling alley on Thursday night. Until then, I'd never seen someone bowl a strike standing backwards, rolling the ball between their legs. There were some seriously skilled bowlers out that night, donning bowling shirts that every die-hard would kill for. If anyone out there wants to sell theirs, let me know.

Believe it or not, the fun is just beginning. Some of the riders are still arriving and we're all gonna get silly. Everybody's invited and if I were you, I'd head to Sierra-at-Tahoe for the weekend. If that's not your style, be sure to check back — we're only getting warmed up.

— Lucas Kane, Doubling down for MountainZone.com