Over three days and led by new EC coach Lukas Gruener, a former World Cup racer who finished in sixth position at the Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver back in 2010, the up-and-coming talents of the Austrian team have kicked off their season preparations.

Besides some mountain biking in the Oetzal Alps the young racers also had to take up a special challenge on the Rettenbachferner.

On 2,800 m above sea level, the OESV youngsters had to master the six kilometres long downhill track called 'Teäre Linie' which is peppered with a total of 130 turns from the middle station of the Gaislachkogel gondola down into the village of Soelden, a former FIS Snowboard World Cup host.

In addition, some pumptrack exercises were also on the programme to work on the sbx-related movement sequences.