One Meter Wide, 110 Meters Deep – Freeskiers And Snowboarders Showcase World-Class Action On A Narrow Mountain Ridge

In the heart of the Julian Alps in northeast Italy, four winter sports athletes have conquered a 350-metre-long course built on a ridge just a few metres wide, on the Sella Nevea Pass. A real no-fall zone, dotted with rocky edges up to 110 metres deep, requiring millimetre precision from these ski and snowboard athletes. Every jump, landing and decision counts to master the entire course. Wakeboard professional and passionate snowboarder Felix Georgii (GER), 2024 Freeride World Tour Champion Max Hitzig (GER), Italian Olympic team member Ian Matteoli (ITA) and 2022 Olympian Fabian Bösch (SUI) took on the challenge. 

Key facts

• Location: Sella Nevea, Italy

Athletes:

• Felix Georgii (GER), wakeboarding: X Games Real Wake Gold 2017

• Max Hitzig (GER), freeski: Freeride World Tour Champion 2024

• Ian Matteoli (ITA), snowboard: first snowboarder to land a frontside 2160, 2nd place in Big Air World Cup overall ranking 2024/25

• Fabian Bösch (SUI), freeski: 1st place in the FIS Freestyle Ski World Championships Slopestyle 2015, 1st place in the Winter X Games Big Air Aspen 2016, first freeskier to land a ‘Quad Cork 1980’ (four somersaults with five and a half twists)

Terrain: Narrow mountain ridge with steep slopes on both sides – a real no-fall zone with features partly based on the natural topography

Trick features:

• Step-Down: located on a rocky ridge, with a stable take-off on a rocky outcrop, and a landing adapted to the slope.

• Rainbow Rail: the 6-metre-long, 3.5-metre-high Rainbow Rail stands on a natural elevation, with optimised transitions for flow and safe landing.

• Mini Gap: the 10-metre-long, 3-metre-high Mini Gap takes advantage of the natural ridge and offers perfect speed, flow and snow cover.

• Big Gap: at about 20 metres, the Big Gap leads over two cliffs into a slightly sloping landing and requires riding through the jump completely.

• Flat Rail: this 6-metre-long rail is built between two huge boulders. It bridges a steep 45° slope, making the rail spectacular. 

• Down Rail: runs downhill along a very steep and exposed section. Narrow landing zone.

• Pump & Push: this 30-metre-long intermediate section connects two parts of the descent, runs slightly uphill and requires some speed. At only one metre wide, it’s the narrowest part of the course.

The full action clip is now available on the Red Bull YouTube channel: 

The course, located at an altitude of 2,050 metres, features eight jumps and obstacles and runs just a few metres from the rock face over a 110-metre-deep gorge. At its narrowest point, a 30-metre-long pump track stretches across a ridge just a metre wide. The four athletes need to be focused and precise. ‘It's all about doing tricks as perfectly as possible. There's no room for risky landings here,’ says Georgii. It gets particularly challenging when two athletes are riding at the same time, a few arm's lengths apart.

Even experienced professionals have to calculate every move precisely on this course. The 350-metre-long, hand-built course is truly unique – many elements were created based on the natural topography of the mountain ridge. Georgii, Hitzig, Matteoli and Bösch delivered spectacular jumps and lines that require both courage and technique. ‘Fortunately, I'm not afraid of heights – but I still tried to look straight ahead and never down,’ says Matteoli. Bösch found the course to be the perfect set-up for him: ‘I'm usually so focused when riding that I don't look left or right – I only see the course.’ 

It is a mental tightrope, as it tests the athletes' mental strength, skills and nerves. ‘The hardest part was getting a feel for the course and overcoming mental blocks – you simply can't afford to make any mistakes,’ reveals Bösch, a Swiss slopestyle and big air athlete. ‘The gap rail is the craziest feature, where you have the least room for error,’ adds Matteoli. Georgii and Bösch agree – the seven-metre-long rail runs over a 110-metre-deep abyss. ‘Mentally, it was a big challenge,’ confirms Bösch. ‘But once you've overcome it, you're fully in it!’