2021 Winter Dew Tour lookback Day 3

Day 3 had an early start with Women’s Ski Superpipe finals taking place in the morning. The crowd was sparse again, but that was everyone else’s loss since the athletes still gave it their all. Defending gold medalist Cassie Sharpe was coming off an injury and had some tough luck.

It was nice seeing Cassie back in action after her injury.

I was stoked to spot some unfamiliar names, two being Chinese: Kexin Zhang and Fanghui Li. I think it made my parents more interested. American teen Hanna Faulhaber was another newcomer although by how high she went and how solid all her tricks were, she seemed like an old pro. She took home bronze and would definitely be one to watch in the future. Even if the media did hype up a rivalry between Kelly Sildaru and Eileen Gu like they did in the past with Tanner Hall and Simon Dumont, the two women were going to run in to each a lot all weekend, as they were both competing in all three events. Eileen went bigger, and her insistence on always bettering her own runs helped secure the top spot.

2020 Winter Dew Tour Lookback – Day 3

Day 3 was jam-packed with events due to the previous day’s cancellation. I also had snowboarding lessons so I missed a chunk of the afternoon. On my way from East to Center Village, I wound up on the shuttle with Tom Wallisch and his friend. I overheard them talking about the Disney Channel Original movie Brink! and whether the aggressive in-line moves named in the movie were actually feasible. I couldn’t help but exclaim how the movie got me into action sports, to which Tom replied, “Us too.”

As Women’s Snowboard Modified Superpipe got started early, there was hardly a crowd so I got a good view at the bottom. With Chloe Kim off for the season, many women were obviously using this chance to show what they’ve got. Maddie Mastro was the favorite coming in, but Jiayu Liu laid down an amazing second run to knock her off the top. Her time apart from the Chinese National Team has allowed her to figure out her own style and really progress. Queralt Castellet also put up a fight, which put her in third.

Sonny Alba was a newcomer who really impressed everyone. She’s just 13 so we’ll be seeing more from her.