This past week, the world returned to a place that has shaped the very soul of freestyle skiing: Waterville Valley. It was a homecoming. A reminder that the roots of this sport run deep here, in a valley that has always attracted the bold, the creative, and the fearless.

In 1971, the mountain hosted the first Professional Freestyle Skiing Competition, drawing together skiers from across North America who were hungry for something new. Among them were Wayne Wong, George Askevold, and Floyd Wilkie — pioneers who didn’t just compete here, but stayed. They became the coaches of the very first freestyle ski team, planting the seeds of a movement that would spread across the country and eventually around the world. To push boundaries, to imagine what skiing could become is still alive here today.

Just down the road from the World Cup course sits Phil’s Hill, a training ground that has shaped generations of freestyle athletes. Today, it is home to the WVABBTS Bag Jump, a year‑round engine of progression where athletes learn to fly with confidence, creativity, and safety. It is a where young skiers discover the joy of pushing past what they thought was possible. Phil’s Hill is a symbol of the freestyle DNA that runs through this valley. It is where the next Wayne Wong, the next Hannah Kearney, the next Grace and Hunter Henderson begins to take shape.

At WVABBTS, we see firsthand how the legacy of freestyle continues to inspire young athletes. They train on the same slopes where the sport was born. They learn from coaches who carry forward the creativity and courage of those early pioneers. They grow up in a community that values grit, individuality, and the freedom to explore their own style.

Freestyle skiing has always been about more than tricks or results. It is about expression. It is about resilience. It is about daring to be different. And that ethos is woven into everything we do at WVABBTS.

Our athletes are not just learning to ski moguls or throw corks. They are learning to take risks, to trust themselves, to get back up after a crash, and to chase excellence with humility and hunger. These are the life skills that carry them far beyond the mountain and into college, into careers, and into adulthood with confidence and character.

Watching the world’s best mogul skiers descend on Waterville Valley last week felt like a full‑circle moment. The sport that was born here returned home, stronger, faster, and more spectacular than ever. The athletes who competed are the inheritors of a legacy that began in Waterville Valley with a handful of visionaries who believed skiing could be something more.

And standing along the fences, cheering them on, were the next generation — our WVABBTS athletes — eyes wide, imaginations sparked, dreams ignited.

This is the power of place.
This is the power of legacy.
This is the power of Waterville Valley.

WVABBTS remains committed to honoring the past while forging the future. The Mogul World Cup reminded the world what we already know: Waterville Valley is the birthplace of freestyle skiing, a proving ground for mavericks. WVABBTS is where the next chapter of this sport will continue to be written.