Podiums, perseverance, and powerful lessons mark final IMD Championships qualifying event at Tamarack

Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation (SVSEF) North Series athletes wrapped up their final Intermountain Division (IMD) qualifier Feb. 28–March 1 at the Cranston Cup at Tamarack Resort. The weekend featured Giant Slalom (GS) and Slalom (SL) races and served as the final qualifying opportunity for IMD Championships. 

It was a fitting finale to the North Series regular season with a weekend filled with fast skiing, podium finishes, breakthrough performances, and valuable experiences gained.

“It was another epic weekend with lots of great skiing, podiums and a few tears. There were lots of lessons learned this weekend,” said Head North Series Team Coach Claudia Stern. “It was a great apprenticeship for these athletes and a reminder that growth in ski racing comes from both success and setbacks.”

One athlete remarked “You told me to charge hard and I did, and I crashed!!” as an example of young racers who are learning to find their limits.

Leading the way for SVSEF was Walker Gove, who not only claimed victory in Sunday’s slalom but also secured the overall Cranston Cup title for the boys – a standout achievement to conclude the last regular season race of the season before the IMD Championships.

With the North Series qualifier season complete, SVSEF athletes now look ahead to IMD Championships March 20-22 in Jackson Hole, WY. 

SVSEF Athlete Results

Slalom – Boys
1st – Walker Gove
2nd – Asa Sattler
4th – Ford Rixon
7th – Keller Spachman
10th – Cole Martens

Slalom – Girls
2nd – Dylan Spengler
3rd – Blakely Martnes
4th – Tea Smither
5th – Dylan Meyer
7th – Estelle Turzian
8th – Freya Moffat
9th – Rienza Buonchristiani
10th – Lexi Barthel

Giant Slalom – Boys
2nd – Dylan Smiley
3rd – Ford Rixon
4th – Walker Gove
8th – Evan McGregor

Giant Slalom – Girls
1st – Alta Questad
3rd – Kayla Kloster
4th – Marie McNeal
5th – Estelle Turzian
6th – Dylan Spengler
7th – Amelia Beck
8th – Sophie Robins
10th – Dylan Meyer
11th – Tea Smither
13th – Payton Minor

Complete results are available on the IMD website: here