Snowshoe ushered March in with blue skies, high vibes, and the 2026 Darn Tough Banked Slalom Race Weekend.
On Saturday, there was solid work from the snowboard racers when over 100 racers took to the course with one plank, fighting to best the fastest on our dynamic DTBS course.
The Grom Girls and Grom Boys races found some new kids on the podiums and our favorite racers as well: our very own Zara Fanning took the girls field with a screaming 53.45 second finsih and Brayden Monroe besting the other boys with a 1.01.14 time.
The Women’s category was filled with Snowshoe talent and featured a stacked podium of local ladies. Top of the pack was Bridget Moyer with a blazin’ 55.29 second finish.
This year we were stoked to split the Men’s division into young guns 16-39 year old’s and masters aged 40+. The Masters showed classic talent with Ry Mitchem once again landing on top with a 46.31 time, winning out over some serious legends of the sport! The Men’s young guns showed up and threw a heavy dose of steeze on the course with Tristan O’Steen’s 44.73 fastest time of the day.
On Sunday, over 75 racers showed up to shred the stacked set of berms, turns, rollers, and jumps.
From the smallest ripper claiming his glory to a fierce and fast female field of racers, the groms were on fire! We saw a brotherhood of boys dominate with Hunter Beauchamp’s 47.82 second time coming out on top. The fastest female of the day was the tiny grom Ali Gregory who bested the women’s field with a time of 51.78 seconds.
The big kids brought the stoke too, with the women laying down blistering times and supreme style on the course. Local fav Summerlyn Ellis repeated her 2025 win with a heater 52.33 second run.
But the icing on the Darn Tough Banked Slalom cake was the Mens division. From 16 to 60, these men left it all on the 21 berms and turns…and some B Net.
The top spot of the day came from youngblood Sam Glenn, buttering his run in a brisk 42.21 seconds and styling a huge 540 spin on the finish jump. He claimed his victory skiing switch across the finish line!
Long-time race legend, Xander Brouilette, waiting at the finish after laying down a smokin’ 42.5 time, ceded his position graciously to Glenn, proving that our fastest races are also the best sportsmen.
Closing out the Snowshoe race season, 2026 Darn Tough Banked Slalom was the perfect chill but rowdy good time. Be sure to get in on the action next year!
Enjoy some racer POV’s from this exciting event!