Benedek Pow’ Slash - © Tim Zimmerman

A down day for the FOUR(4)STAR Quiksilver Natural Selection competition meant a good day for riders to get out in the deep pow and get some shots with the multitude of photographers and cinematographers on site for the event.

The TTR crew was lucky enough to get a sneak peak at tomorrow’s contest venue, Casper Bowl, as Travis Rice and all the riders competing packed out a couple of hits in preparation for the last day of competition. The guys packed down a run-in for a huge hip jump and a couple of other booters on the course.

On the way out of the Casper Bowl area, J.J. Thomas, Nicolas Mueller and Kyle Clancy were all planning on hitting a cool drop next to a tree, and TTR filmer/editor Nugg was lucky enough to be on the scene and captured the session that went down (Check out the footage here). J.J. started things off with a nice front 5 stomping it in the deep pow. Nico was next with a frontside 180 landing clean in a huge puff of pow while Kyle dished out a tasty method. Everyone was a bit shocked and stoked on how deep the landings were. So, they boot packed it back up to the drop-in and had another go. J.J. threw down a giant method and Nicolas dropped right behind with a sick mega-ollie.

The crew dropped through some trees and cranked some pow turns on the way to the next location. They rolled up on a diving board with a nice landing and got right to work. Nicolas chucked a backside 3 with good distance stomping it way down the landing and J.J. followed with a large tail grab going just as far as Nico.

JJ thomas - © Scott Sullivan

Nico Muller - © Scott Sullivan

Everyone was a bit hungry, so dropping through the café at the bottom of the hill was essential for a bite to eat. While chatting over lunch, Nicolas was stoked on the partnership between the Natural Selection and TTR, “I think the natural selection fits really well into the TTR World Tour. It’s a new kind of event, it’s a natural slopestyle and it’s just you and the mountain, and you pick your line. And that’s how I feel, like snowboarding belongs to you and the mountain.”

After a slice of pizza and some hydration, it was back up the gondola with Jason Ford and Scott Sullivan, from Future Snowboarding Magazine, and Nicolas Mueller for a lap in the backcountry.

After about a 25-minute hike, the crew dropped down through a pow field to a cliffy, pillow section where Nicolas threw down once again. He quickly packed out a nice lip, hiked up and threw a frontside 3 stomping it just as the sun was disappearing behind the mountains.

Epic snow + legendary riders + sick riding = an amazing day at the Quicksilver Natural Selection.

Benedek Cliff Drop - © Tim Zimmerman

The last day of competition here in Jackson Hole, Wyoming will go down tomorrow in Casper Bowl, a steep, wide-open bowl with an abundance of natural hits for riders to attack. Whoever has the best-combined score from the Dick’s Ditch competition that went down on Saturday and tomorrow’s Casper Bowl competition will be crowned the Quiksilver Natural Selection champion. Plus, the $75,000 prize purse that Quiksilver put up for grabs will be distributed tomorrow night as well.

Misty Gondola - © Tim Zimmerman

Stay tuned to www.ttrworldtour.com for a complete recap of the event plus video coverage. And, be sure to check out the official Quiksilver Natural Selection event website www.quiksilver.com/naturalselection for all the details you could ask for plus webcasts from the entire week.