KRIPPENSTEIN, AUSTRIA: Best Snow in Europe?

After 10 days of searching for the very best Europe has to offer, Christian Pondella and I fell into the motherly arms of Krippenstein, Austria, just outside of Fuschl, the happy home of Red Bull’s world headquarters. We had embarked on what we thought would be a European vacation filled with powder skiing, epic shooting and pain au chocolat eating. Unfortunately, Verbier, Switzerland, Solden and the Stubai Glacier in Austria left us longing for a powder fix and some semi-safe skiing. Avalanche danger was at an all time high and we were accepting the fact that we may be heading back to North America empty handed. Just in time, we landed in Krippenstein and found ourselves skiing 4500 feet of sustained, featured vertical under blue skies in blower pow.

Krippenstein is located only an hour and a half from Salzburg, the proud home of The Sound of Music and countless weinerschnitzl’s. The hourly upload capacity is about 100 and there’s not a ton of glitz and glamour that can be found in places like St. Anton, Davos, Verbier and Chamonix, only a few hours away. When it comes to terrain, Krippenstein delivers with a solid vertical drop and not a ton of North Americans, Swedes or Frenchies fighting for the best lines. Of course that will all change once the word gets out but for now, Krippenstein is home to only a couple of pros and a ski bum or three. That’s it.

Stay tuned for more shots. Pondella killed it as usual making him guilty once again for exposing a European secret to the masses. - Bryce Phillips

Athlete: Clemens Stiebock