Apex Mountain Resort lands new freestyle ‘landing bag’

Freestyle skiers at Apex Mountain Resort near Penticton have a new tool to help their developmental progress in the sport.

Members of the mountain’s Freestyle Apex club can now land any jump safely thanks to a new air-inflated landing bag.

Made by Bag Jump in Austria, the landing bag is the only one its kind in western Canada.

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“This new airbag at Apex Mountain Resort is absolutely phenomenal,” Apex Mountain Resort general manager James Shalman told Global News.

“The purpose of this airbag is really to provide a safe landing environment, but both mentally and physically for the athlete,”

By doing that Shalman says an athlete’s progression in the sport will be dramatically increased.

Freestyle Apex head coach Kristi Richards is a former Olympic freestyle skier and was the driving force behind Apex landing the new landing bag.

“There’s about a metre-and-a-half of air in these things,” said Richards.

“This one is 14 metres by 27 metres long, the pitch is at a 26-to-28 degree slope,” Richards said describing the new bag, which cost $100,000.

The Freestyle club used a community futures loan to purchase the bag, and club members describe landing on it as extremely soft and safe.

“It’s a very interesting feeling. It’s kind of like, if you could imagine, it’s a big pillow,” said Patrick Parsons.

“It’s like a cushion to get you going from a trampoline onto the bag, onto the snow. It’s an amazing steppingstone.”

“It’s a great progression piece for us,” said freestyle skier Charlie Roberts.