Can we stop giving Tanner Hall FWT wildcards?

hank.ski

hank.ski

Active member
Tanner got his first tour wildcard in 2019. He did...okay. it was enough to requalify for 2020, but if you watched all the stops, you'll recall that he has a few standout lines, but fell on the majority of his runs over the course of those 2 seasons.

Then he got hurt, and he took time off. In the meantime, the FWT handed wildcards to Max Palm and Max Hitzig. One of them landed the first ever double flip in FWT history, and then did it again. The other one put down one of the most impressive runs that Fieberbrunn has ever seen.

And this year, they threw Tanner another spot, because they know it will boost views. And I think it's kinda lame. We've seen the level of progression and innovation that new athletes are bringing to the tour. To me, it's much more refreshing and exciting to watch a young, unpredictable fireball than to see Tanner fighting for his 10th comeback career or whatever. And this isn't an insult to Tanner's skiing, he has unquestionably transformed our sport, and he reliably still throws down. I just think that if he really wants to prove himself, he should qualify for the tour in the FWQ circuit like almost everyone else, instead of punching the ticket that could have been used to bring a unique, unseen perspective to the tour.

Thoughts?
 
i think it’s rad that fwt acknowledges a true legend of the sport. and it’s only a wild card for one stop.

tanner did stomp a huge triple back in the ritschs roll event so it’s not like he’s fading out in any way, i’m excited to see him ski
 
I would agree that he isn't fading out of his skillset any time soon. But I know like 4 other young kids on the FWQ circuit who can do a triple backflip....and a lot more who would probably have a better go at a FWT stop than Tanner.

It just feels inauthentic to me. Like if Tanner wants it so bad, why has he never signed up for a qualifier event? I feel like one wildcard is enough of a nod to his impact and legacy, and if he really is capable of winning, he should be capable of qualifying.

14483981:kalle. said:
i think it’s rad that fwt acknowledges a true legend of the sport. and it’s only a wild card for one stop.

tanner did stomp a huge triple back in the ritschs roll event so it’s not like he’s fading out in any way, i’m excited to see him ski
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Fair point. I do love seeing Tanner ski on the FWT though even if he has an effect of sucking up all the oxygen in the proverbial room.

Imo a better way for the FWT to bring in new and maintain established talent would be to find a way to sweeten incentives with bigger purses and pay athletes just for participating. It seems to cater only to people from very privileged backgrounds who can afford to fly around the world risking devastating injuries with no guarantee of a meaningful paycheck. Hence why Tanner, a skiing legend can afford to accept wildcard spots when he's offered them. Money is no object for him and the FWT is a smart move for his brand as an athlete.

Ofc this is the same for any elite sport I guess. It would still be nice to see some progress though in terms of levelling the playing field slightly.

Summing up, there are larger systemic issues with sport organizations than giving any particular person a wildcard spot.
 
I think he deserves it since he is

Tanner Hall (insane take) but in all seriousness, it’s gonna be a depressing day when Tanner Hall can no longer huck the same. It’s pretty insane that he will keep coming back no matter what happens to him, shows the true passion to the sport.
 
14483984:hank.ski said:
I would agree that he isn't fading out of his skillset any time soon. But I know like 4 other young kids on the FWQ circuit who can do a triple backflip....and a lot more who would probably have a better go at a FWT stop than Tanner.

It just feels inauthentic to me. Like if Tanner wants it so bad, why has he never signed up for a qualifier event? I feel like one wildcard is enough of a nod to his impact and legacy, and if he really is capable of winning, he should be capable of qualifying.
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i can agree on the young talented riders! but i guess it comes down to money for the younger skiers? not being able to travel as much as the seasoned riders?

and i don’t know if tanner is in it for winning, i mean he qualified for extreme verbier but decided to go and film instead. then again the verbier venue doesn’t suit his style in my opinion.
 
Yeah, you're right. It is unfair to allow some people to have an unfair advantage because of how they feel.

Its almost like allowing transwomen to compete against women despite having a clear genetic advantage.
 
is there a metric by which you could argue that someone else deserves the wildcard more than tanner? probably, but in the grand scheme of things, i suspect that the additional eyes brought to the competitions by tanner being there is a net positive. there isn't really any way to disprove or confirm that hypothesis but i'm guessing the organizers are betting on that approach, or something approximating it. if the other skiers are good enough to qualify, then that solves the problem for them after all. rather than hoping for a wildcard, they can also just qualify (and take pride in that fact too). while he is in there, that's cool. if/when he is left out, i am sure it'll be fine too
 
Yesssss 100% agree. There’s soooo many good skiers out there that are on the same level as him and are fighting for their spot

Can’t wait to see you up there Hank!!!! You’re one of the best skiers I know
 
tanner disrespected everyone on the tour and especially those aspiring to be on the tour in 2019 when he bailed on the bec to "film his video"

i don't think he deserves another invite after that, but the fwt is just desperate
 
Hard agree with this take.

14484028:gravel said:
tanner disrespected everyone on the tour and especially those aspiring to be on the tour in 2019 when he bailed on the bec to "film his video"

i don't think he deserves another invite after that, but the fwt is just desperate
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I'm looking forward to seeing Phoenix Marie all dressed up in a Bogner Coat with a furhood and MoonBoots on cheering him at the bottom like a ski team mom
 
There is no money in the FWT they should invite anyone who can potentially bring in more sponsorship/money etc. Hardly any stops either no clue why they only have 5 events and not around 10.
 
Name two kids not just YOU but anyone else would want to see over THALL in the FWT?

Don't be hatin on the dude who's throwing effortless triples at near 40 years old.. I'll enjoy that style anyday.
 
Dear he/she/they,

who said tanner wants it so bad? Have you ever heard him talk about competing on the fwt? He doesn’t think a lot of it, and regards the whole ordeal as more of a shit show than anything. Why the actual hell would he try to qualify? Also, was he supposed to turn down the wildcard?

14483984:hank.ski said:
I would agree that he isn't fading out of his skillset any time soon. But I know like 4 other young kids on the FWQ circuit who can do a triple backflip....and a lot more who would probably have a better go at a FWT stop than Tanner.

It just feels inauthentic to me. Like if Tanner wants it so bad, why has he never signed up for a qualifier event? I feel like one wildcard is enough of a nod to his impact and legacy, and if he really is capable of winning, he should be capable of qualifying.
Click to expand...
 
Him being there probably benefits everyone since it brings more attention/sponsor dollars I would think.
 
Antti, Magnus, Karl, Blunck, P White, Pehota, Kuch, Cole Richardson, Sammy C (though I doubt he'd compete), Sander, Parkin Costain, Micah Evangelista, Durtschi, Tudor...the list goes on. Tanner Hall is still hyperrelevant oldheads and bros who think controversy is a personality trait....otherwise I'd say a lot of these skiers have similar measurable for current impact and engagement. Plus most of them are just better skiers than Tanner is right now.

14484067:Denseclouds said:
Name two kids not just YOU but anyone else would want to see over THALL in the FWT?

Don't be hatin on the dude who's throwing effortless triples at near 40 years old.. I'll enjoy that style anyday.
Click to expand...
 
Bro doesn't know how to use a proper noun smh

Anyway here's a screenshot from an interview with Tanner Hall about how he reached out to them. You can scroll through his IG captions and read his old interviews to find out that it is actually very important to him, one of his bucket list items, and the reason he came out of a 5 year retirement from competition.

1056311.jpeg

14484069:Chunderface said:
Dear he/she/they,

who said tanner wants it so bad? Have you ever heard him talk about competing on the fwt? He doesn’t think a lot of it, and regards the whole ordeal as more of a shit show than anything. Why the actual hell would he try to qualify? Also, was he supposed to turn down the wildcard?
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topic:hank.ski said:
And this isn't an insult to Tanner's skiing, he has unquestionably transformed our sport, and he reliably still throws down. I just think that if he really wants to prove himself, he should qualify for the tour in the FWQ circuit like almost everyone else, instead of punching the ticket that could have been used to bring a unique, unseen perspective to the tour.
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This sounds very reasonable to me
 
14484084:hank.ski said:
Bro doesn't know how to use a proper noun smh

Anyway here's a screenshot from an interview with Tanner Hall about how he reached out to them. You can scroll through his IG captions and read his old interviews to find out that it is actually very important to him, one of his bucket list items, and the reason he came out of a 5 year retirement from competition.

View attachment 1056311
Click to expand...

Why do you care? Shouldn't you be doing more important things like protesting a wedding cake factory?
 
14484081:hank.ski said:
Antti, Magnus, Karl, Blunck, P White, Pehota, Kuch, Cole Richardson, Sammy C (though I doubt he'd compete), Sander, Parkin Costain, Micah Evangelista, Durtschi, Tudor...the list goes on. Tanner Hall is still hyperrelevant oldheads and bros who think controversy is a personality trait....otherwise I'd say a lot of these skiers have similar measurable for current impact and engagement. Plus most of them are just better skiers than Tanner is right now.
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Fair. When you said " To me, it's much more refreshing and exciting to watch a young, unpredictable fireball " I thought you had some younger less renowned talent in mind.. You just named a bunch of legends/OG's that have been around for a decade+ , (besides cole and micah). All of which I'd love to see as well.
 
I agree/disagree. It’s only for one stop so I see it as less of an affront to those that worked to be there, and more as an appeal to a broader audience by featuring one of freeskiings legends. That said, as you pointed out, way more people I’d rather see as wildcards. And given the level of competition on the tour (this seasons gonna be great) I it find hard to believe that he’s going to do that well. Future of the tour is 100 percent with the youth right now on both the men’s and women’s side.
 
Yeah valid. I'd love to see the Kicking Horse wildcard go back to Hank Bilous, mostly because his one hack at Ozone was unreal. Idk if he wants it either tho.

14484097:iang said:
I agree/disagree. It’s only for one stop so I see it as less of an affront to those that worked to be there, and more as an appeal to a broader audience by featuring one of freeskiings legends. That said, as you pointed out, way more people I’d rather see as wildcards. And given the level of competition on the tour (this seasons gonna be great) I it find hard to believe that he’s going to do that well. Future of the tour is 100 percent with the youth right now on both the men’s and women’s side.
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14484096:Denseclouds said:
Fair. When you said " To me, it's much more refreshing and exciting to watch a young, unpredictable fireball " I thought you had some younger less renowned talent in mind.. You just named a bunch of legends/OG's that have been around for a decade+ , (besides cole and micah). All of which I'd love to see as well.
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Dylan Flinders is also a maniac as well. Excited to see him ski being an LCC local himself
 
I just meant younger than Tanner or fresh to the tour.

14484096:Denseclouds said:
Fair. When you said " To me, it's much more refreshing and exciting to watch a young, unpredictable fireball " I thought you had some younger less renowned talent in mind.. You just named a bunch of legends/OG's that have been around for a decade+ , (besides cole and micah). All of which I'd love to see as well.
Click to expand...
 
14484119:hank.ski said:
I just meant younger than Tanner or fresh to the tour.
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What do you mean? Tanner Hall identifies as a really young ripper so that's exactly what you have.
 
Honestly I think we should just get rid of it all; this sport sucks and groups like SLVSH and anyone that’s not actually Andre R should be kicked off the mountains. They are ruining skiing
 
I heard she's pretty rad from someone who's interacted with both of them

14484037:DeebieSkeebies said:
I'm looking forward to seeing Phoenix Marie all dressed up in a Bogner Coat with a furhood and MoonBoots on cheering him at the bottom like a ski team mom
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I'm stoked to watch T_Hall throw down.

The new guys are obviously good; but they are a dime a dozen. I wanna see this old horse give it all he has. It makes it fun.
 
14484123:skierman said:
What do you mean? Tanner Hall identifies as a really young ripper so that's exactly what you have.
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Watching everyone ignore the fuck out of you is hilarious. That’s all.
 
I literally only ever watched a FWT tour stop because I wanted to see how Tanner ski'd.

Also look at the demographic of who spends money in snow. Theres a reason Volcom/Arbor is hanging on tight to Brian Iguchi...

Progression isn't the only commodity... in fact... if you look at action sports pay in general you can contest that progression isn't actually very valuable...

Look at who sells out rock arena's and at what ticket price... even if they are just playing the classics...
 
14484145:skierman said:
I'm just curious what you mean by a "younger" skier. What makes someone younger?
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Bro goes wildly bigoted and then says “I’m just curious”. Your bad faith is showing punk
 
I've done a little work in advertising and marketing, and one thing I've learned is that you really shouldn't use all your resources targeting the people who already buy your product.

14484153:eljefe said:
I literally only ever watched a FWT tour stop because I wanted to see how Tanner ski'd.

Also look at the demographic of who spends money in snow. Theres a reason Volcom/Arbor is hanging on tight to Brian Iguchi...

Progression isn't the only commodity... in fact... if you look at action sports pay in general you can contest that progression isn't actually very valuable...

Look at who sells out rock arena's and at what ticket price... even if they are just playing the classics...
Click to expand...
 
14484157:hank.ski said:
I've done a little work in advertising and marketing, and one thing I've learned is that you really shouldn't use all your resources targeting the people who already buy your product.
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Agreed... but the topic at hand isn't the entire budget...its one wildcard slot...
 
14484156:FreezyBreezy said:
Bro goes wildly bigoted and then says “I’m just curious”. Your bad faith is showing punk
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Bigotry "unreasonable attachment to a belief, opinion, or faction; in particular, prejudice against a person or people on the basis of their membership of a particular group."

That sounds an awful lot like the woke crowd. Just ask Dave Chappelle.
 
14484169:skierman said:
Bigotry "unreasonable attachment to a belief, opinion, or faction; in particular, prejudice against a person or people on the basis of their membership of a particular group."

That sounds an awful lot like the woke crowd. Just ask Dave Chappelle.
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Bait harder
 
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