Freeride World Tour hits Courmayeur

The new tour is the result of a merger of three circuits, the European Swatch Freeride World Tour and the two North American events, the Freeskiing World Tour and The North Face Masters of Snowboarding, which has therefore created a sort of "champions league" which then visits Chamonix, Kirkwood in the US, PillerseeTal Fieberbrunn in Austria and Verbier in Switzerland.

It's needless to say how much snowboarding and freeriding have grown in recent years and of course the criteria used to judge competitions have evolved accordingly resulting in its present form: the scores take into account snow conditions and exposure, two factors which are crucial for the riders performance. Five parameters which depend on the competitor's skill eventually lead to victory: the difficulty of the chosen line, their control, descent fluidity, jumps and falls. This sport is so difficult that these final factors are extremely important and the evaluation changes depending on whether they are decisions were strategic - therefore predictable and taken to avoid a dangerous situation - or simply due to mistakes during the run.

The 2013 Swatch Freeride World Tour by The North Face
Revelstoke (CAN): 7-12 January 2013
Courmayeur (ITA): 19-25 January 2013
Chamonix-Mont-Blanc (FRA): 26 January - 1 February 2013
Kirkwood (USA): 27 February -3 March 2013
Fieberbrunn Pillerseetal (AUT): 9-15 March 2013