Pro Skiers Reflect on Their Historic Corbet's Couloir Double Backflips

Pro ski film stars, Parkin Costain and Jake Hopfinger, visit Jackson Hole Mountain Resort on mountain bikes to reflect on their history-making first-ever double back flips during the King and Queen’s of Corbet’s event. POWDER catches up with Parkin about this pivotal moment in the sport of skiing and gives us a behind-the-scenes look at the impact on his skiing from that iconic experience.  

​Watch the video to check out the impressive cliff and how mighty steep Corbet’s Couloir looks without winter’s white dusting. Chute skiing may not be your thing, but it is hard not to be in awe over the incredible skill and talents of these two, and Parkin continues to share his powerful artistry and mastery of sport in his high-energy segment in TGR’s latest film, Pressure Drop.

Keep reading to hear more from Parkin.

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Reflecting back on 2020, when you threw down the first-ever double backflip—how has this changed your career trajectory as an athlete?

Kings & Queens was a huge lift for my career. In total, I participated in the event five times, being crowned in 2020 and finishing third in 2022. Regardless of the podium placement, I always walked away with an appreciation for the athletes and team that made the event happen. The audience they presented to us was unlike any other I’d experienced in a contest before. Overnight, I generated millions of impressions and advanced my career significantly. Making it onto ESPN’s top 10 was a highlight, too.   

​How did the double backflip idea come about for Jackson Hole Corbet’s Couloir event?

It all stemmed from my first Kings & Queens show back in 2019. At that moment, I was relatively unknown and knew I wanted to make an impact. During the event, I performed a big flip off the top and then immediately redirected to the next feature, sending a double off a man-made jump in the middle of the couloir. The trick came around but not perfectly, and for the next year, I thought about whether one off the top would be landable.

Heading into the 2020 event, I was hyped to be back and have my good friend Jake Hopfinger along for the ride. Jake was a few spots ahead of me on the start list, which gave me a definite advantage. He was the first one to truly ride out of a double in Corbet’s, and getting to watch his rotation allowed me to set the perfect amount and bring mine around to bolts.

​Some background on how you and Jake felt before you pulled this off—day of the event?

Prior to dropping in, Jake and I were as nervous as anyone could be, but we were also confident. We had put a ton of thought into it, and the night before had spent hours discussing how we’d build the perfect takeoff for the double.

​What’s up for you next? Projects for this winter?

Heading into this season, I’ve got a few things in the works, but primarily plan to focus on filming with Teton Gravity Research and a new personal project of mine.

You and Jake have done tons together—what other moments or projects stand out and why?

Jake and I have certainly had a few notable moments together. From working on our first film projects, Dollar Store and Mixtape, to filming TGR segments, there are endless stories to tell. If we narrow it down to one, though, I’m clearly thinking about this wild feature we built back in early 2023. 

The winter in southwest Montana was off to a rough start, while we had been trying to stack clips with TGR. There were some challenging avalanche conditions and low snow levels all around, so we decided to get creative and unknowingly cornered ourselves into the largest jump construction we had ever taken part in. Five days in total of shoveling, and we finally finished the feature, which was soon to be named “Orbital Gap.” 

We did a few speed checks and, after a couple of overshoots, thought we had finally perfected the drop-in point. On our first real take, I knew I didn’t have the speed the moment I took off. Everything happened so fast, I didn’t have time to brace for impact. Lying on the ground, a few moments later, I was dazed but not knocked out. Jake called over, “You alright?” in the nonchalant way a friend would. Needless to say, that was the end of the session, and we headed for the hospital. The impact was so aggressive that I blew out my left orbital socket, which has kept the eye a little further in my skull than the other side.

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