The backflip queen. Veronica Paulsen beams after becoming the first woman to attempt a double backflip into Corbet’s Couloir at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort, WY, in February 2023. Photo: Stephen Shelesky

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Seeking Uncomfortable with Veronica Paulsen

Standing at the top of Corbet’s Couloir at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort, WY, in the winter of 2018, Veronica Paulsen stared at the massive lip. There was a collective buzz of nerves and excitement as athletes huddled at the top of the iconic line, which had been adorned with a massive diving board, dropping a minimum of 15 feet into the landing. She was among a select group of skiers and snowboarders invited to participate in an unprecedented freeride event, Kings and Queens of Corbet’s. The premise was simple: trick into the couloir.

That first year, the event was more akin to a booter session with friends than a formal freeride competition. Skiers and riders threw everything from swan-dive front flips to double back flips—the prevailing attitude was to go full gas. Paulsen watched this all unfold, plotting her run. No stranger to being upside down, the former moguls skier had debated whether to go for a backflip. She wasn’t quite settled on her plan until fellow skier Mackenzie Lisac attempted a backflip. Lisac didn’t stomp it, but it inspired Paulsen. She tried twice, crashed twice, and emerged with a goal that would drive her next few years.

In 2019 she returned, ready to give it another go. She launched herself into the iconic chute, getting closer each time. Still, a clean landing eluded her. Hitting the landing “felt like getting slammed by a bus,” yet Paulsen picked herself back up, ready to go again. Friends encouraged her to go for a straight air and stomp it, something she’d done dozens of times before. Playing it safe could probably still earn her a spot on the podium—why risk it? But Paulsen was committed.


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