In spite of a heavy field of international competitors, Canadian talent dominated the 5-Star TTR Billabong Ante Up today. Not surprisingly, Quebec phenom Sebastien "Seb Toots" Toutant racked up another victory in his young career, taking the podium with a Cab 12 double-cork; he earned $20 grand and a spot in the upcoming Billabong Air and Style for his efforts, which saw him landing the trick for the first time in competition. The podium was rounded out by Mats Kulisek in second place (winning $10 grand) and Toots' bro and O'Neil teammate Mark McMorris in third (winning $6 grand). The Push.ca best trick rail contest was won by American Dash Kamp (who has one of the best pro shred names I've heard in a long time), who laid down a butter-smooth backslide lipslide to backside 50-50 to backside 360 out on the down-rail. He pocketed a cool $5 grand for his efforts.

"It was so good to put it down in a contest," said Toots just before accepting his prize - and getting thoroughly sprayed down with champagne by McMorris - of his winning trick. "I've done it on film, but had never done it in a contest. I saw what everyone else was doing and knew I had to go all-in if I wanted to win, so that's what I did."

Eric Willett on the Push.ca feature.

Toots' first jump in the finals saw him land the Cab double-cork 12 cleanly, earning a score of 96.3. He slightly sketched the landing of his second jump, but it didn't matter: his first score held strong, keeping him in first place through the second round. McMorris and Kulisek went down fighting, though, with McMorris landing a backside 12 double-cork and Kulisek landing one frontside. Kulisek, who qualified first into the finals, had the last jump of the contest, but drifted into the left corner of the landing and dramatically crashed into a group of photographers and filmers. Thankfully nothing worse than a few scratches and a bloody lip were sustained by anyone.

"Everybody was killing it today, with frontside and backside double-cork 12s. I knew I'd have to do a 12 to win," Toots commented. "It's so funny, though... a few years ago if you did a front 10 you could win. And now everyone's doing 12s and Torstein landed a triple cork. It's just changing so fast."

Kim Rune Hanson.

The day began dubiously, with many wondering if the contest would even happen today. Held at the Camp of Champions on the Blackcomb Glacier, the weather looked perfect this morning in Whistler Village, but grew ominous once practice began. Heavy clouds moved in, producing flat light, then a heavy fog layer rolled in and eliminated any reasonable visibility. With a live webcast waiting to begin, the event crew called a one-hour break in the schedule to see if visibility improved, giving the riders and media a chance to eat lunch in the Red Bull VIP tent.

Mark McMorris.

Then, like a scene out of a movie, the fog faded out and the sun shone through. It couldn't have been scripted better: the riders got a mellow break to eat and rest up, with perfect weather for desert. Practice resumed and two qualifying heats began, with the top six riders from each eat advancing.

Jonas Carlson over the gap while Mrs. Serfas and Annie Fast look on.

The start list was stacked, with Scotty Lago, Chas Guldemond, Lonnie Kauk, Yale Cousino, Kim Rune Hansen, Jonas Carlson and many other international pros traveling to Canada to compete. Homegrown talents like Jon Versteeg, Zak Stone and, of course, the top three podium finishers Toots, Kulisek and McMorris, proved to be up to the challenge. Anticipation was high to see Torstein Horgmo (would he do a triple cork?) and Haldor Helgason compete, but both dropped from the start list due to minor injuries.

Seb Toots.

The set-up was also impressive: a massive 75 foot gap jump, leading into the Push.ca rail set-up, which featured a down-flat-down box on one side and a long, round down-bar on the other. The glacier snow was slushy, but well groomed and maintained by the event crew, with minimal speed or landing problems for the riders. Campers attending the Camp of Champions had the bonus of watching the contest in person, as the set-up was right in the middle of the Camp's terrain area on the Blackcomb Glacier. The webcast was hosted by Push.ca among other sites, and a TV episode was produced by the TTR for airing later this fall.

Dash Kamp, winner for Best Trick on the Push.ca rail.

It's safe to assume that Toots, McMorris and Kulisek will all be celebrating tonight, but you can only expect to see Kulisek at the after-party, held at Whistler's Garfinkles nightclub. Toots is 17 and McMorris is 16, with Kulisek being the old man of the trio at 24. With no threat of the "10% rule" being enforced for the under-age Toots and McMorris, both of them can expect to return home with all of their winnings in their pockets.

Story by Matt Houghton

From L to R: Mats Kulisek, 2nd; Seb Toots, 1st; Mark McMorris, 3rd

Just added: Video from the finals, courtesy of the TTR. Watch for Push.ca's exclusive Ante Up video to be posted soon.

Plus: Read a brand new interview with winner Seb Toots here, and watch Push.ca's exclusive Ante Up video here.