Evans wins freeskiing competition in Grand Targhee, Wyoming

Mountain Sports Team cowboys up in Wyoming

While most people are bringing the ski season to a close, the Crested Butte Mountain Sports Team (CBMST) athletes are just starting to ramp it up on the Junior Freeskiing Tour.
Head CBMST freeride coach Woody Lindenmyer and big mountain coach Will Dujardin took a slew of their skiers to Grand Targhee, Wyoming to compete on the third stop of the Junior Freeskiing Tour.
In the end, five reached the finals and Matt Evans took the title in the 15-17 year old age class.
“I was very happy to take 10 athletes and then to have the results we did was very validating,” says Lindenmyer. “The kids have been skiing great since the Crested Butte competition and we built off of that.”
Evans is 15 years old and has been battling in the 15-17 year old age class all season.
“The 15-17 guys are incredibly competitive these days,” says Lindenmyer.
With that in mind, Evans was set to step on the throttle from his first turn to his last of the two-day competition.
”You can’t back off and play it safe,” says Lindenmyer. “You got to go for it. He’s really good at looking at a venue and picking where he wants to go.”
According to Lindenmyer, Evans put together two “flawless” runs over the two days, lining up 20-foot and 40-foot drops without hesitation.
On his final run, Evans rolled up to a two-stage cliff and ended up sending the whole thing.
While airs are impressive, especially when landed cleanly, Lindenmyer feels it was Evans’ work with his skis on the snow that led to the win.
“His turns are really what made him stand out,” says Lindenmyer.
The win pushed Evans into fourth place in the overall points series standings and he’s looking to carry the momentum from the win into a competition in Kirkwood this weekend.
“Matt’s shooting for the overall title,” says Lindenmyer. “Plus, he’s only 15 so he’s got a couple more years which is very exciting.”
Sean Johnson joined Evans in the finals but struggled on his last run and finished the weekend in 31st place.
“He had a really good day one but got a little lost at the bottom of his final run,” says Lindenmyer. “It was too bad because he skied the top really strong.”
Natalie Barefield made a comeback in the women’s age 15-17 class. She had a disappointing run on the first day, but put together the highest scoring run in the finals to bump her up into fourth place.
“She had a couple bobbles on day one but persevered and had an amazing finals run,” says Lindenmyer. “It was really close with less than a point difference between the top four spots.”
Patrick Curvin continues to wet his feet on the competition scene in the 12-14 year old age class taking 12th place in just his second competition ever.
“It was a great event for Patrick,” says Lindenmyer.
Brittany Barefield just missed the podium in her 12-14 age class coming in sixth place in Grand Targhee.
The team will rally once more and head out to Snowbird, Utah to compete in the Junior Freeskiing Championships on April 8-10.
“We’re taking 10 athletes to Snowbird, it’s fantastic,” says Lindenmyer. “They’re caught up in it. I couldn’t ask for anything more.”