© - Rich/TTR

After almost a 20 hour drive starting in Austria, making our way through five countries and a dark, all-consuming fog, the rest of the TTR crew safely made it up to Norway just in time for the warm up and training sessions at the SIX(6)STAR Oakley Arctic Challenge.

Tuesday was the first day of practice. Greeted with some good weather to start things off, riders were liking the transition going head first into the testing phase. Some Big Airs were stomped along with some more technical tricks including some fresh 9s from Risto.

Today, things were toned down a bit due to some intimidating fog that took the visibility down to pretty gnarly levels. For those watching down by the Quarterpipe itself, the only signs of a rider dropping in were the sounds of boards and edges scraping on snow, that is until they came into view booking it straight towards the carefully sculpted transition.

Fredrik Scuderi of Norway seems to be carrying his momentum from his win at the THREE(3)STAR DnB NOR Arctic Open last weekend that qualified him for the SIX(6)STAR Oakley Arctic Challenge. Scuderi was going huge with some more-than-stylish chuck flips and solid airs. Expect some big things from him in the qualis.

© - Rich/TTR

Most of the riders took things easy however going with simple 3s, 5s and BS Airs to get a better feel for he Quarterpipe. Some McTwists where thrown by KP along with some nice methods from Terje and Nico. Hopefully the weather lets up so the riders can bring out the big guns for tomorrow.

After the session, everyone gathered in the animal-fur-laden, wooden teepee for some tasty organic food around a crackling fire. It’s pretty cold up here and everyone was grateful for some hot and scrumptious food in a toasty atmosphere.

© - Rich/TTR

With qualifications coming up, keep in mind that the Arctic Challenge is a crucial point on the tour, as one of only two remaining SIX(6)STAR events where riders can cash in on big prizes but most importantly earn some vital TTR ranking points. The TTR Top 4, Risto Mattila, Kevin Pearce, Peetu Piirionen and Andy Finch are all present and ready to destroy the quarterpipe here in Oslo. All four of these guys are Top Transition riders meaning the Arctic Challenge is going to be a close one. We might even see a new TTR World No. 1!

The Swatch TTR SIX(6)STAR Oakley Arctic Challenge will be featured on www.freecaster.tv and www.ttrworldtour.com for online viewing in case you’re unable to make it up to Norway. Keep checking the video player and the blog for updates as the competition continues.