It was right around this time last year that we boldly announced the Natural Selection Tour event in Revelstoke, BC was “A Masterpiece of Big Mountain Freestyle Snowboarding” and I am incredibly psyched to announce its return. Before the big show, NST has put together a head to head showdown of riders to see who will get the chance to shine in Revy:
“When the day Mother Nature calls in the March 10-17 competition window, 24 of the world’s best snowboarders will drop into the all-new, natural and naturally-enhanced Natural Selection venue on Revelstoke Mountain Resort’s backcountry LIVE for the YETI Natural Selection Revelstoke. But first, twelve challenging riders compete head-to-head for a shot at joining the Tour from DUELS will premiere February 27 on Red Bull TV. The winning DUELS riders will join returning, invited Revelstoke riders and one “Extra Selection” men’s rider chosen by fans.”
Here’s a quick preview of DUELS which you can watch Red Bull TV starting on February 27th:
A dozen ‘challenger’ riders will kick off the tour in YETI Natural Selection Tour Duels showdowns at mountain venues worldwide.
Six showdowns will be held at iconic mountain venues in Switzerland; Colorado, USA; Japan; and British Columbia, Canada. Designed to unveil riders’ creativity, skill and resilience against diverse backdrops, the daring dozen will compete for the six remaining spots (two for women and four for men) available for stage two in Revelstoke in March.
The Duels winners will be revealed in the Duels episodes released on February 27th, exclusively on Red Bull TV, which leaves one men’s spot open. With the selection committee out snowboarding, they’ll hand the final rider invite over to the fans. The Extra Selection opens up a public vote on Red Bull .com to give one of the Duels riders who was close – but didn’t make the final cut – a ticket straight through to Revelstoke.
Voting opens from February 27th to March 4th, with the winner announced on Natural Selection’s Instagram on March 5th.
Here are your Duels matchups:
- Sebbe DeBuck vs Kevin Backstrom in Andermatt, Switzerland
- Jamie Anderson vs Emma Crosby at Crested Butte Mountain Resort, Colorado, USA
- Nils Mindnich vs Victor Daviet at Purgatory Snowcat Adventures in Durango, Colorado, USA
- Spencer O’Brien vs Mary Rand at RED Mountain Resort, Rossland, British Columbia, Canada
- Red Gerard vs Austen Sweetin at Eleven’s terrain on Scarp Ridge in Irwin, Colorado, USA
- Raibu Katayama vs Torgier Bergrem in Myoko, Japan
