Kelly Clark’s name has become synonymous with Halfpipe snowboarding. And when it comes to predicting the outcome of the many Halfpipe contests around the globe, the question is never “will she be competing?” Instead we ask: “How will the current contingent stack up against Kelly Clark?” She is the bar against which all are measured and every time she drops in and ascends the walls of cleanly cut Superpipe she somehow manages to push the bar even higher. Entering the 09/10 season as defending champion of the 08/09 Swatch TTR World Snowboard Tour, the Vermont native has her work cut out for her with high expectations for her to do it all again.

Let’s back up just a bit and take a look at what has shaped this snowboarder into the current competitor she is today. The 26 year old has been winning pipe contests since her mid teens including a major accomplishment of winning Gold at the 2002 Olympics on home turf in Park City, Utah. Since then she’s been competing at almost every major pipe event on the planet, including multiple stellar X-Games performances, rarely walking away empty handed.

The TTR World Tour particularly has witnessed her domination first hand. The 2007/2008 season saw Kelly record a staggering eight podium finishes out of 12 contest entries, with five of those as TTR Titles including the 6Star Burton European Open, the 5Star Chevrolet Grand Prix and the 6Star season-ending Roxy Chicken Jam in which she went head-to-head with rivals Jamie Anderson and Torah Bright. She finished the season third overall, an impressive feat for a competitor who only entered three Slopestyle contests that season.

The 2008/2009 World Tour, however, would finally see Kelly rise to the head of the ranks. Over the course of her world travels, from the cold caps of the New Zealand peaks to the legendary Laax slopes of the 6Star Burton European Open to the prestigious snow sculptures of the climactic 6Star Burton US Open, Clark bagged a podium finish at every turn, along with two 5 and 6Star titles to boot. And with runs that included back-to-back 7s, back-to-back 5s and double overhead airs, the judges certainly have it easy in giving her top marks.

The women’s side of the TTR Tour wrapped up at the 09 Roxy Chicken Jam and was the site of Clark’s first Swatch TTR Title victory, securing the championship with her second consecutive Chicken Jam Halfpipe win. Indeed, it was a familiar sight to see Kelly a head taller than everyone else but alas a new season has brought a whole new collection of challenges.

And so far, in the 2009/2010 season, Kelly Clark seems to be on a repeat schedule having already scored the Halfpipe title at the 09 Burton New Zealand Open. The Northern Hemisphere will no doubt witness Kelly put forth the extra effort and many of the world’s pinnacle Halfpipe showdowns and we might just see the Queen reign supreme once again.