Eleven-year-old Silver Star Freestyle Ski Club athlete Elena Gaskell has seen a season of hard work turn into success on the podium.
Earlier this season, she won over the crowd and judges at the Smith Optics Rail Jam at Silver Star Mountain Resort to earn Top Female and Overall Crowd Favourite.
Competing on the province-wide Timber Tour, Gaskell has moved up an age bracket and has seen success competing against 13- and 14-year-olds, landing third place in her first-ever halfpipe competition in February.
Last weekend, Gaskell amped things up for the Canadian Shield Tour Slopestyle comp at Mt. Seymour and the Red Bull Jib Ski Kings/Queens Event and Cypress Mountain in Vancouver.
At the Shield Tour event on Friday, Gaskell competed in the Amateur Open category. Sitting in second place after qualifying, she put down a solid final run which was highlighted by grinding a 20-foot rail followed by a front flip and a 720.
Not only did she win lots of high fives and respect from the top pros in attendance, but she also took home gold.
Saturday’s Red Bull Jib Ski Kings/Queens event kicked off in a jam format where the athletes had 45 minutes to fit in as many runs and hits as possible to win over the judges.
With no age categories or Pro/Amateur classifications, Gaskell dug deep into her bag of tricks to compete. She pulled out solid rail grinds on the up-flat and cannon features, coming off both forward and switch, and landing front flips and 720s on the air features.
After all of the scores were tallied, Gaskell had secured bronze.
Next up for Gaskell is the Smith Optics Slopestyle Grudge Match this weekend, followed by freestyle provincials, and the Show Down, Throw Down, Hoe Down, all hosted at Silver Star Mountain Resort.
She carries sponsorship from Sun Valley Source for Sports and Full Tilt Boots.
