A cool morning gave way to an incredible first day of competition of the 2019 U.S. Barefoot Nationals at the Blue Moo in Alma Center, Wisconsin. And the first day offered plenty of thrills, spills and incredible performances. You can watch the Nationals Livestream HERE.
Adam Page of Colorado had the honor of being the first skier off the dock for tournament in the Mens B Slalom event at 7:02 am. He was followed by some intense competition and finished eighth in the event. Minnesota’s Paul Adams picked up third with a 9.1, Wisconsin’s Scott Stouffer grabbed second with a 9.2 and the pride of Tennessee, Todd Fipps, captured the Gold with a 10.2.
In Mens A Tricks, Georgia’s Eric Coryer finished third with 2210 points, from deep in the heart of Texas and the Austin Barefoot Ski Club, Blake Ehlers finished second with a 2260 and Tournament Director and Californian Andrew Martin won the Gold with a 2500.
Mens C Tricks was dominated by the Eastern Region with Clif Martin finishing third with 730 points, Atomic Footer Derek Krehling grabbed second with 760 points and John Garrity won Gold with 800 points.
In the Womens Divisions, longtime competitor Wisconsin’s Sharon Carlson won Veteran Women Tricks with 600 points, Texan Ali Gates finished second in Womens B Tricks with 220 points and Deanna Dean won the gold with 390 points and her first back deep in competition.
In Master Men Tricks, Texan Jimmy Taurus finished third with 980 points, Glenn Kinnear grabbed second with 1000 points and Kevin Keith won gold with 1650 points. Florida’s Al Hager won Veteran Men Tricks with 420 points and Minnesota’s Paul Oman grabbed the gold in Senior Men Tricks with 750 points.
Competition was fierce in the first rounds of the Open, Open Pro and International Divisions. In Open Womens Slalom Wisconsin’s Teri Jones finished third with 9.8, Alex Youngblood finished second with 13.7 and Lexi McCauley grabbed first with 14.8.
In International Womens Slalom, Australians went head-to-head. Kelly Blank finished second with 7.4 and Ash Stebbeings finished first with 17.8. In International Mens Slalom, New Zealand’s Will Leigh finished with 15.4.
Open Men Slalom was tight with Blake Ehlers and Washington’s Doug Jordan finishing tied for third with 13.8, Florida’s Jim Forster end up second with 14.4 and Florida’s Zenon Bilas ended up on top with 15.
In Open Pro Slalom, with Keith St. Onge not attending this nationals for the first time in decades, the young guns stepped up. Wisconsin’s Brody Meskers finished third with 15.5, Florida’s Brice Storman was second with a 16.3 and Phenom Jackson Gerard captured the top spot with 18.
The first round of jump also brought some high-flying excitement. 
The Open Women went on to the next round with Teri Jones in third with 10.3 meter jump, Lexi McCauley in second with a 11.2 meter jump and Alex Youngblood with a 11.4 meter jump… and a respectable inverted jump attempt.
The Open Men had a hard time keeping up with the women… California’s Jerry Kanawyer landed a 10.9 meter jump and Doug Jordan finished first with a 11.7 meter jump.
But the Open Pro Men practically boosted it… Brody Meskers moves on with a 23.1 meter jump and sits in third, Florida’s Mikey Caruso launched a 23.7 meter jump and sits in second but he wowed the crowd with a flip off the ramp!
And Wisconsin’s Cody Heller launched a 24.4 meter jump and goes to the next round in first place.
Watch the Nationals Livestream at 2019BarefootNationals.com
American Barefoot Club 