Hoodoo Hopper Ava Lund entered the two-day competition on Saturday, March 26. The snow was fresh (for the end of March skiing), the sky was crystal blue and the sun was shockingly bright. Her first run placed her third – although the skiers placing one and two were tied for first and Ava was a mere fraction off their score.
The judging is quite comprehensive. Basically the judges individually score the skiers on their acrobatics: air, form and landing as well as level of difficulty. They also look for how the athlete goes from the top of the hill to the bottom (choosing a fall line which is the shortest from start to finish) and not going out of bounds. The skier must maintain a proper form that shows athleticism, control, balance and continuity of motion. Finally, the judges tally their scores to see where each athlete places. Those who make the first day’s cut go onto day two to compete – there are a number of skiers (depending on how many are in each race) who are eliminated for falling, lowest scores…)
Day two was more challenging. It was raining and quite windy which made the mountain much icier. The 100 plus competitors, in age categories from under twelve to under eighteen, felt the difference in conditions. Some athletes fell, lost skis and were disqualified for a myriad of reasons.
Ava represented the Hoodoo Hoppers well. In fact, coaches from many different teams approached her and said they had never seen her ski better. One Calgary coach said he felt she really deserved second place. The judges scored Ava as fourth – the first five are placed on podium in this sport – and, again, she was a fraction off the first three.
