Pipe skiing. Some think it belongs in the 2010 Olympics, while others hope to delay its recognition. Whatever the case, the kids on the pipe circuit are talented. On Saturday I was a witness, as top pipe shredders showed off their athletic ability on what will be the home grounds of those games (though snowboard pipe is scheduled to go down at Cypress in 2010).

I got up Blackcomb and it felt like a shitty day in the middle of February. It was clear but it must have been at least minus ten. Runs were littered with moguls and other evidence of the spring conditions I had dreamed of, but covered by a light dusting of snow on top of a hard layer of ice. This was not good for the pipe. Most skiers were having trouble with speed, and all had to face the consequences of a rock hard landing.

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Everyone who had qualified for the finals was given four runs. Their best one would count and the other three were tossed out the window. In the dangerous conditions that existed, most held back for their first two runs. Tucker Perkins did not. He went hard from the start and stomped all four of his runs on his way to the win. If consistency counted, he was the clear winner. But since it was best single run and consistency essencially didn't count, I’m going to call it a narrow victory over a talented field. Sarah Burke on the other hand won easily. She ended up a full point ahead of the other girls.

The super hit is always the highlight of this event. Here the competitors take single hits in the pipe as opposed to the 5 or 6 in a standard run, and usually throw their biggest and best tricks. David Wise pleased the crowd with sick allyoop-flatspin-3-double-japans, but ate shit pretty hard when trying to step up the amplitude. Last year’s winner Mike Riddle landed a huge switch 10 mute late in the session and appeared to be the favorite. Dania Assaly was also impressing with her 10s. But it was Perkins who was chosen as winner once again, this time voted on by his fellow competitors.

For details and full results check out the official WSSF website: whistler.mtv.ca