YETI Natural Selection Ski 2026 Full Recap and Winning Runs

Featured Image: Leslie Hittmeier

That's curtains for YETI Natural Selection Ski 2026, and what a damn ride it was. When holding a freeride competition in the wild of Alaska, you never know what you're going to get. That was certainly the case this time around. As weather and dicey avalanche conditions called for last-minute changes, including a new venue at the final hour, riders were forced to pivot and adapt, which is exactly what they did.

The contest was moved from last year's host face in Valdez to Girdwood. As Valdez's prototypical Alaskan face, dubbed Spine Cell, was selected for NST Ski 2026, but as the weather window dwindled, it became clear the unstable snowpack was not suitable for competition. Markus Eder and Travis Rice worked in tandem with guides from Pulseline Adventure, ultimately finding the zone we witnessed. After stepping out a few inruns, it became clear this rolling zone would act as a worthy alternative.

And as Sam Kuch said, this contest is about finding the most well-rounded skier, and that person should be as comfortable on huge spines as they are hitting kickers and gracefully hauling over rollers. After a day of massive airs, dub 10s, flat spins, backies, clean turns and more, champions were crowned and we were able to witness a new chapter in freeskiing. Let's dive in.

Below you'll find highlights, winning runs, podium results and photos from NST Ski 2026

Editor's Note: If you haven't watched the full broadcast (linked above), we highly recommend it. Commentators Chris Benchetler, Tonje Kvivik, Mark Abma and Ed Leigh saw the footage for the first time it streamed live, making for an enlightening and entertaining replay.

To be clear, the venue change occurred with one day left in the weather window. Riders had studied the Spine Cell face at length, but those plans had to be scrapped. It was a bold reminder that Mother Nature always calls the shots. What could be seen as an inconvenience can also be viewed as another level of challenge. Being able to find a creative way down a relatively simple-looking venue is a skill, just as much as being able to stick to a game plan on a technical slope.

Steep and deep was replaced with amplitude and style. That's a trade we won't argue against, especially with this lineup of skiers. The four women and eight men came ready to battle. The women's field consisted of defending NST Ski champion Manon Loschi, Elisabeth Gerritzen, Astrid Cheylus and Super Sessions wildcard winner Hannah Epsteyn. The men's field was made up of defending NST Ski champion Craig Murray, Sam Kuch, Colby Stevenson, Tanner Hall, Karl Fostvedt, Finn Bilous, Markus Eder, and Super Sessions wildcard winner Jonah Williams.

NST Ski is a bracket-style competition. Riders face off against opponents in their group, with the winner of each round advancing. The pressure is on to put down your best run, with two runs given in the final round. Scores are decided by judges based on the CREDO system: Creativity, Risk, Execution, Difficulty and Overall Flow. This means that you can crash or lose a ski, but you'll still be allowed to finish a run and even receive a respectable score depending on other aspects of your line. Judges Grete Elliasen and Sage Cattabriga-Alosa certainly had their work cut out for them.

It's a unique system that encourages risk-taking and doesn't eliminate a rider when things go awry. This was evident right away, as these skiers began hucking the moment the event kicked off. Speed was an issue at first. The rolling terrain was difficult to gauge, and a layer of fresh snow made it harder for the lighter skier to travel, especially in two distinct sections. But as tracks began to populate the venue, things heated up quickly.

Blue skies and fresh tracks awaited the NST Ski crew in Alaska

Photo: Chad Chomlack | Skier: Hannah Epsteyn

You could hear the cheers through the mics as Colby Stevenson dropped first, teeing off what would be a legendary day. He put down fresh tracks across the face, lacing a classic cork seven blunt on his first hit. Jonah Williams wasn't able to put down a clean run all day, though he had plenty of beautiful hits and big threes. It didn't go his way, but we'd be stoked as always to see him back in AK soon.

Fostvedt struggled with speed but was able to add a few butters, successfully stomping a nosebutter seven. He kept hammering the switch landings, but the variable snow underneath the fresh layer held him back. Finn Bilous was able to connect on a massive right seven, plus a right three and a flat three Japan, pushing him straight through to the finals with a score of 90.

After the men's field kicked off, young Hannah Epsteyn went humongous right off the bat but didn't find her flow, taking a few tumbles. Gerritzen, Cheylus and Loschi were all within five points of each other, but thanks to a proper backflip, safety three and excellent fluidity, Loschi won the round and moved on to the finals.

The second men's heat followed suit, keeping the competition level high. Murray was the first rider of the day to attempt a 1080, proving he's as comfortable on kickers as he is in big mountain terrain. He still scored a respectable 89, with only Eder outpacing him as the Italian stallion secured a 94. T Hall put down a classic dub backflip but didn't nail his whole run, and Kuch kicked a shoe above a cliff, dropping his final score, which meant Eder would be moving on to finals.

Going... going... stomped!

Photo: Chad Chomlack | Skier: Elisabeth Gerritzen (left), Craig Murray (right)

After many more stomps and memorable moments, including more butter seven goodness from Fostvedt, a flat three Japan from Loschi (who was the only woman to secure an invert with a grab), insanely smooth dub 10 from Bilous, overshoot-to-bolts landings from Kuch and much more, our finals were set.

It was a French showdown for the women, as friends Cheylus and Loschi were pitted against each other. It was close in run one, as both had stomps and stumbles, but Loschi broke out the big guns in run two. She pinned it into the first step-out lip, sending a double backflip that could serve as the textbook example. With a perfect landing and another lofty three later in the run, she earned a stellar score of 95. Cheylus countered with a double of her own, but just barely lost control on the landing, making Loschi the first back-to-back NST Ski champion.

Eder, Stevensen, Kuch and Bilous squared off in the men's final, with no semblance of a favorite as each of these four skiers can hold their own on any kind of terrain. Bilous had a great run despite a front-punch on a cork 1080 mute. Eder's nosebutter seven on a natural takeoff had Abma floored from the commentators' booth, and his complete line managed to score a 94, besting Bilous by eight points.

Stevenson went massive on finals run one, landing a good 10 yards past other tracks with his idyllic blunt 1080. Kuch's run rounded out the first wave of the men's finals, as he nailed a hand drag three of a cliff, a gigantic dub flat and a misty seven. One could certainly argue that a 92 was not a high enough score for such a creative and well-executed line, but that's a different story.

In the end, Stevenson's first run of finals would be unbeatable for the rest of the field. Though Bilous's second run stood close with a 93, it wasn't enough to knock off the king!

2026 NST Ski Women's (left) and Men's (right) brackets

Loschi's victory came thanks to a precise approach. "With a venue like this," she said, "my strategy was to have fun, but stay calculated. I wanted to show strong skiing, but not go 100 percent and risk crashing. It was about finding that balance, taking enough risk to qualify while still skiing clean. I was probably skiing at around 50 to 60 percent in qualifiers, making sure I could put a run down and build from there."

Stevenson dwelled on the factors inside his mind that made it happen. "It was coming more from an internal pressure of pushing yourself," he remarked when asked about the win. "Instead of having a gnarly, steep run in front of you, it opened things up creatively."

Each of these riders were able not only to outpace extremely talented competitors, but also to be fluid and adapt to the changing environment. The same goes for the incredibly talented team at Natural Selection. To secure a course and put together a broadcast like this on a new venue at the last minute takes tons of coordination and precision.

Congrats to the entire crew on a stellar competition despite the hurdles. We're already fired up for 2027!