Amplid team rider Sebastian Hiersche is on fire. After starting the season with a 6th place at the 2* Open Faces freeride contest in Kappl his season started to gather some momentum.
A 2nd place at the 3* Silvretta Montafon Open Faces event followed, where Sebastian was able to put-down a solid line, full of features, which really showed his ease in the air. The highlight of his run was a 10m deep 360 stomped with little effort. Skiing the Infrablack 191cm Sebastian was really starting to gain confidence.
The next event was a little closer to home in Gastein. The 2* event wasn’t attended by the big name European riders eager to add points, but many of Austria’s top freeriders were in attendance. A solid performance with plenty of speed, incredible fluidity and Sebastian’s trademark smooth as butter airtime was boosted to a whole other level by a huge 720 at the end of his run. A score of 94.67 was almost 12 points more than the 2nd place skier!
After three great results Sebastian was swiftly climbing the FWQ rider’s rankings. Now on the Seeding List, Sebastian was able to add 4* events to his agenda which meant qualification for the 4* Nendaz freeride contest in Switzerland. Plenty of snowfall in the days before meant the venue was loaded with great powder. Riding in the first half of the field meant the venue wasn’t too tracked by the time Sebastian got to ride. Riding with maturity ahead of his 21 years he put together a great line with some big drops, fluid entries into some tricky features and drops and a huge backflip from the final drop. Although placing 3rd, some big runs from the likes of Mickael Bimboes and Oscar Mandin gradually knocked him off the podium, placing him in 6th for the day. A fantastic result for Sebastian’s first 4* event.
Last weekend, brimming with confidence, Sebastian rode in the X Over 3* Freeride Contest at Kitzsteinhorn, Austria. Another run blending big-mountain freeriding and freestyle trickery was on the cards. Sebastian’s run kicked-off with a flat 3 from a small rock drop. A nice drop through a couloir and a 360 from a flattened take-off added valuable points. Once again saving the best ‘til last, a smaller set-up cliff drop aligned Sebastian with a super narrow spine drop. Charging full speed, Sebastian launched from the outcrop clearing the couloir below and landing 20m further down the face, transitioning perfectly into a steep pocket. A run deserving of 1st place and a 750Eur cheque.
Now ranking 11th in the Europe/Oceania region and the number one qualifier in Austrian events the only way that Sebastian can improve his current standing is with a big result at the final 4* FWQ event of the season in Obergurgl. A big result could place Sebastian in the top 5, narrowly missing-out on a starting place on the Freeride World Tour, but placing him high on the seeding list permitting him access to all of the 4* events for next season including Jasna, Hochfuegen, Sogndal and Les Arcs.
Good luck in Obergurgl Sebastian!
