The world-renowned all-mountain freeride snowboard competition is coming to Crested Butte Mountain Resort for the first time
Two of the six DUELS will take place in Crested Butte in early February: one at CBMR and one in the backcountry
Athletes participating in the Crested Butte-area DUELs include Jamie Anderson, Emma Crosby, Red Gerard and Austen Sweetin
Celebrations will include a concert in the base area on Feb. 10
CRESTED BUTTE, Colo. — Dec. 20, 2023 – Four of the world’s top snowboarding athletes will make their mark at Crested Butte this winter as part of the Natural Selection Tour: the world's top snowboarding competition that combines slopestyle tricks with big mountain freeriding. Crested Butte will be home to two of the six 2024 YETI DUELS. This first stage of the Natural Selection Tour features two riders competing for a shot to move on to the next stage in Revelstoke, British Columbia. Today, Natural Selection Tour announced the lineup of athletes for each of the Crested Butte-area YETI DUELS. Jamie Anderson and Emma Crosby will go head-to-head at Crested Butte Mountain Resort, and Red Gerard and Austen Sweetin will compete on Eleven Experience’s terrain on Scarp Ridge in Irwin, CO.
“We are excited to work alongside our partners at the Tourism and Prosperity Partnership and Eleven Experiences to welcome these amazingly talented athletes to Crested Butte and for them to experience all that our unique terrain has to offer,” said Tara Schoedinger, general manager of Crested Butte Mountain Resort. “Our famed extremes make Crested Butte Mountain Resort the perfect location for this style of competition, and we can’t wait to see the video release later this spring.”
The Natural Selection Tour was designed by snowboarding legend Travis Rice in 2021. Historically a backcountry competition, the Tour is expanding its repertoire this year to include in-resort venues, challenging athletes to master their skills on both natural and naturally enhanced terrain. YETI Natural Selection DUELS are designed to bring out riders’ creativity and highlight competitors’ diverse styles.
The participating athletes bring with them plenty of accolades in the professional snowboarding world. Anderson has 21 X Games medals and was the first female snowboarder to win multiple Olympic gold medals with her victories in the women’s slopestyle at the 2014 and 2018 Games. Crosby is a versatile rider who tackles rails and slopes with style. Having spent the last few winters farther off-piste, she hopes to solidify her place in all-mountain riding at CBMR. Gerard, a Colorado native, competed in slopestyle and big air events in the 2018 Olympics, winning gold in slopestyle. Sweetin has a long history riding on-screen and stepped into the competition world with his participation in the Natural Selection Tour in 2021.
Anderson, Crosby, Gerard and Sweetin will compete in Crested Butte within a designated weather window in early February. The CBMR operations team will work closely with the NST operations team to select and finalize the date, time and exact venue in the days leading up to the DUEL, depending on conditions. While the DUELS venue will not be open to the public, CBMR is partnering with the Town of Mt. Crested Butte and the Town Center Community Association to invite the entire community to celebrate with a concert in the CBMR base area on Feb. 10. All of the best action and the winners of Natural Selection DUELS will be unveiled in edited shows that will premiere starting in late February 2024 on Red Bull TV.
In DUELS, 12 challenger riders from across the global snowboarding spectrum compete for six remaining rider spots available in Revelstoke: two for women and four for men. Other YETI DUELS will take place at Vail Resorts’ own Andermatt+Sedrun+Disentis in Switzerland; RED Mountain Resort in Rossland, BC; Purgatory Snowcat Adventures in Durango, CO; and at a location to be determined in Japan.
Of the 24 riders convening in Revelstoke, 18 riders are returning with tickets punched straight to the weather window opening on March 10, 2024. These invited riders include the 12 who are pre-qualified through their performances at the 2023 YETI Natural Selection Revelstoke: Mikkel Bang, Mikey Ciccarelli, Dustin Craven, Jared Elston, Kimmy Fasani, Ben Ferguson, Hailey Langland, Elena Hight, Torstein Horgmo, Blake Paul, Zoi Sadowski-Synnott and Travis Rice. Six more invited riders will be announced throughout the winter. Stay tuned to Natural Selection and Crested Butte Mountain Resort’s social media accounts for updates.
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Crested Butte Mountain Resort Media Contact:
Julie Block
224.567.3878
Natural Selection Tour Media Contact:
Lora Bodmer
307.690.1630
About Crested Butte Mountain Resort
Nestled in the heart of Colorado’s Rocky Mountains with 542 acres of double-black-diamond terrain, Crested Butte Mountain Resort is known as the North American birthplace of inbounds extreme skiing and riding. While exploring Crested Butte, advanced skiers and riders find unparalleled adventure in the famed Extreme Limits, and beginners find their stepping stone to the steeps. Located just two miles from the resort and accessible via free shuttle, the small historic town of Crested Butte is filled with vibrant Victorian store fronts and expressive local characters, radiating a welcoming spirit that celebrates a simpler life and time.
About the Natural Selection Tour
The brainchild of Travis Rice, the Natural Selection Tour showcases the world’s top riders from Olympians to big mountain film icons all competing on the planet’s most exciting natural and naturally enhanced terrain. The 2024 Tour features three stages, as riders move through Natural Selection DUELS, the YETI Natural Selection Selkirk Tangiers and YETI Natural Selection Revelstoke events. The best all-mountain freestyle riders in the world will come together for the crowning of a men’s and women’s champion after the final day of live competition in Revelstoke. The Natural Selection Tour’s mission is to inspire people to forge a deeper relationship with Mother Nature.