Beautiful people, beautiful snow, beautiful story! Arc’teryx Freeride Academy St.Anton

This has been a winter in which there has been a real constant: waiting for snow. Snowfall has been ungenerous and conditions often not the best. There was one day, though, when I really enjoyed the soft feeling under the skis, that powder that flies as soon as you take a step, the white all around. It was in Verwall, St.Anton, Austria at the annual Arc’teryx Freeride Academy.

The evening arrival in the Austrian town is marked by the glow of lights that can be seen already in the distance. Bars, inns, beautiful people roam the iconic streets of the Freeride Mecca, especially on that white February weekend. Part freeride school, part product test and and part festival, the 2023 edition of Arc’teryx Freeride Academy was a multifaceted event that brought together riders of all levels and experience into a large community where they could express and expand their skills in the field. The clinics were captained by some of the best freeriders in the world such as Eric “Hoji” Hjorleifson, Silvia Moser, Sam Kuch and Maude Besse.

Right in the heart of St.Anton then, the freeride village was a meeting point for all riders offering snacks, drinks and a place to share tales of one’s fresh mountain days. There are places where there is just a certain kind of community and atmosphere, and that’s also why St. Anton is so iconic. Then of course there are the mountains and the descents that only such places can give! There were 40 clinics offered, ranging from freeriding, touring, safety, ski mountaineering with sessions such as Big Mountain Freeride, Women’s Freeride or Snowboarding.

Thursday night had brought as much as 35cm of fresh: a dream for powder hunters but also a great risk for avalanches… which by Friday day was up to grade 4. That morning hardshells of every color filled the village, with groups of freeriders and snowboarders ready for the many clinics. We participated in Ski Touring Basics, a nice basic level session to enjoy the views and not worry about the risks.

Here we go! Alex is the guide who will accompany us in the morning, joined by an exceptional helper: Coline Ballet-Baz. She joined the group on tiptoe with a big smile and a bright orange shell that made her recognizable from a kilometer away. There were really too many people at the start of the lifts so we opted for a bus departure, a bus with an unusual route that sped casually along narrow, icy roads until we reached Wagner Hütte, the starting point. After a check to the materials and a review of the basics, it’s time to sink the skis into the magic powder. The route starts out easy and pleasant in the middle of the forest, climbing gently and first flanking a stream, then plunging into the trees. Colin tells a few anecdotes while biting into an apple aboard his freeride skis, which must have been at least 95. She tells us that she started freeskiing in college, because she wanted to play a sport … then instead came to compete in major competitions worldwide. He talks about his sport and career with unique simplicity, confiding that he now wants to enjoy freerider skiing through projects and films while leaving competition aside. One switchback after another the meters of elevation gain and the trees give way to the scenery, this is where the real outing begins!

Tall and majestic before us appears the Patteriol with 3056m height and its appearance reminiscent of Lisa Simpson’s hair, or so it seems to Natasha, an aussie who flew to Austria to rediscover her roots and who best represents the spirit of the Arc’teryx community in St.Anton and colors the day with her friendliness.All around silence, snow, wind and white. We zigzag uphill accompanied by the sound of powder rising and moving under our skis, until we arrive just below the summit of Wildebene, where we drink some hot tea and prepare for the descent.

Coline now become Coco, leaves first in heavier snow than she appeared but woe betide her if she complains! First on wider slopes, then back into the woods for some ski cross among rocks and roots all behind the Ballet-Baz rocket and his orange jacket until reaching Wagner Hütte again. Knödel, Weizen and hot chocolate is all we needed to end our clinic on a high note where we rediscovered the beauty of an easy route in excellent conditions where the importance is given to our surroundings and company rather than the mountaineering or technical objective.

Once back at the freeride village, hot punches and a bonfire await us around which to listen to the incredible stories of Arc’teryx athletes who have returned some from Japan, some from Scandinavia, and some from the States. Stories that intertwine like the trails of skiers on a slope, of jumps, adventures and passion that are told even better by music and images projected in the last stop of the Arc’teryx Film Tour on the same evening, right in St.Anton.

Beautiful people, beautiful snow, beautiful stories! This is how I would describe this event, the St.Anton Freeride Academy. One of a kind and sister to Backcountry Academy and the now iconic Alpine Academy under the wing of Arc’teryx. At this point … we just have to wait for the Chamonix edition to be held from June 29 to July 2 on the trails and glacier of Mont Blanc.

Info & registration at
chamonix.arcteryxacademy.com