Wild Action in Opening Banzai
Wild runs and intense competition marked the first event of this season's Rahlves' Banzai Tour held in extremely challenging conditions Sunday, February 22nd, at Alpine Meadows. Results in all fields are posted, and Tahoe TV's video coverage will be available soon.
This year's Alpine Meadows' event set another new level of intensity and variations for the Banzai Tour, with weather and conditions playing a major role. The qualifying runs held on Saturday in spring-like conditions were followed by a near-cancellation of the finals on Sunday and a major course change. Due to high east winds, the Summit Chair was forced on wind hold for the day, leaving the Banzai start unreachable. In order to hold the race, the start was moved closer the top of Summit, yet it still required competitors to undertake a long traverse and hike from the top of Alpine Bowl chairlift. Additionally, the start was without a start 'gate', and the start routine was modified to include a hop-turn in place of a dropping gate.
After the delay required to move the start, the racing began and the wild competition ensued. Competitors in all four men's and women's ski and snowboard divisions braved and attacked the mogul, rut, and bump infested course and some of the most challenging conditions of any Banzai event to date.
See results below...
Alpine Meadows Banzai Results - Feb. 22, 2015
Men's Ski
1. Kyle Coxon
2. Casey Riva
3. Shawn McGee
Men's Snowboard
1. Bobby Minghini
2. Sylvain Duclos
3. Jason Hale
Women's Ski
1. Shannon Rahlves
2. Shelly Robertson
3. Catie Zeliff
Women's Snowboard
1. Audrey Hebert
2. Mariah Dugan
3. Lindsay Wexler
Video coverage - from numerous GoPro cameras on the course - of the Alpine Meadows event will be available shortly. Watch Tahoe TV on TV, online, or on the new Lake Tahoe App to catch the action.
The second of three Banzai events this season will take place on March 7-8 at Kirkwood Mountain Resort.
For more about the Rahlves' Banzai Tour, visit www.rahlvesbanzai.com.
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Sorry about the mishap Lindsay!