Not just any snowboard brand, it’s obvious K2 Snowboarding can’t just celebrate a normal birthday party – especially not for the 25th anniversary! And so they’ve come up with an extra special celebration at the Ifen in the Kleinwalsertal, Austria from April 5th-7th, 2013: the K2 KRANKED Slalom!
The course of K2’s KRANKED Slalom was shaped perfectly with banks and bonks, jibs and hips by the guys of the Kleinwalsertaler Bergbahnen. 38 teams showed up to participate in the race and battle for the axe of K2 KRANKED. The weather was not playing into the riders´ cards and so the course became really challenging to ride but a short look on the starters list showed, that the focus of K2’s KRANKED Slalom was mostly fun, when teams with names like “Turbo Roses”, Pontresina Pimpels” or “YETIs Erben” where fighting against each other. The aim was to clear the course fast and stylish. Team “Original Zillertal”, consisting of Alex Walch, Georg Huber and Tom Trammitz, could cope best with these conditions, scored first place and are now happy winners of a Japan Powder Adventure with elooa Camps. Second became the local team “Handsome” with Clemens Paul, Florian Geiger and Roland Matt, followed by the “Gnarlberg Steinbocks” around Chris Schnabel, Simon Holzknecht and Irian van Helfteren.
After the price giving the K2 KRANKED was not over, yet. The punk cover band “Desert Haze” played good old snowboard songs, while people started to shred the mini ramp in front of the Auenhütte and the smell of burgers was in the air. The festival atmosphere went on and on and the next gigs were already prepared to take over. Demograffics, the hip-hop live act and the Baywatch Soundsystem drove the crowed crazy till the early morning. About 50 people fell asleep in their camp beds in the sleeping tent, which K2 Snowboarding splashed out on his birthday bash.
All in all the K2 KRANKED Slalom was a worthy gathering, where old dogs and young guns, pro riders and soul shredders came together to have a good time. They all drove home with a big smile in the face and are already looking forward to the next K2 KRANKED!
