Once again, PowderGuide was on site ahead of the Freeride World Tour and will be reporting on it in detail. However, due to the critical avalanche situation, the contest had to be postponed from its original date - which is why we were unfortunately unable to be in Georgia for the final contest.
Before the contest
On Friday, February 21, we arrived in Mestia and went straight to the riders' meeting, as there was some exciting news to report: A new face, Kaseb, was determined to be the safest option for the contest in the Tetnuldi area and confirmed for the coming Saturday afternoon. This didn't exactly lead to beaming faces among some of the participants, but rather to worry lines. There were several reasons for this. Firstly, many riders had only arrived a few hours ago and were exhausted from the long journey. Justin Dufour-Lapointe, for example, was still on the same plane as me and landed in Tbilisi at around 5am. This was followed by an 8 to 10-hour car journey over snow-covered roads. Furthermore, the quality and quantity of photos and videos of the new Face were not as good as those of the Face that was ridden last year. In addition, no one has been able to see the slope live as clouds blocked the view.
This is why the responsible safety team, consisting of internal and external staff, explained the situation in detail and answered all critical questions about the process and decision-making. This was primarily based on the safety of the riders, as it was not possible to adequately secure the area within half a day. The issue of broadcasting also played a role, as the necessary set-up work for a safe broadcast could not be guaranteed until the scheduled start at 2 pm. So there were a lot of concerns on the part of the organizers.
Throughout the evening, we could literally feel the tense atmosphere. There was definitely a sense of drama, but that was understandable, because the race is inexorably heading towards the cut in Fieberbrunn and everyone wants to be at the final in Verbier.
