COPPER MOUNTAIN, CO — Kelsey Huelsman admits one of the biggest factors she enrolled at Western State College in Gunnison, Colorado, was so she could ski a lot.
After winning the Alt Games slopestyle ski championships, it appears to be paying off for the third-year graphic design major. After flaming out on her first run with a crash on the first booter, Huelsman came back strong on her second run with a controlled-but-effective 360-540-720 combination and smooth rail-riding to get an eye-popping 93.0 score and that earned what she called a “surprise” victory.
“My first run went really, really, really bad,” said Huelsman, who was third in the event last year at Keystone. “I just wanted to come back and have a good one on my second run. But there are several really good girls in the field, so I’m really surprised that I won.”
Huelsman wasn’t the only one who was surprised. CU-Denver’s Kristi Johns, who was the runner-up at last year’s event, finished second again after absolutely nailing a combination of an unnatural 360, a huge 720 and a smooth 540 before hitting the whooptie box and the flat box with style for an 88.2.
Huelsman earned $600 for the win, while Johns took home $300 for second.
“I’m totally happy, just a bit confused how I could be so far off in the scoring,” Johns says. “But I’m stoked to be in second.”
Meg Olenick of CU-Boulder turned in two solid runs (86.8 and 87.8) but had to settle for third place.
The Alt Games continue April 17-19 in Southern California with beach volleyball, flowboarding, wakeboarding and competitive eating. The Alt Games will be broadcast on CBS Sports in a one-hour highlight show at 2 p.m. ET May 16. — BRIAN METZLER
WOMEN Run 1 Run 2
1. Kelsey Huelsman (Western State) 26.2, 93.0
2. Kristi Johns (CU-Denver) 79.7 88.2
3. Meg Olenick (CU-Boulder) 86.8 87.8
4. Carrie Rossman (CU-Boulder) 41.2 64.7
5. Amanda Testwuide (CU-Boulder) 53.0 0.0
6. Kayleen Seaton (CU-Boulder) 16.5 23.0
