Livestream der Freeride World Tour aus Vallnord, Andorra

Voraussichtlicher Start 13.02.2015 10:00 Uhr

“The face finally chosen, the Portella d’Arcalis, was not option A, but it certainly has many line opportunities and proposes challenges of many different kinds. There is a 45 degree steep top section with narrow passages and changing snow quality. There are cliffs of all sizes and many more trees than usual in these contests.   The rider who knows this face better than anyone else is, not surprisingly, the local FWQ skier Dani Fornell (AND) who has received a wild card for this stop. He is an experienced freerider and was generously helping out some of his peers during the face check with advice.  He describes the face as  “…very playful. Despite it being a little short, it has a ton of different options. Hundreds of cliffs and many passages.” He went on to explain one of the bigger challenges characteristic to this face: “It’s very easy to get lost, so you have to really memorize it well today,”  Dani explained. “I have a small advantage in that sense. But we are talking about some very, very good riders here and I know they will do well. I hope we will see many lines of very different nature, because the face really makes this possible.”   Snowboarder, Aurelien Routens (FRA), pinpointed the fact that the face poses some good opportunities for riders to show their technical skills. According to him, this complements well the first competition of the season in Chamonix-Mont-Blanc where the face, this year, was less technical and more freestyle oriented. With a 4th place at that event, he is well placed to qualify for Alaska and that’s a goal in itself he says: “Of course! That’s what we are competing for. To qualify for Alaska and for Verbier.”   Other riders, like last year’s runner-up in men’s skiing, Sam Smoothy (NZL) are toning the suspense down a little more. Struggling with a broken boot buckle in Chamonix-Mont-Blanc, Sam didn’t perform like he wanted on the first stop and things have to really go his way for an Alaska qualification now. “I try not to think about it too much. Just do one event at a time and we’ll see. In the meantime I’m just enjoying it and having a good time.”   The opportunity to have a good time is definitely present for those who will be watching the competition on the Portella d’Arcalis – whether on the spot in Vallnord-Arcalis, or together with the more than 100.000 who watch the live streaming from home.”

Quelle: Freerideworldtour.com