After two solid days of fog and mist, the weather finally lifted bearing less than favorable snow conditions for a Friday the 13th parallel slalom at Whistler as the World Cup tour returned to North America, and Austrians took five of six podium spots.

The Austrian contingent swept the women’s podium led by Maria Pichler, while male riders Michael Dabringer and Felix Stadler went 2-3, following World Cup leader Mathieu Bozzetto of France, who won. Top U.S. finishers Stacia Hookom (Edwards, CO) and Chris Klug (Aspen, CO) finished sixth and seventh respectively.

“Times were just all over the map today because the snow was completely hollow and was breaking away in cookies,” said alpine Head Coach Nick Smith. “All the riders were having trouble negotiating it, but I was very pleased with the way our athletes adjusted. Nobody wanted to be on the mountain today, but they really sucked it up and rode like we’ve been training.”

Klug, the ’02 Olympic bronze medal winner started the day wearing bib No. 1 and battled his way into the semifinals before bowing out. Hookom, a staple in the top-15 all season, including a second in Soelden, Austria, has been focusing on her mental game the past few weeks also claimed today as a victory.

"Hookom has come a long way this season. It’s great to see her in the hunt each time..." — U.S. Alpine Head Coach Nick Smith

“Hookom has come a long way this season,” added Smith. “It’s great to see her in the hunt each time and it’s totally because she has found her mental focus and with that comes the confidence that it takes to ride well. Today was also a win for Klug because it was his first solid parallel slalom result on the year and that’s what we need to start seeing in preparing for January’s World Championships.”

The visit to Whistler concludes Saturday with the finals of halfpipe. The U.S. team will pick up next week with the first leg of the Chevy Truck U.S. Snowboard Grand Prix as it kicks off Thursday at the Park City Mountain Resort in Park City, UT. — Courtesy, US Snowboard Team