Lake Wanaka, New Zealand – A record field of 85 competitors turned out Friday for the return of the NZ Snowboarder Banked Slalom in poor visibility at Treble Cone ski area near Wanaka.nWill Jackways of Wanaka claimed the men’s title with two consistently fast performances. Just two seconds behind, fellow Wanaka residents Nick Walker gained second place and Joram Makura finished third.

In the women’s, field Olympic snowboarder Juliane Bray of Wanaka produced the fastest
performance, Wanaka resident Abby Lockhart a close second and Stephanie Takarangi of Turangi took third place.

In the veterans division, open to those 40 and over, Nick Bourke of Wanaka was the champion in the
men’s field and placed sixth overall, while Wanaka’s Sam Hudson was the first female vet home.

The NZ Snowboarder Banked Slalom took place in the Saddle Basin at Treble Cone.
Competitors needed to negotiate the tight steep-banked turns throughout the long course,
but gained a good sense of achievement when they crossed the finish line. The mixed
visibility conditions throughout the day added to the challenge.

The prize pool includes NZ$2,400 cash, a day’s heliboarding with Harris Mountains
HeliSki, a Capita snowboard and bindings as well as heaps of gear from Treble
Cone, NZ Snowboarder magazine, Huffer, Nixon, Union, Vonzipper and Snickers.