Pictures by John Waldron
Travers Grand Prix fierce skiing When the news broke in mid-September that Nate Smith was out with an ankle injury for at least a few events, many would have imagined that the level of competition in men’s slalom skiing would go down a touch. This prediction was, to say the least, wide of the mark. Over three weeks and as many tournaments at the start of October, we saw a back-and-forth battle between Will Asher and Freddie Winter that will live long in our memory, especially the last event at the Travers Grand Prix. Asher started the weekend with the best score ever in a pro tournament - 2@43off (notwithstanding Smith’s 3@43 from Swiss Pro in 2017 - subsequently ruled out for boat-path issues) and setting a new European Record in the process. Following him in qualifying was fellow Brit Freddie Winter, whose record Asher had just surpassed, with two 41offs in a row (scoring 0.5@43off). This was the first time back-to-back 41 offs had been run in a pro event since 2015 and the second time ever. It would not be a long wait for a repeat. With Asher and Winter remaining to ski in the finals, Jon Travers, Thomas Degasperi, and Brando Caruso were all tied at 4@41off - a score that would have won the MasterCraft Pro and Malibu Open. Winter ran his third 41off pass of the event, taking the lead with 1@43off, leaving Asher with a huge task. As Asher came in, everyone on site knew that a piece of history was in the offing: a pro title had never been decided at 43off. As Asher rounded 6 ball, it became clear that this barrier would be broken and, after Asher took no chances securing 1@43, a new milestone was set with the first ever run-off starting at 41off.
