Bib numbers have been drawn, lines have been picked and the giant inflatable branding has been erected on the mountain - everything is set for the final of the Freeride World Tour, the Nissan Extreme by Swatch, in Verbier.

The Extreme is celebrating 15 years of competition this year, so to commemorate it the organisers have invited back all the previous winners, including Xavier de le Rue (snowboard, 2007 & 2009), Kaj Zackrisson (skier, 2006 & 2008) and Ruth Leisibach (snowboard, 2001, 2003, 2005, 2007 & 2008). The former two are competing this year - Ruth would be too if she wasn't injured.

Verbier is the final destination of the Freeride World Tour, which has already visited Sochi, Russia, Chamonix, France, and Squaw Valley, USA. At each destination, the male and female skiers and boarders have ridden lines down the biggest of off-piste faces, and been judged on their overall impression.

For the women, it's fairly certain who will walk away world champion tomorrow, but for the men, it's down to the wire. In the skiers, Kaj Zackrisson (Sweden), Candide Thovex (France) and Julien Lopez (France) are all in the running, while in the snowboarders, it's between Matt Annetts (USA), Xavier de le Rue (France) and Mitch Toelderer (Austria). But, as David Carlier (head of communications for FWT) pointed out, any of those leading riders could take a fall and be out of the running, leaving it open for everyone else.

For Aurelien Ducroz (France), pictured right, Freeride World Tour skiing champion in 2009, tomorrow is "super exciting". He has ridden the Bec des Rosses lots of times before so is feeling confident, but earlier today when eyeing it up through binoculars to pick his line, he paused and was full of humility. "Wow", he said, "This mountain needs resect."

The Bec Des Rosses (pictured below) is 3223 metres high and the athletes cover 600 metres of vertical on it. The degree of steepness is consistently between 45 and 60. Looking at it face on, it doesn't look horrendously steep, but standing at the bottom of it in the run out and it's a different story. Yet the riders have spent all day today scoping it out from Gentianes - trying to pick their lines between the rocks - then hiked it but weren't allowed to ride down it, and throughout have remained calm, friendly and jovial.

The atmosphere is one of camaraderie and sharing - lines are discussed, opinions sought. Kaj Zackrisson said, "I'm competing against myself, not the others."

Conditions for tomorrow are looking a little uncertain, but organisers are confident there's going to be a clear window from 10am to 3pm. From what I've seen so far today, the Extreme Verbier is set to be a mammoth show.