Seven members of the Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation Freestyle Team qualified for the 2022 USSA Junior Nationals held Mar. 18-20. Sylas Barrett, Erik Babcock, Tillie Babcock, Will Hausmann, Drake Lovlien, Nic Rubenstein, and Marek Ruttler made the trip to Utah Olympic Park to compete amongst the top U18’s in the country.

“I was really happy to see everything come together for our athletes to qualify and compete at this level of competition,” said John Grigsby, SVSEF Freestyle Head Coach and Program Director. “They worked incredibly hard all season and to have the opportunity to go up against the best is so great for their growth as athletes and competitors.”

SVSEF’s Erik Babcock and Nic Rubenstein really shined, posting some of the highest air scores in the competition and missing the final by a mere six points. Teammates Will Hausman and Drake Lovlien were the two youngest competitors to rank within the top 80 men in the country and qualify for the Junior Nationals at just thirteen years old.

Having won every dual he’s entered this season; Erik Babcock was primed to podium in Sunday’s Duals event when with 32 duals to go, strong winds estimated at 55-60 mph forced cancellation for the safety of the athletes. Babcock is undefeated in Duals this season.

Up next for the SVSEF Freestyle team—Erik Babcock, Tillie Babcock, and Nick Marek will travel to the U.S. Freestyle National Championship, Mar. 24-27 at Deer Valley, UT.

Photo: Anthony Mazur