By John LaConte EAGLE COUNTY — Jake Pates might go down in history as the last person to win a traditional halfpipe competition at the Dew Tour.
After unveiling a never-before-seen trick and topping the field in the 2017 Dew Tour, Pates was set to defend his crown this year, until it was announced that the halfpipe competition at the annual Dew Tour freeski and snowboarding event in Breckenridge was opting for a modified superpipe in 2018, a whole new realm of competition.
“They’re spicing it up this year,” Pates said. “I don’t really think you can compare it to anything, it’s totally different.”
With a spine-style jump into the halfpipe and a quarterpipe-style hip jump out of the pipe, parts of the halfpipe competition that are usually the least exciting — the athlete’s entrance and exit from the halfpipe — are now set to be make or break moments for the competitors.
Avon snowboarder Zoe Kalapos was one of only eight women to receive an invite to the modified superpipe competition.
“I think it will be cool to have a competition that’s not as serious, because it’s not a traditional halfpipe,” Kalapos said.
‘REFRESHING’
Of course, anything will be less serious than last year’s Dew Tour, which doubled as …read more
Via:: Vail Daily Newspaper
