There are two things that former U.S. Alpine Ski Team athlete, Olympian, and Dartmouth graduate Libby Ludlow has always loved: skiing and writing. Ludlow's passions have merged as she has written her first book. She says that the greatest gift her parents gave her was her lifelong love for skiing, “I was able to endure the rigors of being a professional athlete simply because I adored my sport.”

With her passion for skiing still strong ten years after retiring from the U.S. Ski Team, Ludlow is the first to point out that her love for skiing started way back on the bunny hill when she was two years old. “Skiing is such a special sport, the mountain is a like a gigantic playground. I want the next generation of skiers to fall in love with skiing as much as I did.”

On November 13th, Ludlow launched A-B-Skis, a children’s alphabet book about the magical world of skiing. “I couldn’t be more excited to make A-B-Skis available to the skiing community. Adults will treasure sharing it with the kids in their life, and kids won’t be able to wait for their next trip to the ski hill.”

Designed to instill a lifelong love for skiing, A-B-Skis is a glimpse into everything that’s at the heart of the sport—from hot chocolate breaks to ripping runs with friends. The colorful illustrations by PSIA ski instructor Nathan Jarvis pique kid’s curiosity for the winter wonderland that awaits them on the slopes, while playful rhymes guide kids through everything they can expect on a typical ski day.

“I’ve always been an avid writer,” says Ludlow, “A-B-Skis is the perfect intersection of my passion for skiing, my love of writing, and my interest as a mom to share memorable experiences with my toddler. By using Kickstarter to launch A-B-Skis, Ludlow is collecting the orders needed to finalize her self-publishing push. She says that while her primary motivation for writing A-B-Skis is to help kids fall in love with the magic of skiing, the added benefit comes in the improved expectations and life-lessons that kids glean from the book.

“To me, an adult’s primary job when it comes to introducing kids to a new sport is to make sure they love it for life. A-B-Skis makes it easier for adults to share the stoke of skiing with their little ones.”

The funds from the Kickstarter campaign will help Ludlow pay for the cost to publish the book. Purchase by December 13th on Kickstarter. It is expected to be on shelves in the fall of 2019. To view or donate to the campaign, visit https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/abskis/a-b-skis.

Mikaela Shiffrin (Avon, Colo.) opened her quest for her sixth career FIS Ski World Cup slalom crystal globe with another dominating victory in the season-opening slalom under the lights in Levi, Finland on Saturday.

“I felt good, I was even surprised at how good the course felt with the warm conditions,” said Shiffrin, who now has 44 career World Cup victories, including three slalom wins in Levi—which equals Germany Maria Höfl-Riesch's record win count on the Levi Black slope. “I had a little bit of a scary moment on the pitch, but I fought through it and it was fun!”

The start of the first run was delayed an hour and moved further down the mountain due to windy conditions. Due to the wind, the gondola was also inoperable, so athletes were shuttled on buses to the start for inspection. But despite the warm temperatures, the course remained hard and fast. Shiffrin started first in the opening run and never looked back, taking a 0.14 second lead over Sweden’s Friday Hansdotter, who eventually settled for fourth.

Slovakia’s Petra Vhlova skied a solid second run to finish second, 0.58 seconds back of Shiffrin’s winning time, and Austria’s Bernadette Schild was third, 0.79 seconds back. Resi Stiegler (Jackson Hole, Wyo.), who was racing for the first time since sustaining a knee injury at the Olympic slalom in PyeongChang, and Nina O’Brien (Denver, Colo.), also started for the U.S. but did not qualify for the second run.

Saturday’s victory also moves Shiffrin into the overall World Cup lead, following her third-place finish in the giant slalom at Soelden, Austria, last month. With 160 points, Shiffrin leads the standings over France's Tessa Worley (100 points) followed by Switzerland's Wendy Holdener (81 points). 

The women’s World Cup circuit moves on to Vermont’s Killington Resort for the Killington Cup, Nov. 24-25 with giant slalom and slalom events. Shiffrin has won the slalom the past two years at Killington and finished fifth in the giant slalom in 2016, and second in 2017.

Shiffrin’s reindeer herd also expanded with her third slalom victory in Levi. She named her newest addition Mr. Gru (from the movie Despicable Me). Mr. Gru joins Sven, won in 2016, and Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer won in 2013.

Following the cancellation of the giant slalom in Soelden, the men’s World Cup season kicks off Sunday at Levi with slalom. American men's starters will be Mark Engel (Truckee, Calif.), Hig Roberts (Steamboat Springs, Colo.) Robby Kelley (Starksboro, Vt.), River Radamus (Edwards, Colo.) and Luke Winters (Gresham, Ore.). 

RESULTS
Women’s Slalom

HOW TO WATCH
*All times EST.

ALPINE
Sunday, Nov. 18
4:00-5:30 a.m. - World Cup men’s SL, first run, Levi, FIN - NBC Sports Gold*
7:00-8:30 a.m. - World Cup men’s SL, second run, Levi, FIN - NBC Sports Gold*
7:00-8:30 a.m. - World Cup men’s SL, second run, Levi, FIN - The Olympic Channel
12:00-1:30 p.m. - World Cup slalom weekend recap, Levi, FIN - NBCSN

*NBC Sports Gold, NBC Sports Digital’s direct-to-consumer live streaming product “Snow Pass” provides fans access to live and on-demand domestic and international competitions of seven Olympic winter sports from October 2018 through April 2019.

The Snow Pass provides access to every second of race action throughout the season. Whoever you support, their races will be broadcast on the Snow Pass. NBC will also email you prior to each event to remind you of live broadcast times on Snow Pass, and if you can’t watch live, the entire event will be available to replay, all for under 20 cents per day.

In Finnish Lapland, the FIS Ski World Cup slalom kickoff is a bit more magical than most stops. Santa attends the races, the prize is a reindeer, the Northern Lights are alive, and you can't escape the sparkles and the holiday vibes. 

After a solid training block for the women in Copper Mountain, Colorado with an injected surface, and some time to acclimate to the time difference, the ladies are ready to rock up in the Northland. The slalom crew will be led by Olympic gold medalist, World Champion, two-time overall winner and five-time slalom titleholder Mikaela Shiffrin (Avon, Colo.), who already has two reindeer to her name. In 2013 and 2016, Shiffrin grabbed the Levi win and named her reindeer Rudolph and Sven, respectively. 

Last season, Shiffrin was second to Slovakia's Petra Vlhova, but she's feeling prepared, confident and strong heading into Saturday's slalom kickoff. It's not easy to travel across the world for the slalom kickoff, and the ladies were able to get some good time ahead of the weekend's race to get over jet lag, get some training under their belt on Levi soil, and they're looking forward to crushing. Nina O'Brien (Edwards, Colo.) and Resi Stiegler (Jackson, Wyo.) both got some great training in while in Colorado and were able to see where they stacked up against the best in the world in training with teammate Shiffrin. 

On the men's side, new coach Martin Andersen touched base with us earlier this week and said that although it's been a warm, wet week of training in Levi, the guys were able to get some great training in at both Kvitfjell, Norway, and Levi. The weather forecast for men's race day is looking good and the guys are feeling ready. With Sölden, Austria's giant slalom canceled due to weather, this will be Luke Winters' (Gresham, Ore.) debut World Cup start. Keep an eye on both he and teammate River Radamus (Edwards, Colo.), who are fresh faces on the World Cup circuit, but will make it more of a home this season. 

See who to watch and where to catch all the action below.

WOMEN’S STARTERS

• Nina O’Brien
• Mikaela Shiffrin
• Resi Stiegler

MEN’S STARTERS

• Mark Engel
• Hig Roberts
• Robby Kelley
• River Radamus
• Luke Winters*

*Denotes first World Cup Start

HOW TO WATCH
*All times EST.
ALPINE

Saturday, Nov. 17
4:00-5:30 a.m. - World Cup women’s SL, first run, Levi, FIN - NBC Sports Gold*
7:00-8:30 a.m. - World Cup women’s SL, second run, Levi, FIN - NBC Sports Gold*
7:00-8:30 a.m. - World Cup women’s SL, second run, Levi, FIN - The Olympic Channel

Sunday, Nov. 18
4:00-5:30 a.m. - World Cup men’s SL, first run, Levi, FIN - NBC Sports Gold*
7:00-8:30 a.m. - World Cup men’s SL, second run, Levi, FIN - NBC Sports Gold*
7:00-8:30 a.m. - World Cup men’s SL, second run, Levi, FIN - The Olympic Channel
12:00-1:30 p.m. - World Cup slalom weekend recap, Levi, FIN - NBCSN

* NBC Sports Gold, NBC Sports Digital’s direct-to-consumer live streaming product “Snow Pass” provides fans access to live and on-demand domestic and international competitions of seven Olympic winter sports from October 2018 through April 2019.

The Snow Pass provides access to every second of race action throughout the season. Whoever you support, their races will be broadcast on the Snow Pass. NBC will also email you prior to each event to remind you of live broadcast times on Snow Pass, and if you can’t watch live, the entire event will be available to replay, all for under 20 cents per day. ​​​​

U.S. Ski & Snowboard announced today an exciting new partnership with Bulletproof 360, a leading science-based food and beverage company, focusing on their widely popular Bulletproof Coffee beverage. Bulletproof’s iconic coffee beverage is not your average latte; it is made with Brain Octane oil® and grass-fed butter to provide a quick and reliable energy source throughout the day. As U.S. Ski & Snowboard’s official coffee supplier, Bulletproof 360 will help keep the world’s top ski and snowboard athletes fueled, focused and achieving optimum performance levels on and off the slopes.

The partnership will kick off on November 23 at the Killington Cup in Killington, Vermont. Spectators and fans at home will watch female national and international alpine ski superstars debut the Bulletproof branded race bib during the Giant Slalom event. This is the only domestic stop for the women of the alpine ski team, including two-time Olympic gold medalist Mikaela Shiffrin who will seek a third consecutive top finish at the venue. Bulletproof will also support athletes at the Toyota U.S. Grand Prix Copper Mountain Freeski and Snowboard event in December, among other domestic U.S. Ski & Snowboard events throughout the season.

“Bulletproof’s belief that all people have the ability to achieve super-human goals falls directly in line with U.S. Ski & Snowboard’s mission of creating the best ski and snowboard athletes in the world,” said Dan Barnett, U.S. Ski & Snowboard’s Chief Marketing Officer. “Bulletproof’s coffee products boost energy and brain function and will help athletes on their journey to the podium. We are excited to offer these products to our athletes as they train and compete this season.”

“We’re thrilled to support some of the most elite athletes in the world and help them achieve peak performance levels with Bulletproof Coffee,” said Karen Huh, VP of Brand and Product Strategy of Bulletproof 360. “We offer products that enable anyone to perform at the top of their game. These are competitions where athletes are looking to optimize their control, speed, and focus, and Bulletproof Coffee offers just that.”

After a productive final prep period camp featuring sunshine, blue skies, “hero snow,” and many very early, cold mornings at the U.S. Ski Team Speed Center at Copper Mountain the last couple of weeks, U.S. Ski & Snowboard has officially announced the 2018-19 U.S. Alpine Team, featuring three Olympic champions including Ted Ligety (Park City, Utah), Mikaela Shiffrin (Avon, Colo.) and Lindsey Vonn (Vail, Colo.). 

The season kicked off in Sölden, Austria with women’s giant slalom race the last weekend of October, where Shiffrin grabbed a hard-fought podium, finishing third place. Unfortunately, the men’s giant slalom race was canceled due to weather but will be rescheduled in Saalbach-Hinterglemm, Austria in December. With some solid training under their belt in a very wintry Copper Mountain, the team is ready to tackle this weekend’s slalom kickoff in Levi, Finland, and eagerly awaits the North American tour, starting with the much-anticipated women’s tech series in Killington, Vermont and a men’s speed series in Lake Louise, Canada on Thanksgiving weekend.

First, let's get you acquainted with the TV broadcast schedule. 

So, what’s there to look forward to this season?! Plenty. Let’s talk shop.

Vonn has done it all...almost. Winningest female ski racer of all time with 82 FIS Ski World Cup victories across all five disciplines—slalom, giant slalom, super-G, downhill and combined. She’s the 2010 Olympic downhill champion. She has a record 20 World Cup titles, and seven World Championship medals to her name. There’s just one more thing left to do, and Vonn has her eyes on the prize. With just five more World Cup wins, she’ll surpass the Swede Ingemar Stenmark, becoming the winningest ski racer of ALL TIME. But that’s not all, folks.  

After missing the downhill globe to Italy’s Sofia Goggia in the 2017-18 season by a mere three points, Vonn will be going for the downhill globe too. It won’t be easy. A 34-years-old veteran, Vonn will have a host of solid speed competitors to fend off this season. She’ll have multiple opportunities at Lake Louise, Alberta, aka, “Lake Lindsey”—where she has won more than any athlete ever, setting the stage for what will very likely be a historic season. Injury after injury…and Vonn has gotten back up. Every. Single. Time. Plus! It’s a World Championships season, and the alpine team will be heading to Åre, Sweden in February. Don’t count Vonn out as a medalist in speed. Keep a close eye in on Vonn in her final season to see if she will go into the record books as the winningest ski racer—male or female—of all time.

One of the most humble and hardworking to touch the sport of alpine ski racing, Shiffrin has been crowned the number one female alpine skier in the world two years in a row. At just 23-years-old, this double Olympic Champ and silver medalist is en fuego. She’s a three-time World Champion in slalom, and a five-time overall slalom titleholder in the last six years. This “slalom specialist” has even got a downhill victory to her name. Yup. It’s not about all of that, though. For Shiffrin, it's about skiing her best on any given day and maximizing the time she has on the mountain as a true student of the sport. And, to her, that means perfecting giant slalom. With the Olympic gold medal no longer elusive, she wants that globe. Another slalom globe? Yup. More speed success, and a super-G win? Yup. Overall? You better believe it. World Championship gold in giant slalom? It's on her radar!

With 32 slalom victories, she’s on the heels of her childhood hero—Austrian Marlies Schild—who holds the record of 35 slalom victories. It seems like every weekend there’s a new record for Shiffrin to break. She can’t even keep track anymore. Actually, she never has. And this year she has the chance to make history as the first ski racer to win four consecutive World Championship gold medals in slalom.

Two veterans on the women’s side—Resi Stiegler (Jackson, Wyo.) and Laurenne Ross (Bend, Ore.) are a formidable pair that have the speed to land on the podium in tech and speed, respectively...and the flair, ferociousness, and competitive fire to boot.

Ligety is a father, a business owner, and a game changer in the sport of alpine ski racing. Ask rookie teammate River Radamus (Edwards, Colo.), and he’ll tell you Ligety revolutionized the discipline of giant slalom. He’s a legend. This two-time Olympic champion, five-time World Champion, and five-time giant slalom globe winner has gas left in the tank—and with a full, injury-free prep period for the first time in two years, Ligety is looking for another gear. He had five straight giant slalom victories on the famed Birds of Prey, a track he loves and looks forward to returning to in December, in the giant slalom opener of the season. You can count on Ligety when it matters most. Keep an eye on him as he travels the road to World Championships.  

At 36-years-old, veteran Steven Nyman (Sundance, Utah) will be returning from back-to-back seasons with knee injuries for a full 2019 season schedule, starting with Lake Louise. Most known for his “King of the Saslong” title, with three victories on the classic Val Gardena, Italy track, Nyman could tie former Italian ski racer Kristian Ghedina with four victories. Fun fact? They share the same magic man—Fischer serviceman extraordinaire—Leo Mussi. Plus, like a fine wine, downhillers get better over time, as knowledge of the track benefits downhillers. Nyman could shine once again in Val Gardena and watch closely during World Championships in Åre—a track he’s had a lot of experience on, as he and the downhillers have a lot of miles of training at that venue.

2015 World Championships downhill silver medalist Travis Ganong (Squaw Valley, Calif.) and teammate Thomas Biesemeyer (Keene, N.Y.) will return from injury as well, and Bryce Bennett (Squaw Valley, Calif.) and Jared Goldberg (Holladay, Utah) look to capitalize on their strong skiing during the 2017-18 season. A pair of giant slalom/super-G skiers—Tommy Ford (Bend, Ore.) and Ryan Cochran-Siegle (Starksboro, Vt.)—are skiing fast and focused in training, and looking to lay it down and make their mark on the big stage.

Coming out of the PyeongChang Olympics much has been said about the renewed focus on alpine development, and this season you all will be able to witness the fruits of that effort. The “young guns” to watch this season as they make their transition from NorAm and Europa Cups to the World Cup stage are 17-year-old A.J. Hurt (Squaw Valley, Calif.), Radamus, and Luke Winters (Gresham, Ore.). Hurt snagged her first World Cup start at just 16-years-old in Killington, Vermont last season, and has the talent to do something special for years to come.

Radamus and Winters had a double podium in super-G at World Juniors in Davos, Switzerland in 2018. Radamus has flair on the mountain, to match his name. And speed. He won the hat-trick of golds at the Youth Olympic Games in Lillehammer, Norway in 2016, then grabbed a silver medal in the alpine combined at World Juniors in 2017, and was the NorAm Overall winner in 2018. Hometown boy Radamus will grace this year’s Birds of Prey poster, and he couldn’t be more stoked. He grew up collecting every Birds of Prey poster, so this is pretty rad (yep, I did that) for him. However, he notes, if you go to his house to check out the collection, you'll find "an embarrassing amount of Lindsey and Ted posters."

Keep an eye on these young athletes this season, as they make more frequent World Cup appearances, and definitely watch them as we head into the next Olympic cycle. 

2018-19 U.S. Alpine Ski Team
Name (hometown; home club; birthdate)

A TEAM
Men
Travis Ganong (Squaw Valley, Calif.; Squaw Valley Ski Team; 7/14/1988)
Ted Ligety (Park City, Utah; Park City Ski and Snowboard; 8/31/1984)
Steven Nyman (Sundance, Utah; Park City Ski and Snowboard/Sundance Ski Team; 2/12/1982)

Women
Breezy Johnson (Victor, Idaho; Rowmark Ski Academy; 1/19/1996)**
Alice McKennis (New Castle, Colo.; Sunlight Winter Sports Club/Rowmark Ski Academy; 8/18/1989)**
Laurenne Ross (Bend, Ore.; Mt. Bachelor Sports Education Foundation; 8/17/1988)
Mikaela Shiffrin (Eagle-Vail, Colo.; Burke Mountain Academy/Ski & Snowboard Club Vail; 3/13/1995)
Lindsey Vonn (Vail, Colo.; Ski & Snowboard Club Vail/Buck Hill Ski Team; 10/18/1984)
Jacqueline Wiles (Aurora, Ore.; White Pass Ski Club; 7/13/1992)**

B TEAM
Men
Bryce Bennett (Squaw Valley, Calif.; Squaw Valley Ski Team; 7/14/1992)
Tommy Biesemeyer (Keene, NY; New York Ski Education Foundation; 1/30/1989)
Ryan Cochran-Siegle (Starksboro, Vt.; Cochran’s/Mount Mansfield Ski & Snowboard Club; 3/27/1992)
Tommy Ford (Bend, Ore.; Mt. Bachelor Ski Education Foundation; 3/20/1989)       
Jared Goldberg (Holladay, Utah; Snowbird Sports Education Foundation; 6/15/1991)
Sam Morse (Carrabassett Valley, Maine; Carrabassett Valley Academy; 5/27/1996)
River Radamus (Edwards, Colo.; Ski & Snowboard Club Vail; 2/12/1998)
Luke Winters (Gresham, Ore.; Sugar Bowl Academy; 4/2/1997)*

Women
AJ Hurt (Carnelian Bay, Calif.; Squaw Valley Ski Team; 12/5/2000)*
Alice Merryweather (Hingham, Mass.; Attitash Race Team/Stratton Mountain School; 10/5/1996)
Nina O’Brien (San Francisco, Calif.; Burke Mountain Academy/Squaw Valley Ski Team; 11/29/1997)
Resi Stiegler (Jackson, Wyo.; Jackson Hole Ski Club; 11/14/1985)

C TEAM
Men
Cooper Cornelius (Glenwood Springs, Colo.; Ski & Snowboard Club Vail; 6/20/1999)*
Nick Krause (Northboro, Mass.; Stratton Mountain School; 5/12/1993)
Kyle Negomir (Littleton, Colo.; Ski & Snowboard Club Vail; 10/3/1998)*
George Steffey (Lyme, N.H.; Stratton Mountain School; 8/8/1997)**

Women
Abi Jewett (Ripton, Vt.; Green Mountain Valley School; 1/10/2000)*
Tricia Mangan (Derby, N.Y.; Holimont Race Team; 3/7/1997)
Katie Hensien (Redmond, Wash.; Rowmark Ski Academy; 12/1/1999)
Galena Wardle (Aspen, Colo.; Aspen Valley Ski & Snowboard Club; 4/24/1998)

DEVELOPMENT TEAM
Men
Andrew Miller (Park City, Utah; Park City Ski Team; 12/18/1998)*
Isaiah Nelson (Wayzata, MN.; Buck Hill Ski Racing Club; 4/3/2001)*
Ben Ritchie (Waitsfield, VT; Green Mountain Valley School; 9/5/2000)*
Jett Seymour (Steamboat, Colo.; Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club/University of Denver Ski Team; 11/5/1998)
Trey Seymour (Steamboat, Colo.; Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club; 10/13/2000)*

Women
Keely Cashman (Strawberry, Calif.; Squaw Valley Ski Team; 4/4/1999)
Cecily Decker (Saranac Lake, N.Y.; New York Ski Education Foundation; 5/16/1998)**
Ainsley Proffit (St. Louis, MO; Sugar Bowl Ski Team & Academy; 3/21/2001)*
Nellie-Rose Talbot (Vail, Colo.; Ski & Snowboard Club Vail; 8/24/1999)
Nicola Rountree-Williams (Edwards, Colo.; Loveland Ski Area/Ski & Snowboard Club Vail; 7/7/2002)*
Zoe Zimmermann (Gilford, N.H.; Burke Mountain Academy; 5/16/2002)*

*Newly named to the U.S. Ski Team
**Currently sidelined due to injury, but WILL be back in the future. Stay tuned. 

Official U.S. Alpine Ski Team Partners can be found here.

HEY! Would you like to sign up for Megan Harrod's World Cup Notes—a behind-the-scenes race day communication? Yeah?! Click here, fill out the form, and tick the "Alpine World Cup Notes from Megan Harrod" box. 

Emotions run high in the opening seconds of Off Piste: Tragedy in the Alps, a new film released by the Bryce and Ronnie Snow Safety Foundation (BRASS). Young athletes dig frantically in the snow searching for their two friends buried under meters of heavy, compacted snow. But it’s too late.

Avalanches are a powerful force of mother nature. The very mountains that bring such life to skiers and snowboarders can just as quickly take it away. Off Piste: Tragedy in the Alps is a poignant reminder of that and a brilliant educational tool to help introduce skiers and snowboarders to basic steps to stay safe in the backcountry.

In January 2015 an avalanche in Sölden, Austria took the lives of two promising young stars of the U.S. Ski Team. They and their teammates were innocently enjoying the sport they love when tragedy struck. The BRASS Foundation, formed in 2016, was born out of the tragic avalanche deaths of Ronnie Berlack and Bryce Astle to create a legacy of changes in the culture of avalanche safety. Its mission is to lobby for the evolution of snow safety systems and to advocate for greater penetration of avalanche education.

The film and a detailed accident report were released by BRASS to help build greater awareness in the skiing and snowboarding community for avalanche safety.

The 13-minute film was produced for BRASS by Trent Meisenheimer and Arius Sorbonne from the Utah Avalanche Center. It will be utilized at workshops produced by BRASS and other avalanche education organizations. Ski and snowboard competition clubs around the country and the world will use it as a teaching tool. Among the stars featured in the film are Olympic champions Bode Miller, Mikaela Shiffrin and Ted Ligety, as well as downhill star Steven Nyman.

"Right from the time of Ronnie and Bryce's accident it's been the goal of the families to use the tragedy as an opportunity to educate others," said BRASS Chairman Jamie Astle, father of Bryce. "For that reason, we wanted to be very candid and forthcoming with the film to reach viewing audiences with a very simple yet poignant message."

Off Piste, roughly translated as ‘off trail,’ is titled after the common terminology in the sport referring to skiing or riding off traditional groomed ski runs in a resort or in the mountain backcountry.

The film is impactful from the start with a re-creation of the rescue of Ronnie and Bryce as teammates frantically search for their friends. It features dramatic avalanche footage from other backcountry accidents that show vividly the power of sliding snow.

Most of all, though, it conveys a powerful message and simple tips to help skiers and snowboarders stay safe.

Through the eyes of their families, you learn who Ronnie and Bryce were. From their teammates who were with them, you learn what they were thinking when they ventured off the groomed trail. You share the powerful, intense emotions they felt trying to find their friends.

"None of the young men in that group knew the difference between on and off piste," said Ronnie's father Steve Berlack. "Off piste in the United States is defined as out of bounds, going through a gate. In Europe, when you are off a groomer you are off piste."

The avalanche that day caused over 7-million pounds of snow to slide. Video of avalanches and a graphic rendition of the Sölden avalanche paint a vivid picture. Accounts in the film document the small but important elements of the accident that could have changed the story that day.

"It takes all of 20 minutes to be learn and be educated enough to have an impact on that situation," said gold medalist Bode Miller.

"You want to be prepared," says Olympic champion Mikaela Shiffrin. "There are five points that are good to remember: You want to get the gear, get the training, get the forecast, get the picture and get out of harm's way."

Through the eyes of both U.S. Ski Team stars and avalanche experts, each of the five points are explored in the film.

"Being a ski racer is a definitely a dangerous sport. What we're going down is a highly regulated area with fencing and snow prep - you have all these things to keep you safe," said Olympic gold medalist Ted Ligety. "You get out there into the backcountry there are none of those luxuries, that's for sure."

"For the people who assume that just because know how to ski terrain or rip down a mountain because they ski downhill, it's a very different beast," said Shiffrin.

BRASS is making the film available at no cost to clubs or individuals to help increase awareness and educate.

"We hope that Off Piste gets people thinking," said Astle. "It's not a replacement for an avalanche safety course. But in 13 minutes it will give any skier or snowboarder some tools they can use for decision making."

The release of Off Piste: Tragedy in the Alps is combined with a very candid and revealing report of the details of the accident in Sölden, which is available at www.brassfoundation.org. "The film Off Piste and the accident report are designed to share actual information from the accident so it will positively impact others and prevent similar tragedies," said Astle.

The video is available from BRASS free for any educational showing. It can be found on the BRASS website, YouTube, Vimeo or Facebook. <add links>

Additional information on avalanche safety and education are available from a host of regional and national organizations, including the Utah Avalanche Center which is releasing a series of free online avalanche courses.

Avalanche Information Resources

• BRASS Foundation
• American Institute for Avalanche Research and Education
• Colorado Avalanche Information Center
• Know Before You Go
• National Avalanche Center - U.S. Forest Service
• Utah Avalanche Center

Off Piste: Tragedy in the Alps

• Full length (high resolution)
• Full length (low resolution)
• One minute trailer (high resolution)
• One minute trailer (low resolution)

NOTE: Off Piste: Tragedy in the Alps is available license-free for educational use only. It may not be excerpted or shown commercially without permission of the BRASS Foundation.

About BRASS Foundation
The Bryce and Ronnie Athlete Snow Safety Foundation was born out of the tragic avalanche deaths of U.S. Ski Team athletes Ronnie Berlack and Bryce Astle to create a legacy of changes in the culture of avalanche safety. Its mission is to lobby for the evolution of snow safety systems and to advocate for greater penetration of avalanche education. It works closely with avalanche industry organizations in the USA and around the world. The BRASS Foundation is a 501(c)3 non-profit relying entirely on donations from passionate private and commercial supporters.
 

The U.S. Moguls Ski Team wrapped a successful week of training at Colorado's Wolf Creek Ski Area on November 11. Due to a lack of snow in Austria, the team had to change their original plans of training in Kaprun for a nine-day prep camp in November. Luckily mother nature cooperated in Colorado where early and consistent snow has fallen, allowing many resorts to open earlier than expected.

Wolf Creek opened to the public on October 13, the second earliest opening date in the resort’s history. The resort has received 58 inches of its characteristically dry, light snow so far this season, and the U.S. Moguls Ski Team was all too excited to get to work on it.

“The snow is fantastic in Wolf Creek,” said Caleb Martin, world cup moguls coach for U.S. Ski & Snowboard. “The 28-inch base is skiing really well. The course is in a natural gully where additional snow has blown in. Wolf Creek is providing the best mogul training in the world at this time. It’s amazing to have this kind of high-quality training during the first week of November.”

Just because a ski area is open, that doesn’t mean it is ready to host moguls training. It took three days of hand shoveling before the course was ready for athletes. U.S. Ski & Snowboard staff Matt Gnoza, head moguls coach; Caleb Martin, moguls world cup coach; Vladimir Lebedev, moguls world cup coach; two Telluride Freestyle Team staff and four Wolf Creek employees all pitched in time and hard work to make this camp a reality.

The result was a 150-meter long course, featuring 14 top turns into a jump site with a 30-degree landing, followed by a 12 turn finish. The pitch averaged 28 degrees overall. The U.S. Moguls Team trained six days on the Wolf Creek course, averaging about 12 runs per day, per athlete.

“We target 60 days of on-snow training during our ‘prep period,’” explains Martin. “It is a goal to have at least six days on snow each month. Since our nine days of projected on snow training in Kaprun was canceled, we filled the void with six days in Wolf Creek, and added four more days to our pre-World Cup Ruka training."

Not only did athletes get in quality skiing time, they also spent quality time with their fans on Saturday (November 10) afternoon. Team members met spectators and aspiring professional skiers alike, signing water bottles, helmets, stickers and anything else that would hold a signature for over an hour and a half.

“Our training camp at Wolf Creek exceeded all of our expectations, The venue was awesome, the resort was amazingly supportive and the local skiers cheered us on while we trained. At a time when we didn’t have any other options for training, Wolf Creek stepped up and provided us with the perfect scenario leading up to our first World Cup in Finland next month.”
    - A Team Member Tess Johnson

The moguls team will head next to Ruka, Finland, for 10 more days of on-snow training preceding their season-opening World Cup event on December 7.

Olympic gold medalist Jessie Diggins (Afton, Minn.) leads the 16-member 2018-19 U.S. Cross Country Team, announced today by U.S. Ski & Snowboard, with a strong focus on the 2019 World Cross Country Championships. The team kicks off the 2018-19 FIS World Cup Cross Country season in Ruka, Finland, Nov. 24-25.

“The 2018-19 World Cup season has the potential to be one of the best in history for the USA,” said U.S. Cross Country Head Coach Chris Grover. “The athletes who earned 16 of a record 17 World Cup podiums last season are returning and are motivated to pick up where they left off.”

The team had a historic 2017-18 season with Diggins and Kikkan Randall (Anchorage, Alaska) winning the first Olympic gold medal for the U.S. in the team sprint. Diggins also finished the season ranked second in the overall World Cup standings, and third in the distance World Cup standings. Sophie Caldwell (Peru, Vt.) finishing third in the World Cup sprint standings. Sadie Bjornsen (Winthrop, Wash.) also had a breakthrough season with four individual podiums, finishing sixth in the overall World Cup standings. The 16-member team will look to carry that momentum into the 2018-19 World Championship season.

“I’m looking forward to kicking the season off with the team in a few short days,” Caldwell said. “Our team will go into each weekend with big goals, but our biggest focus this year will be World Champs in Seefeld, Austria, where we have had some success before.”

In addition to the grueling season-long World Cup schedule, many of the athletes will start the seven-stage Tour de Ski December 29 -January 6 – as a major focus of the season. Some athletes will race through the Val Mustair stage, while a select few will likely compete in the full tour in preparation for the upcoming World Championships.

“Our focus for the season is the Seefeld World Championships, which begins quite late in February, so we are not focused on being in top race form in November or December but will undoubtedly have some success then as well,” Grover said. “ Look for the USA athletes to be coming into top form in the Tour de Ski and beyond.”

A veteran group of athletes will headline the U.S team at the FIS World Championships in Seefeld, Austria February 19 - March 3 with favored events for the U.S. team, including freestyle sprint; men’s 30k and women’s 15k skiathlon; and a classic team sprint.

2018-19 U.S. Cross Country Team
(Hometown; Club; Birthdate)

A TEAM
Men
Simi Hamilton (Aspen, Colo.; Stratton Mountain School Elite Team; 5/14/87)

Women
Sadie Bjornsen (Winthrop, Wash.; Alaska Pacific University Nordic Center; 11/21/89)
Sophie Caldwell (Peru, Vt.; Stratton Mountain School Elite Team; 3/22/90)
Jessie Diggins (Afton, Minn.; Stratton Mountain School Elite Team; 8/26/91)
Ida Sargent (Orleans, Vt.; Craftsbury Green Racing Project; 1/25/88)

B TEAM
Men
Erik Bjornsen (Winthrop, Wash.; Alaska Pacific University Nordic Center; 7/14/91)
Kevin Bolger (Minocqua, Wisc.; Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation; 4/11/93)
Patrick Caldwell (Lyme, N.H.; Stratton Mountain School Elite Team; 2/18/94) )
Scott Patterson (Anchorage, Alaska; Alaska Pacific University Nordic Center; 1/28/92)

D TEAM
Men
Ben Ogden (Landgrove, Vt.; Stratton Mountain School; 2/13/00)
Gus Schumacher (Anchorage, Alaska; Alaska Winter Stars; 7/25/00)
Ian Torchia (Rochester, Minn.; Northern Michigan University; 3/8/96)

Women
Hannah Halvorsen (Truckee, Calif.; Alaska Pacific University Nordic Center; 2/19/98)
Julia Kern (Waltham, Mass.; Stratton Mountain School Elite Team; 9/12/97)
Katharine Ogden (Landgrove, Vt.; Stratton Mountain School; 11/17/97)
Hailey Swirbul (Aspen, Colo.; Alaska Pacific University Nordic Center; 7/10/98) 

Official U.S. Cross Country Ski Team Suppliers
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U.S. Ski & Snowboard announced the 2018-19 U.S. Snowboard Team today, featuring eight Olympic medalists, including 2018 gold medalists Chloe Kim (Torrance, Calif.), and Red Gerard (Silverthorne, Colo.).

“We have such an amazing group of returning athletes along with talented new Rookies this year,” said U.S. Freeski and Snowboard Director, Jeremy Forster. “We are looking forward to starting our U.S. competition season at the Copper Mountain Grand Prix, and building towards the World Championships in Park City.”

With the 2018 World Cup season already underway, defending World Cup slopestyle champion Chris Corning (Denver, Colo.) already has two podium results in big air competition, including a victory in the season-opening event in Cardrona, New Zealand. Corning will be gunning to not only defend his overall World Cup and slopestyle titles but add a World Championship medal to his trophy collection.

“U.S. Team riders have had a fun and successful offseason with camps at Timberline, Ore. and on the European Glaciers this fall,” said U.S Freeski and Snowboard Halfpipe, Slopestyle and Big Air Head Coach Mike Jankowski. “We have a super solid group of riders and everyone is ready to get competition underway this season.”

Indeed, with a long list of Olympic medalists, including Arielle Gold (Steamboat Springs, Colo.), Kelly Clark (Mammoth Lakes, Calif.), Kyle Mack, (West Bloomfield, Mich.), Jamie Anderson (S. Lake Tahoe, Calif.), Alex Deibold (Manchester, Vt.) and Lindsey Jacobellis (Stratton Mountain, Vt.), the U.S, Snowboard Team is ready to tackle some of the season’s most high profile events including the Toyota U.S. Grand Prix at Copper Mountain Dec. 5-8, and Mammoth Mountain Ski Area March 4-9. As always, Team riders mark the X Games, Dew Tour and the Burton U.S. Open among the season’s top goals. Alongside the park and pipe athletes, the snowboardcross and alpine teams will embark on the FIS World Cup circuit, covering significant ground before returning home to home soil for arguably the biggest event of the season. U.S. Snowboardcross B Team member Jake Vedder (Pinckney, Mich.) will be joining his teammates on the World Cup circuit following his victory at the 2018 FIS Junior World Championships in August.

This February provides a rare opportunity for U.S. Snowboard Team athletes to go for glory on their home soil at the 2019 FIS Snowboard, Freestyle and Freeski World Championships, presented by Toyota right in U.S. Ski & Snowboard’s home state of Utah. It will also mark the first World Championships for both Kim and Gerard, both of whom exploded onto the snowboard scene last February at the 2018 Games. Jacobellis will also be defending her 2017 snowboardcross world title in February.

“The boardercross crew is really stoked to be racing the World Championships on home snow at Solitude Mountain Resort in Utah,” said U.S Snowboardcross Head Coach Peter Foley. “The addition of the new Olympic event of team boardercross will give fans another chance to cheer on the U.S. Team as they race the other nations for medals in this exciting relay.  We’ve had amazing training camps in Switzerland and Copper Mountain, Colo. this fall and everyone can’t wait to start racing.”

U.S. Ski & Snowboard athletes have a strong history of performing at their very best at recent FIS World Championships. At the 2017 World Championships in Sierra Nevada, Spain, U.S. Ski & Snowboard athletes collected six gold medals, three silver medals, and four bronze medals across all disciplines. More specifically, Lindsey Jacobellis is the defending snowboardcross champion as well as Hagen Kearney and Nick Baumgartner are defending team snowboardcross champions. The U.S. Snowboard Team will look to continue that success heading into the 2018-19 season.
 

U.S. Snowboard
Name (Birthdate; Hometown; Club; USASA Series)

HALFPIPE
Pro Team
Men
Chase Blackwell (Longmont, Colo.; Jim Smith Club; Rocky Mountain Series; 2/27/99)
Gabe Ferguson (Bend, Ore.; Central Oregon Series; 4/16/99)
Taylor Gold (Steamboat Springs, Colo.; Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club; Rocky Mountain Series; 11/17/93)
Chase Josey (Hailey, Idaho; Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation; Big Mountain West Series; 3/31/95)
Toby Miller (Mammoth Lakes, Calif; Tahoe Select Snowboard Team; North Tahoe Series; 2/14/00)
Jake Pates (Eagle, Colo.; Rocky Mountain Series; 7/30/98)
Ryan Wachendorfer (Edwards, Colo.; Ski & Snowboard Club Vail; Rocky Mountain Series; 2/3/98)

Women
Kelly Clark (Mammoth Lakes, Calif.; Mount Snow Academy, Mammoth Mountain Snowboard Team; Southern Vermont Series; 7/26/83)
Arielle Gold (Steamboat Springs, Colo.; Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club; Rocky Mountain Series; 5/4/96)
Chloe Kim (Torrance, Calif.; Mammoth Mountain Snowboard Team; Unbound Series; 4/23/00)
Maddie Mastro (Wrightwood, Calif.; Mammoth Mountain Snowboard Team; Unbound Series; 2/22/00)

Rookie Team
Men
Jake Canter (Silverthorne, Colo.; Aspen Valley Ski & Snowboard Club; Aspen Snowmass Series; 7/19/03)
Lucas Foster (Telluride, Colo.; Telluride Ski and Snowboard Club; Rocky Mountain Series; 9/17/99)
Jason Wolle (Winter Park, Colo.; Jim Smith Club; Rocky Mountain Series; 11/30/99)
Jack Coyne (Edwards, Colo.; Ski & Snowboard Club Vail; Rocky Mountain Series; 01/17/2002)

Women
Tessa Maud (Carlsbad, Calif.; Mammoth Mountain Snowboard Team; Unbound Series; 10/10/03)
Jade Thurgood (Salt Lake City, Utah; Park City Ski and Snowboard; Big Mountain West Series 1/27/02)

SLOPESTYLE / BIG AIR
Pro Team
Men
Nik Baden (Steamboat Springs, Colo.; Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club; Rocky Mountain Series; 1/13/98)
Chris Corning (Silverthorne, Colo.; Aspen Valley Ski & Snowboard Club; Rocky Mountain Series; 9/7/99)
Brock Crouch (Mammoth Lakes, Calif.; Mammoth Mountain Snowboard Team; Unbound Series; 8/22/99)
Brandon Davis (Mammoth Lakes, Calif.; Mammoth Mountain Snowboard Team; Unbound Series; 8/30/95)
Lyon Farrell (Haiku, Hawaii; Rocky Mountain Series; 11/22/98)
Red Gerard (Silverthorne, Colo.; Rocky Mountain Series; 6/29/00)
Judd Henkes (La Jolla, Calif.; Mammoth Mountain Snowboard Team; Unbound Series; 4/3/01)
Chandler Hunt (Park City, Utah; Park City Ski and Snowboard; Big Mountain West Series; 11/4/98)
Kyle Mack (West Bloomfield, Mich.; Great Lakes Snow Series; 9/6/97)
Ryan Stassel (Anchorage, Alaska; Auburn Ski Club; Big Alaska Series; 10/23/92)

Women
Jamie Anderson (S. Lake Tahoe, Calif.; South Tahoe Series; 9/13/90)
Jessika Jenson (Rigby, Idaho; Big Mountain West Series; 8/7/91)
Hailey Langland (San Clemente, Calif.; Tahoe Select Snowboard Team; North Tahoe Series; 8/2/00)
Julia Marino (Westport, Conn.; Southern Vermont Series; 9/11/97)
Karly Shorr (Milford, Mich.; Auburn Ski Club; Great Lakes Series; 5/18/94)

Rookie Team
Men
Jake Canter (Evergreen, Colo.; Aspen Valley Ski & Snowboard Club; Aspen Snowmass Series; 7/19/03)
Dusty Henricksen (Mammoth Lakes, Calif; Mammoth Mountain Snowboard Team; Unbound Series; 2/2/03)
Sean Fitzsimons (Hood River, Ore.; Mount Bachelor Ski Education Foundation; Mt. Hood Series; 9/22/00)
Luke Winkelmann (Blowing Rock, N.C.; Kirk’s Camp; Rocky Mountain Series: 12/18/00)

Women
Nora Healey (Plymouth, N.H.; Waterville Valley BBTS; New Hampshire Series; 6/16/98)
Courtney Rummel (West Bend, Wisc.; Wisconsin Advanced Ski and Snowboard Program; Midwest Best Series; 11/12/03)
Ty Schnorrbusch (Monroe Township, N.J.; Tom Anderson, Rocky Mountain Series 5/15/02)
Jade Thurgood (Salt Lake City, Utah; Park City Ski & Snowboard; Big Mountain West Series; 1/27/02)

SNOWBOARDCROSS
A Team
Men
Nick Baumgartner (Iron River, Mich.; Great Lakes Snow Series; 12/17/81)
Jonathan Cheever (Saugus, Mass.; Maine Mountain Series; 4/17/85)
Alex Deibold (Manchester, Vt.; Stratton Mountain School; Southern Vermont Series; 5/8/86)
Mick Dierdorff (Steamboat Springs, Colo.; Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club; Rocky Mountain Series; 4/30/91)
Nate Holland (Sandpoint, Idaho; North Tahoe Series; 11/8/78)
Hagen Kearney (Norwood, Colo.; International Snowboard Training Center; Rocky Mountain Series; 11/6/91)

Women
Faye Gulini (Salt Lake City, Utah; Ski & Snowboard Club Vail; Rocky Mountain Series; 3/24/92)
Lindsey Jacobellis (Stratton Mountain, Vt.; Stratton Mountain, School; Southern Vermont Series; 8/19/85)

B Team
Men
Jake Vedder (Pinckney, Mich.; International Snowboard Training Center; Rocky Mountain Series; 4/16/98)

Women
Rosie Mancari (Anchorage, Alaska; Steamboat Spring Winter Sports Club; Big Alaska Series; 1/22/94)

Development Group
Men
Cole Johnson (Reno, Nev.; Steamboat Springs Winter Sports Club; South Tahoe Series; 9/21/93)
Senna Leith (Vail, Colo.; International Snowboard Training Center; Rocky Mountain Series; 4/8/97)

Women
Meghan Tierney (Edwards, Colo.; International Snowboard Training Center; Rocky Mountain Series; 1/15/97)
Stacy Gaskill (Golden, Colo.; Winter Park Snowboard Team; Rocky Mountain Series; 5/21/00)

ALPINE
B Team
AJ Muss (Rumson, N.J.; Rocky Mountain Series; 12/15/1994)
 

Official U.S. Snowboard Partners
Uniform/Licensees
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Wax/Tools/Supplies
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U.S. Ski & Snowboard announced the 2018-19 U.S. Freeski Team today, featuring eight Olympic medalists, including 2018 PyeongChang medalists David Wise (Reno, Nev.), Brita Sigourney (Carmel, Calif.), Alex Ferreira (Aspen, Colo.) and Nick Goepper (Lawrenceburg, Ind.).

“We have a great mix of experienced veterans and newcomers on the team this season,” said U.S Freeski and Snowboard Halfpipe, Slopestyle and Big Air Head Coach Mike Jankowski. “After a successful Olympics in 2018, these athletes are aiming to continue the momentum into 2019.”

In addition to the PyeongChang Olympic medalists, there is also a long list of Sochi Olympic medalists bringing a wealth of competition experience and knowledge to the table including Gus Kenworthy (Telluride, Colo.), Maddie Bowman (S. Lake Tahoe, Calif.), Devin Logan (West Dover, Vt.), and Joss Christensen (Park City, Utah). Also, capping off a long list of stars and coming off an incredibly successful training camp in Saas-Fee, Switzerland, is Maggie Voisin (Whitefish, Mont.) - the 2018 X Games slopestyle gold medalist - who, after just missing the podium in PyeongChang, will be a force to reckon with this season.

The 2018-19 season features a range of high profile events on the freeski circuit including X Games, Dew Tour and numerous rounds of the FIS World Cup. These World Cup events include two Toyota U.S. Grand Prix events taking place at Copper Mountain Dec. 5-8, 2018, and Mammoth Mountain Ski Area March 4-9, 2019. Copper will host the season opener of the FIS World Cup freeski and snowboard halfpipe competition, while Mammoth will host slopestyle and halfpipe FIS World Cup competition.

Highlighting the season, the 2019 FIS Snowboard, Freestyle and Freeski World Championships Feb. 1-10 will offer a  rare opportunity for U.S Freeski Team athletes to go for glory on their home soil in U.S. Ski & Snowboard’s home state of Utah.

“We have a really talented group of athletes and coaches that are ready to get the season started,” said U.S. Freeski and Snowboard Director Jeremy Forster. “It will be an exciting season with the World Championships in Utah, and the inclusion of big air as a new Olympic competition.”

U.S. Ski & Snowboard athletes have a strong history of performing at their very best at recent FIS World Championships. At the 2017 World Championships in Sierra Nevada, Spain, U.S. athletes collected six gold medals, three silver medals, and four bronze medals across all disciplines. More specifically, Aaron Blunck (Crested Butte, Colo.) is the defending halfpipe champion and McRae Williams (Park City, Utah) is the defending slopestyle champion. In addition, Alex Ferreira is the 2018 World Cup halfpipe champion. The U.S. Freeski Team will look to continue that success heading into the 2018-19 season.

2018-19 U.S. Freeski Team
(Hometown; Club; USASA Series; Birthdate)

HALFPIPE
Pro Team
Men
Aaron Blunck (Crested Butte, Colo.; Ski & Snowboard Club Vail; Rocky Mountain Series; 4/12/96)
Lyman Currier (Boulder, Colo.; Winter Park Freeski Team; Rocky Mountain Series; 8/28/94)
Alex Ferreira (Aspen, Colo.; Aspen Valley Ski & Snowboard Club; Aspen/Snowmass Series; 8/14/94)
Birk Irving (Winter Park, Colo.; Winter Park Freeride Team; Rocky Mountain Series; 7/26/99)
Gus Kenworthy (Telluride, Colo.; Telluride High School; Southwest Colorado Series; 10/1/91)
Taylor Seaton (Avon, Colo.; 7/16/90)
David Wise (Reno, Nev.; 6/30/90)
Torin Yater-Wallace (Basalt, Colo.; Aspen Valley Ski & Snowboard Club; Aspen/Snowmass Series; 12/2/95)

Women
Maddie Bowman (S. Lake Tahoe, Calif.; Sierra-at-Tahoe Education Foundation; South Tahoe Series; 1/10/94)
Annalisa Drew (Andover, Mass.; Ski & Snowboard Club Vail; Rocky Mountain Series; 5/28/93)
Devin Logan (West Dover, Vt.; Mount Snow Academy; Southern Vermont Series; 2/17/93)
Brita Sigourney (Carmel, Calif.; Intermountain Series; 1/17/90)
Carly Margulies (Mammoth Lakes, Calif.; Mammoth Mountain Freeski Team; Unbound Series; 12/24/97)

Rookie Team
Men
Jacob Beebe (Bend, Ore.; Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation; Big Mountain West Series; 6/15/99)
Hunter Hess (Bend, Ore.; Mt. Bachelor Sports Education Foundation; Central Oregon Series; 10/01/98)
Jaxin Hoerter (Breckenridge, Colo.; Rocky Mountain Series; 7/17/00)
Dylan Ladd (Lakewood, Colo.; Winter Park Competition Center; Rocky Mountain Series; 8/29/01)
Sammy Schuiling (Steamboat Springs, Colo.; Ski & Snowboard Club Vail; Rocky Mountain Series; 7/16/00)

Women
Anna Gorham (Bend, Ore.; Central Oregon Series; 7/22/00)
Abigale Hansen (June Lake, Calif.; Mammoth Mountain Freeski Team; Unbound Series; 5/26/98)
Svea Irving (Winter Park, Colo.; Winter Park Freeride Team; Rocky Mountain Series 2/27/02)
Eileen Gu (San Francisco, Calif.; Squaw Valley Ski Team; North Tahoe Series; 3/09/03)

SLOPESTYLE/BIG AIR
Pro Team
Men
Bobby Brown (Denver, Colo.; Rocky Mountain Series; 6/5/91)
Joss Christensen (Park City, Utah; Park City Ski and Snowboard; 12/20/91)
Nick Goepper (Lawrenceburg, Ind.; Hanley Consulting Inc.; Rocky Mountain Series; 3/14/94)
Alex Hall (Salt Lake City, Utah; Park City Ski and Snowboard; Big Mountain West Series; 9/21/98)
Gus Kenworthy (Telluride, Colo.; Telluride High School; Southwest Colorado Series; 10/1/91)
Colby Stevenson (Park City, Utah; Park City Ski and Snowboard; Big Mountain West Series; 10/3/97)
McRae Williams (Park City, Utah; Intermountain Series; 10/13/90)

Women
Caroline Claire (Manchester Center, Vt.; Stratton Mountain School; Southern Vermont Series; 2/2/00)
Julia Krass (Hanover, N.H.; Park City Ski and Snowboard; New Hampshire Series; 6/7/97)
Devin Logan (West Dover, Vt.; Mount Snow Academy; Southern Vermont Series; 2/17/93)
Darian Stevens (Missoula, Mont.; Missoula Freestyle Ski Team; 10/29/96)
Maggie Voisin (Whitefish, Mont.; Park City Ski and Snowboard; Big Mountain West Series; 12/14/98)

Rookie Team
Men
Willie Borm (Chaska, Minn.; Midwest Freeskiing Association; 5/21/97)
Mac Forehand (Winhall, Vt.; Stratton Mountain School; Southern Vermont Series; 8/4/01)
Cody LaPlante (Truckee, Calif.; Squaw Valley Freestyle and Freeride Team; North Tahoe Series; 2/15/02)
Richard Thomas (Orono, Minn.; Midwest Freeskiing Association; Upper Midwest Snow; 8/16/01)

Women
Marin Hamill (Park City, Utah; Park City Ski and Snowboard; Big Mountain West Series; 4/5/01)
Rell Harwood (Park City, Utah; Park City Ski and Snowboard; Big Mountain West Series; 6/1/01)
Grace Henderson (Madbury, N.H.; Waterville Valley BBTS; New Hampshire Series; 4/28/01)
Eileen Gu (San Francisco, Calif.; Squaw Valley Ski Team; North Tahoe Series; 3/09/03)

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