HOTLAPS • CARDRONA

S. Olympic Freeski Team Livigno Flat Light With One Run Left Livigno Snow Park sat under flat February light, the landings washed into one pale surface. Alex Hall dropped into run two, edging toward the first rail with no room for a safe line.... Read more on the Athlete page

Wanaka, New Zealand | Active competition record: 2011-2021 | Known for: Sochi 2014, PyeongChang 2018, Dew Tour silver, Junior World titles, Wells Brothers films | Current focus: filmmaking, park skiing, creative freeski projects PyeongChang Snow With A Medal One Run Away The halfpipe at Phoenix Snow Park cut a blue-white trench under Korean winter light. Beau-James Wells dropped into his third Olympic final run needing amplitude, clean doubles and enough composure to make the judges look twice before New Zealand’s medal story closed. 60 at PyeongChang 2018 put him fourth in men’s freeski halfpipe, one place behind Nico Porteous and just outside the Olympic podium.... Read more on the Athlete page

Park City, Utah, USA | Active: FIS status active | Discipline: freeski slopestyle, big air, knuckle huck, backcountry freestyle | Verified: 2022 Olympic big air silver, 2021 Worlds slopestyle silver, 5 X Games golds, 2020-21 FIS globes | Current: K2/Oakley/Monster athlete, 2026 Natural Selection Ski winner Shougang Steel After The First Jump Failed Big Air Shougang rose out of Beijing like a steel ramp dropped into an old industrial yard. Colby Stevenson missed his first landing, snow snapping off his tails, then climbed back for two jumps that had to score. The pressure was exact.... Read more on the Athlete page

Lorraine, Quebec, Canada | Active: FIS status active; World Cup step-back announced June 2025 | Discipline: freeski big air, slopestyle, rails, creative filming | Verified: 2021 World Championships big air silver, 2019 Junior Worlds slopestyle gold, Beijing 2022 Olympian, World Cup podiums | Current: Edjoy creative ski path Aspen When The Headstand Said Everything The Buttermilk big-air jump sat under Colorado floodlights, with the landing glazed by heavy impacts and the crowd waiting for scores. Édouard Therriault had kicked a ski on takeoff, still completed the trick, then fell through the landing with the kind of chaos that made people keep watching. At X Games Aspen 2022, his rookie appearance did not end with a medal, but it gave Edjoy a clear international image.... Read more on the Athlete page

Oppegård / Oslo, Norway | Born: July 17, 1998 | Active: 2015-present public ski career | Known for: X Games slopestyle medals, Olympic finals, Capeesh Fashion House, Jib League, rail-heavy creative park skiing | Current: creative projects, Jib League, Capeesh, Vishnu, Monster Energy, Phaenom Aspen Steel Before The Score Sheet The Buttermilk rails looked cold under January light, each takeoff brushed by wind and camera lenses before the jump line opened. Ferdinand Dahl came through the top section with shoulders low, skis quiet, and the timing of someone reading metal like a skate spot rather than a scoring zone. That language became his clearest public signature.... Read more on the Athlete page

Wānaka, New Zealand | Active: FIS record listed as not active | Discipline: freeride, freeski slopestyle, big air, backcountry filming | Verified: two Olympic starts, Youth Olympic silver and bronze, 2018 Cardrona World Cup bronze, 2024 FWT 4th overall, 2026 Natural Selection Ski 3rd | Current: Red Bull, Völkl, Oakley, Mons Royale athlete profile Alaska When The Face Changed Overnight The Alaska snow was fresh enough to slow the skis, bright enough to hide small rolls, and unstable enough to erase the original plan. Finn Bilous dropped into the Natural Selection venue near Girdwood with a right seven waiting below the first rollover. The event had been pointed toward Spine Cell, a steeper face with deeper consequences.... Read more on the Athlete page

Wānaka, New Zealand | Active: 2013-present public record | Focus: slopestyle, big air, creative ski films, Wells Brothers projects | Current: Wells Brothers producer/skier and Monster Energy-supported rider Cardrona Low Tide And Southern Light Cardrona’s spring snow ran thin over brown New Zealand ground, with wind crust in the shadows and soft takeoffs catching late Southern Hemisphere light. Jackson “Wacko” Wells pushed into the line anyway, skiing the low-tide mess with the same looseness that once carried him through Olympic slopestyle and X Games big air. In recent Wells Brothers films, the setup rarely looks perfect.... Read more on the Athlete page

Profile and significance Mac Forehand is a leading American freeski athlete whose results, trick progression, and film parts place him at the sharp end of modern slopestyle and big air. He first hit global headlines in 2019 by winning the FIS Slopestyle Crystal Globe at just 17 years old, then proved his staying power with a string of major results across World Cups and X Games. In January 2023 at Aspen he landed the world’s first forward double cork 2160 in competition to clinch Men’s Ski Big Air gold, a watershed moment that showcased his ability to pair innovation with contest composure.... Read more on the Athlete page

Aspen, Colorado, USA | Active: FIS record listed as not active | Discipline: freeski halfpipe, superpipe, backcountry filming | Verified: 8 X Games medals, two Olympic starts, 2013 Worlds silver | Current: Deviate Films focus Oslo When The Light Came Back The pipe in Oslo was short, steep, and bright under winter floodlights. Torin Yater-Wallace dropped first, edges hissing on cold walls, then opened with an unnatural double cork 1260 as spray lifted behind his tails. That February 2016 final did not feel like a normal contest return.... Read more on the Athlete page

New Zealand park and pipe resort between Wānaka and Queenstown | Known for: 615 hectares, five basins, Soho Basin, Australasia's only full length 22 ft Superpipe, World Cup slopestyle course, Jossi Wells Invitational, Winter Games NZ, and a June to October Southern Hemisphere season | Best for: park progression, halfpipe training, big air, spring sessions, and international crews chasing winter while the north is off snow Cardrona Valley And The Southern Hemisphere Training Clock Cardrona Alpine Resort sits on Cardrona Valley Road between Wānaka and Queenstown, with a base area at 1670 meters, a highest lifted point of 1860 meters, and 600 meters of vertical rise. The location is the first reason the resort matters. It gives skiers a reliable Southern Hemisphere training base during the exact months when most Northern Hemisphere parks are grass, glaciers are limited, and Olympic-cycle athletes need snow.... Read more on the Location page

American action camera and snow filming brand | Founded 2002 by Nick Woodman | Known for: HERO cameras, MAX 360 capture, HyperSmooth stabilization, Quik editing, helmet mounts, chest mounts and ski pole POV systems | Focus: helping skiers, riders, athletes and film crews capture immersive first person skiing from resort laps to Freeride World Tour faces and backcountry film segments. 2002 surf frustration that became the default ski POV GoPro is not a ski manufacturer, crew or traditional film studio. It is an action camera brand that changed how skiing is recorded, shared and remembered.... Read more on the Sponsor page

Ski-focused follow-cam studio and social media channel | Led by filmmaker Andrew Gayda | Known for: ultra-close park follow cams, long flowing lines, raw snow sound, Cardrona edits, Mammoth clips, Stubai sessions, Mount Hood projects, Kimbo Sessions, SuperUnknown and athlete-led park content | Focus: bringing viewers inside modern freeskiing by skiing with the athlete instead of watching from the fence. Andrew Gayda and the follow-cam language behind HOTLAPS HOTLAPS is not a ski manufacturer, outerwear label, resort pass or traditional film studio. It is a ski media identity built around one of the most difficult and recognizable forms of modern freeski filming: the follow cam.... Read more on the Sponsor page

American energy drink and action-sports sponsor | Launched in 2002 by Hansen Natural | Known for: black-and-green claw logo, X Games visibility, Monster Army, freeski athletes, street edits, park contests and backcountry film projects | Focus: funding athletes, amplifying ski media and turning freestyle, freeride and youth culture into a global sports platform. 2002 cans, black-and-green branding and the rise of the claw Monster Energy is not a ski manufacturer, crew or film studio, but it has become one of the most visible sponsor brands in modern freeskiing. Launched by Hansen Natural in 2002, the brand entered action sports with a loud identity: black cans, green claw marks, heavy event branding and a marketing language built around intensity rather than traditional beverage advertising.... Read more on the Sponsor page