Photos from Winter X Games in Aspen

We had a great weekend at Winter X Games in Aspen. The weather was warm (maybe too warm for conditions, some of the athletes might say), the crowds big and happy, the athletes amazing.

Brita Sigourney, the Swany Gloves-sponsored ski pipe star, skied hard but did not win the Women’s Superpipe. But after winning at Dew Tour and taking third at the Sprint U.S. Grand Prix at Copper Mountain, she’s already had a great season. (On the way for Brita: the next stop in the  Grand Prix tour this weekend in Park City. Good luck, Brita!

Here are some of our favorite images from the weekend.

Looking up from the bottom of the pipe is awe-inspiring.

Brita Sigourney’s third run left her just off the podium.

The weather ranged from cloudy and snowy to brilliant blue skies — often at the same time.

Slope star James Woods showed his national pride for all to see.

Former Olympics gymnast Shawn Johnson wanted a photo with Slopestyle winner Nick Goepper, who was only too happy to oblige.

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Winter X Games Aspen ski and snowboard results: Shaun White, Kelly Clark, Henrik Harlaut, Maddie Bowman, Mark McMorris and much more

It was a wild weekend at Winter X Games in Aspen. Shaun White scored a “six-peat” in superpipe while Henrik Harlaut scored gold and silver. Here’s a look at the winners in ski and snowboard events:

• Men’s Snowboard Superpipe: The amazing Shaun White once again blew up the pipe, followed by 14-year-old phenom Ayumu Hirano. More.
• Women’s Snowboard Superpipe: It was Elana Hight who became the first athlete to ever land a double backside alley-oop rodeo in competition, but Kelly Clark got the win. More.
• Men’s Ski Superpipe: David Wise reigned despite stiff competition from Aspen’s Torin Yater-Wallace. More.
• Women’s Ski Superpipe: Maddie Bowman rode a powerful first run to gold over Roz Groenewoud. More.
• Ski Big Air: In one of the weekend’s most exciting events, red-hot Henrik Harlaut soared to victory with Kai Mahler second. More.
• Snowboard Big Air: Torstein Horgmo won the event in a tiebreaker, thanks to a perfect score on one jump, over Mark McMorris. More.
• Men’s Ski Slopestyle: Nick Goepper’s brilliant third run was enough to edge Henrik Harlaut. More.
• Women’s Ski Slopestyle: X Games rookie Tiril Sjastad Christiansen performed like a veteran to win, edging defending champ Kaya Turski. Complete results.
• Men’s Snowboard Slopestyle: The big dog, Mark McMorris, scored the win over Maxence Parrot when Shaun White suffered two falls. More.
• Women’s Snowboard Slopestyle: Jamie Anderson bested the field while Sarka Pancochova earned silver. More.

Swany Gloves is dedicated to bringing you the best of outdoor adventure. Like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, enter our Outdoor Adventures Video Contest.

X Games rookie Christiansen wins injury-filled Women’s Slopestyle at Winter X Games

Tiril Sjastad Christiansen may be an X Games rookie, but she performed like a veteran to win the Women’s Ski Slopestyle on Sunday (Jan. 27) at Winter X Games in Aspen.

Christiansen overcame a first-run fall to post successive runs above 90, including the winning 92.3 on her final run. Speaking of final runs, two-time defending champ Kaya Turski overcame falls on her first two runs to post a 90 for second place on her final run. Dara Howell’s 89.s second run was enough for bronze.

Ashley Battersby was doubly unlucky. First, she was injured on a fall at the end of her final run, then she lost her place on the podium when Turski had her strong final run. Before the race, Rose Battersby (no relation to Ashley) took a bad fall and was taken to the Aspen hospital for “further evaluation for back pain.” Read more.

Complete results.

Swany Gloves is dedicated to bringing you the best of outdoor adventure. Like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, enter our Outdoor Adventures Video Contest.

Goepper’s final run enough to top Harlaut, Woods in Men’s Slopestyle at Winter X

Nick Goepper used a big third run to stave off a hugely talented field in Men’s Ski Slopestyle on Sunday (Jan. 27) at Winter X Games in Aspen.

Goepper’s first run (92.3) looked big enough to win, but it took a brilliant third run (94) to stave off Henrik Harlaut (92.6) and top qualifier James Woods (91.3).

Henrik Harlaut, who had produced late-night magic on Saturday to win Big Air,  started slow but scored big when it counted on his third run. Woods came through on the third run as well (92) to secure his place on the podium.

Complete results.

Swany Gloves is dedicated to bringing you the best of outdoor adventure. Like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, enter our Outdoor Adventures Video Contest.

Harlaut too big to handle in Big Air at Winter X in Aspen

Henrik Harlaut was big early and big late as he mastered Big Air at Winter X Games in Aspen on Saturday (Jan. 26).

Not that it was easy. Harlaut had to top a red-hot field that included Bobby Brown, PK Hunder, Gus Kenworthy, Elias Ambühl and Kai Mahler.

Harlaut laid down a 47 and 46 that looked to be winning material, before stomping a nose butter triple cork 16 (Harlaut insisted later he had never tried the trick) for a 50 that clinched the win.

That left Kai Mahler (who overcame a mid-event knee injury and Elias Ambuhl in second and third. Bobby Brown felt the sting of late-sound lightning, losing his place on the podium in the last round.

Complete results.

Swany Gloves is dedicated to bringing you the best of outdoor adventure. Like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, enter our Outdoor Adventures Video Contest.

Bowman’s big start claims gold in Women’s Ski Superpipe at Winter X Games

LOOKING FOR RESULTS in ALL events this weekend at Winter X Games? Visit here.

The Women’s Ski Superpipe started with a bang at Winter X games, when Maddie Bowman threw down a big 91.3 on her first run. Turns out it was a BIG bang, as Bowman’s score stood up for gold on Friday (Jan. 25).

Last year’s gold medalist, Roz Groenewoud, made a run at Bowman with an 86.6 in her second run, but couldn’t up the ante on her final run and settled for silver. Megan Gunning used a big third run (85) to earn bronze, barely ousting Katie Hansen (84.3), who also scored big in her first run.

Swany Gloves-sponsored Brita Sigourney, a winner at Dew Tour and bronze medalist at the U.S. Grand Prix, overcame a first-run fall to post ever-larger scores, reaching 82.6 in her final run. But it was not enough to gain the podium on a night when big scores came in bunches.

The women were the first event of the night on Friday, followed by America’s Navy Snowboard Big Air Final and the Men’s Ski SuperPipe Final. 

Swany Gloves is dedicated to bringing you the best of outdoor adventure. Like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, enter our Outdoor Adventures Video Contest.

News, photos and videos from Winter X Games in Aspen

Competition has begun at Winter X Games . As a result, lots of news is coming from Aspen. Here’s a look at some of the highlights:

• Need results? Here’s where to find them.
• Read how Gretchen Bleiler has overcome a serious eye injury to return to competition.
• Wondering what’s up with the  slopestyle course? Freeskier asked Henrik Harlaut, Russ Henshaw, Keri Herman and Gus Kenworthy to explain. Watch the video.
• The home state is well represented at X Games. Not only is Torin Yater-Wallace a rising superstar in ski pipe, long-running legends such as Gretchen Bleiler call Colorado home. Meet Yater-Wallace and see a list of all Coloradans competing in the Denver Post.
• Check out this awesome photo of the halfpipe at night. Speaking of photos, look how big the jumps are on the slopestyle course in this shot.
• Is Mark McMorris the next Shaun White? Read on.
• Watch a live stream from the event.
• Are you attending? Make sure you check out this CRUCIAL parking and shuttle bus information.

Winter X Games  in Aspen runs Thursday through Sunday (Jan. 24-27).  See who’s competing (besides Shaun White) and other information right here.  And take a minute to meet Swany-sponsored Brita Sigourney, the winner  in ski halfpipe at this year’s Winter Dew Tour.

Swany Gloves is dedicated to bringing you the best of outdoor adventure. Like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, enter our Outdoor Adventures Video Contest.

Here’s your guide to Winter X Games in Aspen

It’s time for Winter X Games  in Aspen. The annual gathering of the biggest stars in winter extreme sports takes over Buttermilk this Thursday through Sunday (Jan. 24-27).

Shaun White (who will compete in pipe AND slopestyle) will be there, of course, competing with fellow snowboard stars Louie Vito, Scotty Lago and Mark McMorris. Ski stars on the invite list include Tom Wallisch, Bobby Brown and Russ Henshaw.

On the women’s side look for snowboarders Kelly Clark, Torah Bright, Hannah Teter and Gretchen Bleiler. Freestyle ski stars on hand will include Roz Grounwoud, Maddie Bowman, Keri Herman and Kaya Turski. And do NOT forget Swany-sponsored Brita Sigourney, the winner  in ski halfpipe at this year’s Winter Dew Tour.

Who better to preview the games than ESPN? See What to Watch at X Games. Here’s a story on Louie Vito from the Denver Post that also includes the daily practice, preliminaries and finals schedule at Winter X.

Are you attending? Make sure you check out this CRUCIAL parking and shuttle bus information as well as competition venue information.

Can’t attend? Here’s the TV schedule.

Swany Gloves is dedicated to bringing you the best of outdoor adventure. Like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, enter our Outdoor Adventures Video Contest.

Swany Gloves excited to sponsor freeski pipe star Brita Sigourney at Winter X Games in Aspen

Brita Sigourney flying to victory at Dew Tour in Breckenridge (Alli Sports)

Swany Gloves is excited to announce it will sponsor freeski pipe star Brita Sigourney at the Winter X Games in Aspen. (Here’s a guide & schedule for the competition).

Brita rocks some Toast 3N1 mitts from Swany Gloves at the Dew Tour

Brita has started the season with a bang. The Californian earned a dominating win at the Dew Tour in December wearing The Claw, the official glove of the Dew Tour. She followed that up with a third-place finish (just .02 out of second) at the Sprint U.S. Grand Prix at Copper Mountain.

We caught up with Brita, who will compete at 6:30 p.m. Friday (Jan. 25) in the Women’s ski superpipe final, to talk about her preparation for Winter X. Here’s what she had to say:

“I just finished up a week-long training camp in Breckenridge with the U.S. Freeskiing team, in which we had early morning sled laps at the half pipe. It was really nice to have access to an empty pipe and quick laps so we could really focus on what we wanted to accomplish before X Games.

“I have been working on cleaning up the run that has already been successful for me. I have also taken the last few days off of snow to get well rested and re-energized for next week. My knee has been a bit swollen and sore (Brita had knee surgery last spring), so I am hoping this break will help me be skiing at my top level when it comes time to throw down.

“I have been spending a bit of time in the gym to substitute for missing time on snow, and I am confident my body will be feeling great for our first official X Games practice on Tuesday (Jan. 22).”

Learn more about this talented freeskier in this feature story and at the U.S. Freeskiing website (Follow her on Twitter @britasig).

Swany Gloves is dedicated to bringing you the best of outdoor adventure. Like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, enter our Outdoor Adventures Video Contest.

Buy cheap lift tickets for college students at X Games in Aspen now

Going to the X Games in Aspen (Jan. 24-27)? Are you a college student?

Then there’s a killer deal available: a two-day pass to all four of Aspen’s mountains for just $82. How good of a deal is that? A two-day adult ticket at that time is about twice the price.  And you can add two more days for $52 a day. The X Games are held on Buttermilk Mountain, but the pass also gets you on Aspen, Snowmass and Aspen Highlands.

The College X Pass can be purchased online. You must be 24 years or younger and present a valid I.D. from an accredited four-year college course when you pick up the pass.  Hurry and cash in on these cheap lift tickets now.

Swany Gloves makes the best gloves and mittens for skiing and snowboarding. We’re also dedicated to bringing you the best of outdoor adventure. Like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter.