Appalachian Ski Mountain Wraps Up Zeb Powell's Pop Out Tour
Luke Winkelmann grew up riding all 365 feet of vertical drop at Appalachian Ski Mountain in his home town of Banner Elk, North Carolina, so it's only fitting that he flew back out for the ski area's biggest day of the season.
App Ski hosted the fourth and final stop of Zeb and Cac's Pop Out. This year, the gang had already stopped at Hatley Pointe and Cataloochee, where Zeb actually learned how to ride. Beech Mountain - home of fellow Recess team riders JK and Brantley Mullins - was the third stop. But North Carolina saved its biggest party for its smallest mountain.
You got a sense that the pro riders felt the importance of the final stop of the tour as much as those in attendance. Yes, dozens of groms eagerly lapped the terrain park with their favorite pros. But Alex Caccamo asked a crowd at the top of the jumps to clear out so he could gain enough speed to throw a McTwist. Powell repeatedly tried rail transfer tricks during a jam session. And Winkelmann, who had to cut his Olympic dreams short thanks to a nagging knee injury that slowed his return to the FIS contest circuit, had a permanent smile on his face as he talked to the ski patrollers, parents, and lifties that knew him since he was just a child.
"Oh, it feels so nice, especially being here at home and riding with the hometown gang," he said. "Like, I've needed it to say the least."
For Powell, it was off to Aspen to get ready for the X Games. He will compete in the knuckle huck contest, and will no doubt be the center of attention, as he was just named one of the founding members of the upcoming X Games League. Powell will try to take home his third X Games medal.
