UPDATE: The Northern Alberta Slopestyle Series event scheduled for Feb. 7 was cancelled because of treacherous road conditions. In a Facebook post, the Alberta Snowboarding Association said the event is tentatively rescheduled for March 7.
For the first time ever, this Saturday the Jasper Freemountain Snowboard Team will host the Alberta Snowboarding Association’s Northern Alberta Slopestyle Series at Marmot Basin.
This is the final event in a three-weekend competition that has brought snowboarders to Edmonton, Grande Prairie and now Jasper.
In each event, boarders collect points that contribute to their ranking in Northern Alberta, the province and all of Canada.
This is the first time Freemountain has participated in the event and, so far, head coach Cameron Vos said it’s been “awesome” and has opened Jasper’s athletes up to a whole new world of boarding.
“It’s kind of their first time competing in events where they’re getting points tallied up and they get to kind of see other talent that’s out there, like teams from Grande Prairie and we’ll probably see some teams from Calgary come up this weekend and from Edmonton.
“Right now it’s mainly for experience for them.”
Competitions are new for Jasper’s team. In the past, Freemountain focused primarily on teaching athletes how to have a good time on the mountain, but in recent years it has moved toward a more professional, competitive approach.
“It was definitely a grassroots team, helping the youth snowboarders in Jasper to improve their riding, but now it’s definitely leaning more towards a development team.”
With that recent change, Vos said the Northern Alberta Slopestyle Series has been great for Freemountain’s athletes.
“Part of our main goal is just to go there and give them something to drive towards, especially in their own riding; it helps them to stay motivated and they really look forward to [competitions], especially this weekend because it’s at Marmot.
“We can see it as coaches for sure, they’re just a little more motivated, more focused. It makes for better results for us as coaches, but also for them helping them develop their own riding. They’re not forced to do these competitions, but it definitely gives them some more drive than just general learning, which is good.”
Vos has been working with the Alberta Snowboard Association for a couple of years to bring the event to town, and he credited Marmot Basin for making it a reality and taking the initiative to rebuild the terrain park to create the best possible course.
Also contributing to the success of the event is a group of dedicated parents who have offered to volunteer their time on Saturday. Though, more volunteers would be welcome.
Vos said anyone interested in lending a hand is encouraged to contact the team through it’s Facebook page “Jasper Freemountain Snowboard Team.”
As for everyone else, if you’re on the hill Saturday, be sure to check out the slopestyle skills of athletes from around the region by popping by the terrain park.
Nicole Veerman
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