Pikes Peak Region Trail Finder

Luke Mitrani throws down only one double trick during his run to win gold at Copper Mountain. Andy Cross, The Denver Post

By Jason Blevins, The Denver Post

COPPER MOUNTAIN — The biggest breakthroughs in skiing and snowboarding halfpipe in the past several years have been technical: dangerous, twisting, aerial feats that involve four rotations during a double backflip, all spun while grabbing and floating above 22-foot halfpipe walls.

While the famous double McTwist 1260 remains a gold standard for snowboarders, much like skiers' double-cork 1260, the rapid pace of innovation that defined the last few seasons in the halfpipe seems to be slowing.

Every season for the past few years, new tricks were percolating through every skier's and snowboarder's halfpipe performance, pushing the sports to new and hazardous heights. This season however, may see a plateau in halfpipe progression.

"I really think the progression is going to slow down a little bit," said Simon Dumont​, a 25-year-old Maine skier whose halfpipe dominance over the past seven years is being tested by younger, more brazen athletes. Dumont, who has bounced back from a couple of crashes that should have ended his career, thinks the fearlessness of the younger, hungry-for-glory pack in his wake could ebb with the rise of even riskier tricks.

"A lot of these kids haven't had those big falls yet," he said. "I remember being that kid. I was there once. But those big falls, they change you. Once you hit that deck, your outlook changes a little."

Read more about what you may see in the pipe at Breckenridge on the Dew Tour stop this week - and throughout the season.