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Best line on Vail Mountain gets $10k from Clif Bar; Wachendorfer likes his odds

Ryan Wachendorfer
Special to the Daily

VAIL – When the new prize purse was announced for the Burton US Open Snowboarding Championships this year, local Ryan Wachendorfer’s ears perked up.

In addition to the normal prizes for top 10 men and top 6 women in halfpipe and slopestyle, an additional $5,000 will be be given to the men’s and women’s Rookie of the Year, another $5,000 apiece will be given to the men’s and women’s slopestyle riders who still go big on the last jump after bungling their runs, and $10,000 will be given to the competitor who records the best line on Vail Mountain.

Wait did someone say $10,000 for recording the best line on Vail Mountain?

Indeed, the Clif Best Line contest will offer a five-figure payout to the US Open competitor who can capture the best film segment — 1 minute or less and unedited — somewhere on Vail Mountain.

“Everybody seemed pretty hyped on it when they were announcing it,” Wachendorfer said.

The Eagle County snowboarders eligible to participate in the contest – Wachendorfer, Jake Pates, Zoe Kalapos and Jack Coyne — may have a hometown advantage, Wachendorfer said, as he expects a lot of athletes may head right for the park. To the contrary, Wachendorfer said he has a go-to big mountain line with some cliffs in mind for his segment.

“It’s just a single-line run, the judges will pick the top three lines to share on social media, and then it will be fan voted for the winner,” Wachendorfer said. “I feel like we have a leg up because it’s at Vail, we know the zones.”


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