Lilly, 24, who GearJunkie spoke with before the competition<\/a>, had his sights set on taking the crown from the start. When asked what his goal was, he said without hesitation, \u201cTo win.\u201d Then, he added, \u201cMy main goal is just to walk away proud. No matter what.\u201d<\/p>\n It seems Lilly was successful on both counts. This is the first time he\u2019s been crowned a Corbet\u2019s King.<\/p>\n Like Lilly, Kunst, 25, has competed in Kings & Queens before<\/a>; however, this is not her first time wearing the crown. Kunst was Corbet\u2019s Queen of 2022 and returned this year with a vengeance to win back the throne. She threw a perfect backflip on her first run, stomping the couloir landing and becoming the second female to ever do so.<\/p>\n Oh, and did we mention that Lilly and Kunst are together? This couple was crowned King & Queen on Valentine\u2019s Day \u2014\u00a0something that\u2019s never happened in the history of this competition. <\/p>\n Meet Your 2026 King & Queen of Corbet\u2019s<\/p>\n Being crowned King and Queen of Corbet\u2019s is an honor and a big accolade for any skier or rider\u2019s reputation. It isn\u2019t an official qualifier for other freeride competitions like the Freeride World Tour<\/a>, but it sure looks good to have a Corbet\u2019s crown on your resume. <\/p>\n More than that, Corbet\u2019s offers a prize purse, not just for the winners, but for all who podium in each category (men\u2019s skiing, women\u2019s skiing, men\u2019s snowboarding, and women\u2019s snowboarding). First place receives $5,000, second place receives $3,000, and third place receives $2,000. The King & Queen also receive an additional $5,000 each.<\/p>\n Because Lilly and Kunst took first place in both their categories and were crowned King and Queen, they walked away with $10,000. We caught up with the lucky couple to discuss how they feel post-competition, what it was like launching into that infamous couloir, and how they\u2019re going to spend their prize money. <\/p>\n Queen Piper Kunst<\/p>\n GearJunkie: This is your second time taking the throne at Corbet\u2019s. How does it feel to be crowned queen again?<\/p>\n Piper Kunst: My first time was in 2022, and that felt a little more exciting, I think. Because I was not on the map yet. I think I\u2019m more excited to have landed a backflip than to be crowned Queen, if that makes sense.<\/p>\n GJ: How long had you been planning\/practicing for that backflip into the couloir?<\/p>\n PK: I\u2019ve been doing backflips for a while. It\u2019s my most comfortable trick, I guess. I tried to do them last year and did not succeed. So I came back this year with the intention of landing one.<\/p>\n GJ: Your first run was killer. But you crashed at the very end off of the money booter. What happened there?<\/p>\n PK: Yeah. I just am not good at park jumps, I guess. I don\u2019t know. In years past, I\u2019ve avoided practicing on the park jump because \u2026 I just don\u2019t like them. This year, I actually hit it a lot. I was sessioning [the practice] for a couple of hours. And I just \u2014 I have some weird mental block with them that I could not execute on comp day, even though I knew how to. Like, I know how to do a front flip on a park jump, but just \u2014 I don\u2019t know.<\/p>\n GJ: So you\u2019re more comfortable throwing yourself off a massive cornice into an ungroomed couloir than hitting a park jump?<\/p>\n PK: Absolutely.<\/p>\n GJ: What was it like being crowned Queen at the same time your boyfriend is crowned King? That\u2019s never happened before. <\/p>\n PK: It\u2019s so cool. That was the coolest thing ever. And the fact that it was Valentine\u2019s day too \u2026 It\u2019s really special. And I\u2019m just stoked for [Tristen]. It\u2019s cool that I\u2019m up there too, but I\u2019m really, really excited for him.<\/p>\n GJ: The world wants to know what you\u2019re going to spend your prize money on. Are you going to go to Disneyland?<\/p>\n PK: No. I was actually really good the last time I won the prize money \u2014 the big pot \u2014 I put some of it away, but I used it mostly on rent. I think I\u2019m going to buy some sled accessories because I need a sled rack and maybe a tunnel bag and a new radio \u2026 some little ski stuff, but most of it I\u2019m just going to put away. I know that\u2019s not a very fun answer.<\/p>\n King Tristen Lilly<\/p>\n GearJunkie: How does it feel to have won a legendary competition like Kings & Queens?<\/p>\n Tristen Lilly: So crazy. I mean \u2026 Let\u2019s go! Winning was the goal, right? Goal accomplished.<\/p>\n GJ: There were a fair number of Salt Lake\u2013based skiers and riders on the podium this year, including you and Piper. Was that surprising?<\/p>\n TL: I wouldn\u2019t have been surprised to know that like four other Salt Lake [athletes] would be on the podium. There are a lot of riders in the comp from Salt Lake, and the pool of competitors from Salt Lake is just ridiculous.<\/p>\n GJ: Any plans for how you\u2019ll spend the prize money?<\/p>\n TL: Well, dude \u2026 Right now, I\u2019m doing everything I can to try to maybe not spend it. *laughs* Save it. Save it all! \u2026 Me and Piper were also talking about maybe buying a truck and a sled deck. I\u2019ve been running a kind of jank setup, but it works.<\/p>\n GJ: What was your favorite part about the competition this year?<\/p>\n TL: My favorite part this year was my favorite last year, too, which is just making some new friends. It\u2019s pretty cool how close you can feel with somebody whom you just met after doing something like this, having a sick week together.<\/p>\n GJ: How was the afterparty?<\/p>\n TL: It was good. Every time I went to the bar, I wasn\u2019t allowed to not do a tequila shot, so\u2026 Yeah, I think I had quite a bit of tequila.<\/p>\n GJ: Did you know you have any idea that you were going to win, after you watched the runs back?<\/p>\n TL: I don\u2019t know. I guess watching it made me feel a little better. It\u2019s hard to \u2026 you kind of black out and don\u2019t really remember much of the run. But after I think I saw the full thing, all the way through, I was like, \u201cOh, damn. That actually was pretty clean.\u201d<\/p>\n 2026 Kings and Queens of Corbet\u2019s Couloir Results<\/p>\n In the snowboarding categories, Jack MacDougall<\/a> and Ellie Weiler<\/a> took first place and earned $5,000 apiece. <\/p>\n The rest of the 2026 Kings & Queens of Corbet\u2019s Couloir results are as follows:<\/p>\n Men\u2019s Skiing<\/p>\n 1st \u2013 Tristen Lilly Women\u2019s Skiing<\/p>\n 1st \u2013 Piper Kunst Men\u2019s Snowboarding<\/p>\n 1st \u2013 Jack MacDougall Women\u2019s Snowboarding<\/p>\n 1st \u2013 Ellie Weiler \t![\"Corbet's](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Untitled-3-4.jpg\")
<\/a>(Photo\/Will Brendza)<\/p>\n![\"Piper](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Untitled-2-4.jpg\")
<\/a>(Photo\/JHMR)<\/p>\n![\"Tristian](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Untitled-4-1.jpg\")
<\/a>Tristen Lilly; (photo\/Kings & Queens of Corbet\u2019s)<\/p>\n![\"Kings](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Untitled-6-2.jpg\")
<\/a>(Photo\/Kings & Queens of Corbet\u2019s)<\/p>\n
2nd \u2013 Kelly Hilleke
3rd \u2013 Alex Hackel
4th \u2013 Wyatt Gentry
5th \u2013 Quinn Wolferman<\/p>\n
2nd \u2013 Valerie Festavan
3rd \u2013 Wynter McBride
4th \u2013 Ana Eyssimont<\/p>\n
2nd \u2013 Yuki Kadono
3rd \u2013 Nate Bromley
4th \u2013 Windham Miller
5th \u2013 Mike Bogs<\/p>\n
2nd \u2013 Madison Blackley
3rd \u2013 Sarka Pancochova
4th \u2013 Erika Vikander<\/p>\n